Shree Jalaram Mandir

Shree Jalaram Bapa was born in the year 1799 (i.e. 4-11-1799) in the village Virpur, Gujarat. His mother, Rajbai was very fond of serving sadhus and saints. No sadhu and saint could go from Virpur without receiving the hospitality from Rajbai. Shree Jalaram Bapa’s father’s name was Pradhan Thakkar, who was engaged in business. At the tender age of 16, Jalaram Bapa married Virbai, daughter of Thakkar Pragji Somaiya. Jalaram Bapa was however not inclined to live household life and to continue to do business with his father. He was mostly engaged in serving sadhus and saints. He separated himself from his father’s business and stayed with his uncle, Valjibhai, who was very fond of Jalaram. It was obvious that Jalaram Bapa was inclined to completely withdraw from marital life. Fortunately his wife, Virbaima decided to follow the path of Jalaram. So, when Jalaram decided to go for a pilgrimage for holy places, Virbaima followed him. At the age of 18, Jalaram Bapa accepted Shree Bhojalram from Fatehpur as guru and was given a “Guru Mala and Mantra” in the name of Shree Ram. With blessings of his guru, he started “Sadavrat” a feeding center, a place where all sadhus and saints as well as the needy could have food any time during 24 hours. Nobody returned from that place without having food. All this he did single handed with Virbaima assisting him. Soon his fame spread as an incarnation of the divine. Whoever came to Virpur, whether Hindu or Muslim was fed by Bapa. Once, four Arabs in the service of Thakore of Rajkot demanded an increase in wages by four rupees in a month. Being refused, the Arabs resigned and set out to Junagadh. On their way, they hunted few birds and kept them in their hamcha (shoulder bag). When they reached Virpur, Bapa asked them to have their meals and then go. When they protested that they were Muslims, Bapa said that in the court of God there was no distinction in caste and creed and they were welcome. The four Arabs had their meals in the temple but they were embarrassed that they were carrying dead birds in their bag. The Bapa touched the bag and said that the birds were feeling suffocated. The Arabs opened the bag and found that the birds were alive. They flew away to a nearby tree. The Arabs were amazed and understood that they were in the presence of divine person. They fell at his feet and asked whether they would get a job in Junagadh. Bapa said “What was the need to have a job in Junagadh? The Arabs serve only one master.” Just at that time, a camel man sent by Thakore of Rajkot arrived there. He took back the Arabs with him saying that Thakore has sanctioned an increment of seven rupees in their wages. There are many stories about the greatness of the saint of Virpur. Remembering the stories, we can fill the heart with devotion and gratitude. In 1881 (i.e. 23-2-1881) Jalaram Bapa left his body in his prayers. This is the story of the great saint of Virpur. All over the World, millions of devotees worship Pujaya Jalaram Bapa by having his holiness in the form of pictures in their houses. Many devotees go to Virpur, Gujarat and other temples in India for the darshan of Saint Shree Jalaram Bapa. For many years, devotees been looking forward of having a Mandir and a community hall in Chicago, where they can worship and seek the blessings of Pujya Jalaram Bapa. With same objective, Shree Jalaram Mandir Organization was formed and registered in December 2006. By the Grace of God and devotion of members at large, the dream came to reality in 2008. Existing church property located in Hoffman Estates, IL was purchased at the cost of $1.25 Million. It was gradually transformed into a Mandir with generous support from the trustees and devotees. Mandir was inaugurated on the March 8th, 2008; amidst great joy and excitement. Since, inception all religious festival are celebrated with lot of devotion and participation from many devotees of Jalaram Bapa. From a small parking lot of 42 spaces, an expanded new parking lot of 120 spaces was constructed for the convenience of devotees. Also, many upgrades were done inside and outside of the building including the major expansion project at the expenditure of $3.2 Million. The Sheelanyas pooja ceremony was completed on October 4th, 2014. Many devotees surrounded the huge excavation site and participated in once in a life time event. Construction began immediately after the foundation laying ceremony was finished. The grand ceremony of “Murti Pran Pratishtha” was completed on July 9th, 2016. This most important ritual was started with a “108 Kundi Shubh-Sankalp Yagna” on Saturday, July 2nd followed with four days of Murti Pran Pratishtha vidhi from July 6th to July 9th 2016. The idols are specially made by expert Shilpkars from Jaipur and are beautifully carved from Makrana marble stones. As a part of the grand celebration, Shrimad Bhagvat Katha was also arranged from Sunday, August 7th to 14th 2016 at Shree Jalaram Mandir. The Katha was narrated by the renowned spiritual leader Pujya Shri Rameshbhai Oza (Pujya Bhaishri).​​ ​The final phase of construction (Domes & Shikar installation) and EIFS rendering was completed in Aug-Sept of 2017.