Dattatreya -Legend, why we celebrate Datta Jayanti?
Table of Contents
Who is Dattatreya?
There is a very interesting legend behind Dattareya who had three three faces and six arms. It is said that Dattatreya was the son of the sage Attri and his mother name was Anasuya.
Dattatreya is the combined form of the three most powerful triads, Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva.
Dattatreya Jayanti in 2022
Birth of Dattatreya and legend behind him
It is mentioned in the puranas that Anasuya was one of the most virtuous lady who did a lot of tapasya in order to get a son. She wanted to have a son who should be equally in merits to the three superior gods; Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh.
When the wives of the three gods Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh(Goddess Saraswati, Goddess Lakshmi and Goddess Parvati) knew about Anasuya’s tapasya they became jealous to her, and asked their husbands to take the test of her virtuousness. The three male trinity appeared before Anasuya in the disguise of sanyasis and asked her to give them alms naked.
She hesitated but sprinkled water with mantra on the three gods which turned the three into little babies. She breastfed them with her milk naked. This way she fulfilled their wishes without crossing her modernity. When she returned to her ashram, she narrated all about the incident to her husband ‘Atri’.
Atri who already knew this, transformed all three babies into a single baby with three heads and six arms.
The three goddesses got worried when their husbands did not return after a long. They three rushed to Anasuya to know about the whereabouts of their husbands. On knowing the truth they begged and asked for the forgiveness and pleaded her to return back their husbands. Anasuya accepted their request and the three gods appeared back into their real forms. They blessed the couple with a son Dattatreya.
Siblings of Dattatreya
Dattatreya had two more siblings; Moon and the sage Durvasa. Moon is considered an avatar of god Brahma and Durvasa as the avatar of Shiva. On the other hand Dattatreya even being the form of all three deities still considered an avatar of god Vishnu.
Why do we celebrate Datta Jayanti?
Datta Jayanti is a Hindu festival which is celebrated every year on the full moon day of the Agrahayana month of the Hindu calendar. Agrahayana is the ninth month according to the Hindu calendar which is also one of the most auspicious month of the year, dedicated to the devotion of the lord Krishna who is the incarnation of lord Vishnu.
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