When Bhagwan Swaminarayan set out to travel the length and breadth of India to liberate souls in His spiritual journey, He asked everyone one question. He was on a quest to discover the truth about the five eternal elements discussed in the ancient scriptures. He found a reasonable answer in Loj from Ramananad Swami’s chief disciple, Muktanand Swami. He accepted Ramanand Swami as His guru and then established the Swaminarayan Sampraday in Gujarat. Bhagwan Swaminarayan describes these five eternal elements and their relationship in great detail throughout the Vachanamrut. These five eternal elements were originally revealed by the Vedas. Prior to Bhagwan Swaminarayan’s explanation, the acharyas of the Vaishnav Sampraday had only spoken of three metaphysical elements. The five eternal elements are: jiva, ishwar, maya, Brahma, and Parabrahma.