Shloka : 4

मुकुंदानंदमुख्याश्च नैष्ठिका ब्रह्मचारिण: ।

गृहस्थाश्च मयारामभट्टाद्या ये मदाश्रया: ॥ 4 ॥

તથા અમારા આશ્રિત એવા જે મુકુંદાનંદ આદિક નૈષ્ઠિક બ્રહ્મચારી તથા અમારા આશ્રિત જે મયારામ ભટ્ટ આદિક ગૃહસ્થ સત્સંગી. ॥ 4 ॥

And my devotees like Mukundananda etc. who are staunch celibates and my devotees like Mayaram Bhatt etc. who are householder disciples. || 4 ||

Commentary

Celibacy is complete abstinence of the sensual as well as sexual desires through body, mind and speech throughout all the stages of life. Whoever, follows such celibacy for the lifetime is called a staunch celibate. A Person who follows celibacy for a certain time period is called 'Upkurvanak'. In Kaliyug, scriptures do not approve prolonged celibacy. But this is for a person who has not surrendered himself to Supreme God, hence is devoid of the spiritual support of Supreme Lord. Such person is unable to conquer his desires and hence just a sight of a woman can distract him. But 'Kama' i.e. sexual urge or power of Kaliyug cannot deviate the true devotees of Shri Swaminarayan Bhagwan as they have achieved stability of mind through the blessings of a learned and God-realized Guru and by following the code of conduct sincerely. Such staunch devotees, who have gained strength through devotion towards the religion of Shri Harikrishna Bhagwan, are protected by Shri Hari and His Muktas by all means.

Now, in this Shloka, staunch celibates like Mukundananda etc. are mentioned prior to the householder disciples. The purpose of this preference could be that they can grasp the holy teachings instantly due to their vow of lifetime celibacy, and due to clear perception the holy teachings can be firmly rooted into their consciousness. Due to their staunch vow, these people have to repent more than householder disciples, if they are distracted from their path, knowingly or unknowingly.

Now, among the householder disciples, Mayaram Bhatt is a Brahmin, not only by birth but by virtue and deeds, also. His name is therefore mentioned prominently. Moreover, such Brahmins are of Satwik nature, therefore they can grasp the holy teachings quickly.

Besides the term ' ये मदाश्रयाः ' in this Shloka indicates that Shriji Maharaja is writing this Shikshapatri for His devotees. Scriptures say that the Guru is the most compassionate person. So, Shri Hari has written this Shikshapatri for the welfare of His devotees, evenif there was no request from them.