Author Description

Swami Sahajananda (1781-1830), the founder of the Swaminarayan Movement, considered by his followers as an embodiment of Krishna, let Swami Shatananda write the Satsangijivanam in order to vouchsafe that his presence and teaching live on among his followers in and through this text. The extensive work is composed in Sanskrit and is here presented in an English summary. The text describes the biography of Swami Sahajananda and is an important document for the religious situation in the Gujarat of its time; it testifies to the religious practices (festivals, norms and values for private and public life) by which Swaminarayan wanted to replace practices (like animal sacrifice) that were considered as abuses. The content of the text is made accessible through a detailed index.