Datta Jayanti

2021-05-28T15:38:10Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2018}}
{{Refimprove|date=April 2015}}
{{Infobox holiday |
|holiday_name=Datta Jayanti
|image=Ravi Varma-Dattatreya.jpg
|caption=Dattatreya, the incarnation of the trimurtis, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva
|nickname=Dattatreya Jayanti
|observedby=Prayers and religious rituals, including [[Puja (Hinduism)|puja]] to Dattatreya
|type=Hindu
|significance=Fasting, meditation and prayers day
|date2012=27 December<ref name=date>{{Cite web|url=http://www.drikpanchang.com/festivals/dattatreya/dattatreya-jayanti-date-time.html|title=2012 Dattatreya Jayanti|access-date=11 December 2012|publisher=Dripanchang}}</ref>
|date2014=5 December (other regions) or 6 December (Maharashtra)
|date2016=13 December
|date2017=3 December
}}

'''Datta Jayanti''', also known as '''Dattatreya Jayanti''', is a [[Hindu festival]], commemorating the birth day celebration of the Hindu Deity [[Dattatreya]] (Datta), a combined form of the Hindu male divine trinity of [[Brahma]], [[Vishnu]] and [[Shiva]].

It is celebrated on the [[Purnima (day)|full moon]] day of the [[Margashirsha]] (Agrahayana) month according to the [[Hindu Calendar]] (December/January) throughout the country, and in particular in [[Maharashtra]].<ref name="Dwivedi2006">{{cite book|author=Dr. Bhojraj Dwivedi|title=Religious Basis Of Hindu Beliefs|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7wmqKuHFWWgC&pg=PA125|access-date=10 December 2012|year=2006|publisher=Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd.|isbn=978-81-288-1239-2|pages=125–}}</ref><ref name="Sehgal1999">{{cite book|author=Sunil Sehgal|title=Encyclopaedia of Hinduism: C-G|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zWG64bgtf3sC&pg=PA501|access-date=10 December 2012|year=1999|publisher=Sarup & Sons|isbn=978-81-7625-064-1|pages=501–}}</ref>

==Legend==
Dattatreya was the son of the sage [[Atri]] and his wife [[Anasuya]]. Anasuya, an archetypal chaste and virtuous wife, did severe ''[[Tapas]]'' (austerities) to beget a son equal in merits as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, the Hindu male trinity ([[Trimurti]]). [[Saraswati]], [[Lakshmi]] and [[Parvati]], the goddess trinity ([[Tridevi]]) and consorts of the male trinity, became jealous. They deputed their husbands to test her virtuousness.

The three gods appeared before Anasuya in the disguise of [[sanyasi]]s (ascetics) and asked her to give them alms naked. Anasuya was perplexed for a while, but soon regained composure. She uttered a [[mantra]] and sprinkled water on the three mendicants, turning them into babies. She then breast fed them with her milk naked, as they wished. When Atri returned to his [[ashram]] (hermitage), Anasuya narrated the event, which he already knew through his psychic powers. He hugged the three babies to his heart, transforming them into a single baby with three heads and six arms.

As the triad of gods did not return, their wives got worried and rushed to Anasuya. The goddesses begged her forgiveness and requested her to return their husbands. Anasuya accepted their request. The Trimurti then appeared in their true form, before Atri and Anasuya, and blessed them with a son Dattatreya.

Though Dattatreya is considered a form of all the three deities, he is especially considered an [[avatar]] of Vishnu, while his siblings the moon-god [[Chandra]] and the sage [[Durvasa]] are regarded forms of Brahma and Shiva respectively.<ref name="Sehgal1999"/><ref>[http://forumforhinduawakening.org/dharma/blog/datta-jayanti/ Datta Jayanti]</ref>

==Worship==
On Datta Jayanti, people take bath early in the morning in holy rivers or streams, and observe fast. A [[Puja (Hinduism)|puja]] of Dattatreya is performed with flowers, incense, lamps, and camphor. Devotees meditate on his image and pray to Dattatreya with a vow to follow in his footsteps. They remember Dattatreya's work and read the sacred books ''[[Avadhuta Gita]]'' and ''[[Jivanmukta Gita]]'', which contain the god's discourse.<ref name="Sehgal1999"/> Other sacred texts like the ''Datta Prabodh'' (1860) by Kavadi Baba and the ''Datta Mahatmya'' by Param Pujya Vasudevananda Saraswati (Tembe Swami Maharaj), both of which are based on Dattatreya's life, as well as the ''[[Shri GuruCharitra|Guru-charita]]'' based on the life of [[Narasimha Saraswati]] (1378−1458), considered an avatar of Dattatreya, are read by devotees.<ref name="ZelliotBerntsen1988"/> [[Bhajan]]s (devotional songs) are also sung on this day.

Datta Jayanti is celebrated with much fanfare in the god's temples. The temples dedicated to Dattatreya are located throughout India, the most important places of his worship are in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and [[Gujarat]] like Ganagapur in Karnataka near [[Gulbarga]], Narasimha Wadi in the [[Kolhapur district]], [[Pithapuram]] in Andhra Pradesh near [[Kakinada]], Audumbar in [[Sangli district]], Ruibhar in [[Osmanabad district]] and Girnar in [[Saurashtra (region)|Saurashtra]].<ref name="Sir Swami Samarth.">{{cite book|title=Sir Swami Samarth.|date = 21 February 2008|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ukr_Jk9TDCYC&pg=PA203|access-date=10 December 2012|publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd|isbn=978-81-207-3445-6|pages=203–}}</ref>

Some temples like Manik Prabhu Temple, [[Manik Nagar]] host an annual 7-day festival in honour of the deity in this period. In this temple, Datta Jayanti is celebrated for 5 days from Ekadasi to Poornima. People from Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Telangana come here to have darshan of the deity.{{fact|date=December 2020}} The saint [[Manik Prabhu]], who is also regarded as an incarnation of Dattatreya by the people of Datta Sampraday, was born on Datta Jayanti.<ref name="ZelliotBerntsen1988">{{cite book|author1=Eleanor Zelliot|author2=Maxine Berntsen|title=The Experience of Hinduism: Essays on Religion in Maharashtra|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pyon3IOpX-AC&pg=PA374|access-date=15 December 2012|year=1988|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-0-88706-664-1|page=374}}</ref>

Datta Jayanti was celebrated by Sadguru Shree Aniruddha Upasana Trust (Mumbai, India) in Amalner city in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, India between 30 November to 3 December 2017 wherein thousands of devotees from various parts of Maharashtra participated and took blessings of Lord Dattatreya. Shri Ganpati Atharvashirsha, Lalita Ambika Poojan, Datta Bawani, and Shri Datta Sahastranaam were chanted in this four-day event. With the spirit of self-discipline, the foundation managed the event in peace and harmony.<ref>http://epaperdivyamarathi.bhaskar.com/chalisgaon/265/05122017/0/3/</ref> [[File: Amalner-Dattajayanti-Utsav.jpg|thumb|Datta Jayanti Celebrations, Alamner]]

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Hindu festivals}}

[[Category:Hindu holy days]]
[[Category:December observances]]
[[Category:January observances]]
[[Category:Hindu festivals in India]]

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Datta Jayanti