His Divine Holiness Acharya Swamishree, as part of His 2014 vicharan of North America, toured the state of Tennessee from Saturday, July 19, 2014, through Monday, July 21, 2014. He performed padhramanis at the homes of disciples and their various places of business whilst providing blessings to them all and propagating the glory of Lord Swaminarayanbapa Swamibapa.
Sunday, July 20, 2014 was yet another special day for the disciples of Tennessee and the worldwide Maninagar Shree Swaminarayan Gadi Sansthan parivar. Gurudev Jeevanpran Shree Muktajeevan Swamibapa and Acharya Swamishree's divine efforts came to fruition yet again, as Acharya Swamishree ceremoniously installed the divine murtis of Lord Shree Swaminarayan, Jeevanpran Shree Abji Bapashree, and Jeevanpran Shree Muktajeevan Swamibapa in yet another Hari Mandir at the newly-built home of a disciple in Columbia, Tennessee. A grand annkut and aarti were offered to the Lord, Acharya Swamishree showered His divine blessings, and various handmade garlands and garments were offered to Acharya Swamishree in celebration of the occasion. The disciples of Tennessee and the southeastern states of the United States now have a common place to congregate on special occasions, such as Sadguru Din, Ekadashi, and Diwali, to praise the Lord, sing His glories, and learn His divine philosophy. This new Hari Mandir, where the Lord showers His divine darshan, will allow the faith of all of these disciples and of those who visit the mandir to strengthen with each passing day.
There is a special story behind this Hari Mandir that is worth sharing to demonstrate how the Lord completes all of our endeavors if we have the utmost faith in Him. The home in which the Hari Mandir resides was built in just two months. The disciple owning this home had a deep desire to have it built within two months so that Acharya Swamishree could perform the idol-installation ceremony in the month of July. The disciple searched for many contractors in Tennessee, but he found only one, Larry Vick, who had enough faith in the Lord to say, "I will build your home in two months if you pray to the Lord that there will be no rain in these two months while we construct." The disciple prayed to Lord Swaminarayanbapa Swamibapa and Acharya Swamishree and also discussed the situation with Acharya Swamishree and sants. Acharya Swamishree gave the disciple His blessings to proceed construction work with Larry Vick and assured the disciple that it would not rain. During the two months of construction, there was not a single drop of rain. It only started to rain when the very last shingle was placed on the home's roof, completing construction of the home. The disciple and the contractor became extremely pleased, and their faith in the Lord and Acharya Swamishree, which had already been paramount, exponentially increased.
Upon witnessing this miraculous episode of the Lord and Acharya Swamishree's divine prowess, the contractor, Larry Vick, insisted that he personally hand over the keys to the new home to Acharya Swamishree. He wanted the hand over the keys to the divine being who had made this miracle happen. As such, Larry would not give any keys (garage door, side door, or front door) to the home-owning disciple until Acharya Swamishree arrived. Larry wanted to perform the darshan of Acharya Swamishree and hand the keys himself. The disciple obliged, and Larry Vick received blessings from Acharya Swamishree whilst He took the keys from Larry and opened the home for the very first time.
This divine episode of the Lord and Acharya Swamishree's prowess demonstrates that anyone, disciple or not, who has faith in the Lord's divine powers will surely achieve all of their well-intended goals and have all of their heart's endeavors completed, with the Lord's blessings on their side.
As such, the Hari Mandir in Columbia, Tennessee, has been opened for all moksh-seeking individuals. The disciples of Tennessee and the Southeast region of the United States, who have demonstrated such strong faith in the Lord, will surely continue to blossom through this mandir with the Lord's blessings.