Observance Of Five Vows – Must For All
Lord Swaminarayan was very simple and straightforward in His directives. He said that whosoever wants to embrace His Sampradaya must first take a vow to abstain from
1. Drinking wine, liquor, or any intoxicating drug in any form,
2. Eating flesh in any form under any case,
3. An act of stealing,
4. Debauchery, and
5. Partaking food and drinks from improper persons and sources.
These five vows are known in Sampradaya as “Panch Vartman”. Observance of these five vows is a must for each and every follower of the Sampradaya, may he be an Acharya or a Tyagi or a Gruhasth male of female. These vows appear simple on paper, but in practice they cover almost all items which otherwise make human life unhappy. Any one who is not even a follower of the Sampradaya, observes these vow sincerely, he would be definitely be happy and respects.