His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj had implanted the seeds of satsang in Western Canada during his 1988 vicharan. Satsang continued to grow as swamis frequently travelled to the west regions covering Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.
Monday, July 1, 2013 - Canada Day, marked a historic day for satsang in western Canada, when it was gifted with its first BAPS Mandir to serve West Canada. The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Calgary located at 3688 - 48th Ave. NE (within Calgary Rotary Challenger Park) was inaugurated with great fanfare. The highly anticipated day brought with it a surge of devotion and a flurry of celebrations.
Pujya Gnanpriyadas Swami performed the inauguration ceremony of the Mandir, opening its doors to the public. The inauguration day began with vedic mahapuja for the Murti Sthapan Vidhi. The ceremony culminated with the placement of the divine murtis of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Aksharbrahman Gunatitanand Swami, Shri Radha-Krishna, Shri Sita-Ram-Hanumanji, Shri Shiv-Parvati-Ganeshji and the Guru Parampara.
Special guests at the event included Mr. Devinder Shory, Member of Parliament for Calgary Northeast and Mr. Jim Stevenson, Calgary Alderman for Ward 3 along with business and community leaders.
The children and youth of Calgary presented a colourful heritage program in the inaugural assembly.