Dattatreya
Dattatreya (Hindu god and paradigmatic Sannyasi)
Affiliation : Avatar and combined form of the Trimurti; manifestation of Parabrahma
Significance : Considered a guru in Shaivism, Vaishnavism, and Shaktism; inspired many monastic movements
Key Texts : Several Upanishads, Vedanta-Yoga traditions, and Avadhuta Gita attributed to him
Festivals : Datta Jayanti celebrated annually in his reverence
Parents : Atri (father), Anasuya (mother)
Symbols : Japamala, Kamandalu, Trishula, Damaru, Panchajanya, Sudarshana Chakra
According to Hindu mythology, Dattatreya is an avatar of the divine trinity - Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. He was born to the sage Atri and his wife Anasuya in an Indian hermitage, though his exact place of birth varies across different legends.
One popular story states that Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva visited Anasuya’s ashram in the guise of Brahmin priests and asked her to feed them naked. Anasuya agreed out of devotion to her husband and guests. Her purity transformed the three gods into babies, which she then nursed. Pleased by her devotion, the gods blessed her wish to have them as her son, combining into the single avatar of Dattatreya.
Dattatreya is said to have been born with three heads representing the three gods, but they later condensed into one. As a child, he renounced the world and left home to wander naked in search of the Absolute. He is believed to have attained enlightenment in places like Girnar in Gujarat and Ganagapura in Karnataka.
In the Nath tradition, Dattatreya is revered as the Adi-Guru or first teacher of the Adinath Sampradaya. He is also considered an avatar of Vishnu and a teacher of yoga with Tantric influences. Dattatreya’s story and teachings are found in ancient Hindu texts like the Mahabharata, Puranas and Upanishads.