datta

Story of Dattatreya

Story of Dattatreya

Dattatreya or Datta or Dattaguru, is a paradigmatic Sannyasi and he is one of the lords of Yoga in Hinduism. He is considered as diety in many regions of India and Nepal. In Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana Karnataka, he is a syncretic deity, considered to be an avatar or incarnation of the Thrimurthi – three Hindu gods Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. In the other regions, and some versions of texts such as the Garuda Purana, Brahma Purana and Sattvata Samhita, he is an avatar of Vishnu.

In western Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, he is typically shown with three heads and six hands, one head each for Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, and one pair of hand holding the symbolic items associated with each of these gods: rosary and water pot of Brahma, conch and wheel of Vishnu, trident and drum of Shiva.

Many Upanishads are dedicated to Dattatreya, as are texts of the Advaita Vedanta-Yoga tradition in Hinduism.The most important texts of Advaita Vedanta, namely Avadhuta Gita is attributed to Dattatreya.

The Annual festival in the Hindu calendar month of Margasira in telugu month or Novemberor December – english month reveres Dattatreya and this is called Datta Jayanti.