Dada Khachar (1800–1852) was a devotee of

Swaminarayan Swaminarayan (IAST: '; 3 April 1781 – 1 June 1830), also known as Sahajanand Swami, was a yogi and Asceticism, ascetic believed by followers to be a manifestation of Krishna or the highest Theophany, manifestation of Purushottama, around wh ...

and the ''Darbar Shri'' of

Gadhada Gadhada is a town and a municipality in Botad District in the state of Gujarat, India. Gadhada is situated at bank of River Ghela. Swaminarayan lived here for more than 25 years. Geography Gadhada is located at . It has an average elevatio ...

. His father was Ebhel Khachar and his mother Somadevi. His maiden name was ''Uttamsinh''. He came to be known as Dada Khachar and had four sisters: Jaya (Jivuba), Lalita (Laduba), Panchali, and Nanu. The entire family were followers of Swaminarayan. It was because of the insistence of Dada Khachar and his sisters that Swaminarayan made Dada Khachar's Darbar (court) in

his home for over 27 years. Dada Khachar and his sisters requested Swaminarayan to build a temple in Gadhada. They offered their own place of residence for this purpose. A massive temple,

Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Gadhada Swaminarayan Mandir, Gadhada (Devnagari: श्री स्वामिनारायण मन्दिर, गढडा), also known as Gopinathji Dev mandir, is a Hindu temple in Gadhada, Gujarat, India. This Swaminarayan Sampradaya temple ...

, was constructed in the courtyard of Dada's darbar, and became a place of pilgrimage for followers of Swaminarayan. Swaminarayan himself brought stones on his head from the

River Ghela The River Ghela is a river that runs through the town of Gadhada in the Indian state of Gujarat. The Ghela river originates from the Jasdan hills, near Fulzar village in the Jasdan district and flows into the Arabian sea. Its length is 118 km ...

for the foundation of the temple. The

idol Idol or Idols may refer to: Religion and philosophy * Cult image, a human-made object that is venerated or worshipped for the deity, spirit or daemon that it embodies or represents * Murti, a devotional image of a deity or saint used during puja ...

of Gopinath was installed in the central shrine of the temple. When Swaminarayan departed for His abode, Akshardham, Dada Khachar rushed to jump on the funeral pyre, but was held back by

Gopalanand Swami Gopalanand Swami (1781–1852) was a paramhansa of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya who was ordained by Swaminarayan. He worked and guided many followers to spread the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. The Swaminarayan Sampradaya believes that Gopala ...

who told Dada Khachar to go to the mango tree in Laxmiwadi where Swaminarayan frequently held assemblies.

References

External links

Hari Bhakt Dada Khachar
{{Swaminarayan Sampraday Swaminarayan Sampradaya