The philosophy of BAPS is centered on the doctrine of Akshar-Purshottam Darshan, in which followers worship Swaminarayan as God, or Purshottam, and his choicest devotee Gunatitanand Swami, as Akshar.
The concept of Akshar has been interpreted differently by various branches of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, and one major reason for the separation of BAPS from the Vadtal diocese has been attributed to doctrinal differences in the interpretation of the concept of Akshar.
Both the Vadtal and Ahmedabad dioceses of the Swaminaryan Sampradaya believe Akshar to be the divine abode of the supreme entity Purushottam.
The BAPS denomination concurs that Akshar is the divine abode of Purushottam, but they further understand Akshar as "an eternally existing spiritual reality having two forms, the impersonal and the personal" Followers of BAPS identify various scriptures and documented statements of Swaminarayan as supporting this understanding of Akshar within the Akshar-Purushottam Darshan.
BAPS teaches that the entity of Akshar remains on earth through a lineage of "perfect devotees", the gurus or spiritual teachers of the organization, who provide "authentication of office through Gunatitanand Swami and back to Swaminarayan himself."
Followers hold Mahant Swami Maharaj as the personified form of Akshar and the spiritual leader of BAPS.

The Swaminarayan-Bhashyam is a published commentary written by Bhadreshdas Swami in 2007 that explicates the roots of Akshar-Purushottam Darshan in the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Brahma Sutras..  This is further corroborated in a classical Sanskrit treatise, also authored by Bhadreshdas Swami, called Swaminarayan-Siddhanta-Sudha.
The philosophy of BAPS is centered on the doctrine of Akshar-Purshottam Darshan, in which followers worship Swaminarayan as God, or Purshottam, and his choicest devotee Gunatitanand Swami, as Akshar. The concept of Akshar has been interpreted differently by various branches of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, and one major reason for the separation of BAPS from the Vadtal diocese has been attributed to doctrinal differences in the interpretation of the concept of Akshar. Both the Vadtal and Ahmedabad dioceses of the Swaminaryan Sampradaya believe Akshar to be the divine abode of the supreme entity Purushottam. The BAPS denomination concurs that Akshar is the divine abode of Purushottam, but they further understand Akshar as "an eternally existing spiritual reality having two forms, the impersonal and the personal" Followers of BAPS identify various scriptures and documented statements of Swaminarayan as supporting this understanding of Akshar within the Akshar-Purushottam Darshan. BAPS teaches that the entity of Akshar remains on earth through a lineage of "perfect devotees", the gurus or spiritual teachers of the organization, who provide "authentication of office through Gunatitanand Swami and back to Swaminarayan himself." Followers hold Mahant Swami Maharaj as the personified form of Akshar and the spiritual leader of BAPS.
The Swaminarayan-Bhashyam is a published commentary written by Bhadreshdas Swami in 2007 that explicates the roots of Akshar-Purushottam Darshan in the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Brahma Sutras..  This is further corroborated in a classical Sanskrit treatise, also authored by Bhadreshdas Swami, called Swaminarayan-Siddhanta-Sudha.
Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha