The life of Sadguru Shree Adbhutanand Swami, a sadhu who reached the pinnacle of detachment (vairagya), renunciation, service, and spiritual practice, was simple, sincere, and completely devoted to Bhgwan. A rare event from his life is written in the history of the sampraday: he severed his worldly ties in a single stroke right from the marriage altar (mandva) and reached the presence of Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan with a mala in his hand while still wearing his wedding threads (mindhol).
Born as Kalyandas to father Sangha Patel and mother Devubai in the village of Kadu near Lakhtar in the Surendranagar district, he remained distant from worldly pleasures even as a child. To him, even the most beautiful material objects were trivial. Driven by a strong desire to connect with the divine, he became a follower of Sadguru Shree Ramanand Swami in Kariyani in V.S. 1852 (1796 C.E.). Day by day, his devotion increased and his detachment from anything other than Bhagwan grew intense. However, as he came of age, he was prepared for marriage. While he was performing the wedding circumambulations (mangal pheras) and reciting the sacred verses, a letter from Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan arrived for his uncle, Aja Patel, calling him to Bhuj:
“Aja, Jiva, Virdas, Ladha, Kala, and Kamalshi, aadik, join together; Renounce all homes and families to become Paramhansas.”
When Kalyandas heard word “aadik,” he believed he was included in that call. He immediately abandoned the wedding ceremony to surrender to Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan. In doing so, his bride-to-be was not upset at all, realizing the greater purpose of Kalyandas’ life. Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan was immensely pleased upon seeing Kalyandas arrive to Bhuj. He called Kalyandas near, personally untied the wedding thread (mindhol) from his wrist, and remarked, “You have done an amazing (adbhut) deed; therefore, I name you Adbhutanand Swami.”
After becoming a sadhu, although he was indifferent to the world, he traveled constantly for the spiritual welfare of other souls. His name is taken with the same respect as Nishkulanand Swami when discussing intense detachment. While traveling to spread the Satsang in Khandesh (Maharashtra), King Narsinhji of Kunjbari was so impressed by Swami’s divine aura and brilliance that he decided to offer his two daughters in marriage along with a portion of his kingdom to Swami. Even in that moment of worldly temptation, Swami’s detachment flashed like lightning; he secretly fled the palace and its luxuries overnight.
Despite his solitary nature of renunciation, he laid the deep foundations of Satsang in many villages such as Vaso, Bhadam, Kandari, Vemardi, and Choranda. Furthermore, he served as the Mahant of Dholera Mandir for decades. Following the departure of Bhagwan Shree Swaminarayan, Adbhutanand Swami greatly contributed to taking care of the satsang.
The scripture Acharyoday mentions that Swami was present in Mumbai in V.S. 1924 (1868 C.E.) when Acharya Shree Bhagwatprasadji Maharaj performed murti pratishtha. Even in V.S. 1935 (1879 C.E.), when Acharya Shree Viharilalji Maharaj ascended the gadi, Swami continued to do satsang vicharan despite his advanced age. Out of all of the Nand Santo, Adbhutanand Swami served the Swaminarayan Sampraday for the longest period of time. On Kartik Sud 14 V.S. 1939 (1882 C.E.), Adbhutanand Swami returned to Akshardham.