Wikipedia

Janardan Swami

Not to be confused with Janardhana Swamy.

Janardan Swami (c. 1504 - c. 1575), or simply Janardan or Janardana was an Indian Hindu scholar, statesman, poet and saint. He was the spiritual guru of prominent 16th-century saint Eknath. His compositions were mostly written in Marathi. He also wrote a few verses in Braj.[3][4]

Janardan Swami
Personal
Bornc. 1504
Bahal, Chalisgaon, Maharashtra, India
Diedc. 1575
Daulatabad, Maharashtra, India
ReligionHinduism
Organization
OrderAnand Sampradaya
Religious career
GuruNagababa
Disciples

Biography

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Janardan Swami was born into a Deshastha Rigvedi Brahmin, Deshpande family at Chalisgaon, Maharashtra. They belong to Ashvalayana Sutra and Shakala Shakha.[5] His parents reportedly subscribed to the Asvalayana tradition and were probably adherents of the school of thought initiated by the 8th-century philosopher Adi Shankaracharya.

Janardan Swami was a devotee of the Hindu deity Dattatreya.[6] He was appointed as Killedar or governor of the fort at Daulatabad (previously Devagiri) by its contemporary Muslim occupants.[7][8]

According to legend, Dattatreya once conversed with Janardan Swami inside a cave within the fort perimeters at Daulatbad. It is also believed that during one of his tours to Ankalakopa, Dattatreya again appeared before him as Narasimha Saraswati. Narsimha Saraswati was an earlier saint and spiritual master and is widely considered to be the second incarnation of Dattatreya. He is thought to have initiated Janardan Swami under a cluster fig (audumbara) tree. Janardan Swami had disciples of various social classes and even Indian and Turkic Muslims. Among his disciples, Eknath is considered the most significant while Ramajanardana and Janijanardana are his other well-known disciples.[9]

Very few details of Janardan Swami's life are known. On one occasion, he had probably instructed Eknath to embark on a pilgrimage. It is thought that he accompanied his disciple until Trimbakeshwar, a Hindu pilgrimage town near Nashik, Maharashtra.[10]

He has composed considerable volumes of devotional poetry, known as abhanga.

Janardan Swami breathed his last at Daulatabad where he is believed to have undergone Mahasamadhi. His samadhi shrine is located within a cave on a hill at Daulatabad.[11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ D. B. Mokashi (1 July 1987). Palkhi: An Indian Pilgrimage. SUNY Press. pp. 110–. ISBN 978-0-88706-462-3.
  2. ^ K. R. Sundararajan; Bithika Mukerji (2003). Hindu Spirituality: Postclassical and Modern. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 38. ISBN 9788120819375.
  3. ^ Sujit Mukherjee (1998). A Dictionary of Indian Literature: Beginnings-1850. Orient Blackswan. p. 145. ISBN 9788125014539.
  4. ^ Maxine Berntsen (1 January 1988). The Experience of Hinduism: Essays on Religion in Maharashtra. SUNY Press. pp. 97–98. ISBN 978-0-88706-662-7.
  5. ^ Hariprasad Shivprasad Joshi (1965). Origin and Development of Dattātreya Worship in India. Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. p. 101.
  6. ^ Hariprasad Shivprasad Joshi (1965). Origin and Development of Dattātreya Worship in India. Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. p. 101.
  7. ^ Ramchandra Dattatraya Ranade (1 January 1983). Mysticism in India: The Poet-Saints of Maharashtra. SUNY Press. pp. 214–. ISBN 978-0-87395-669-7.
  8. ^ Pushkar Sohoni (30 August 2018). The Architecture of a Deccan Sultanate: Courtly Practice and Royal Authority in Late Medieval India. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 63. ISBN 978-1-83860-928-3.
  9. ^ Savitribai Khanolkar (1978). Saints of Maharashtra. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 99.
  10. ^ Shantsheela Sathianathan (1996). Contributions of saints and seers to the music of India, Volume 2. Kanishka Publishers, Distributors. pp. 438–439. ISBN 9788173911118.
  11. ^ R. D. Ranade (1982). Mysticism in Maharashtra: Indian Mysticism. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 214. ISBN 9788120805767.
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