Talk:Ekanātha
By Swami Harshananda
Ekanātha (A. D. 1533-1606)
Religion and culture have survived the onslaughts of the turbulent vicissitudes in past. The great saints, especially of bhakti sect, has given a lot of efforts to preserve it. One such bright star that arose in the firmament of western India, in Maharashtra, was Ekanātha.[1] With a rare and balanced combination of jñāna (knowledge) and bhakti (devotion), he was a true successor of another great saint of Maharashtra, Sant Jñāneśvara (13th century A. D.).
He was born in the family of holy man Bhānudāsa (A. D. 1448), at Paiṭhaṇ. Ekanātha lost both his parents in childhood. He was brought up by his grand parents. He had developed a great love and attraction for inimitable scripture of devotion to Kṛṣṇa, the Bhāgavata. Inspired by an inner call heard at a nearby Śiva temple, he ran away to Devagaḍh without informing his guardians and fell at the feet of Janārdana Svāmi, a renowned saint of his times.
Janārdana Svāmī (A. D. 1504-1575) was the killedār[2] of the Devagaḍh fort. He was a worshiper of Dattātreya[3] and had several mystical experiences. He could intuit the greatness of Ekanātha and hence readily accept him as his disciple. Under his able guidance, Ekanātha speedily progressed in his sādhanās or spiritual practices. By the grace of his guru, he could even have visions of Dattātreya.
When Janārdana took Ekanātha on a pilgrimage, he commanded him to translate the Sanskrit Bhāgavata into Marāṭhi verses. Ekanātha undertook this great task with tremendous faith and devotion and successfully completed it in course of time. His grandparents at Paiṭhaṇ somehow came to know his whereabouts and appealed to Janārdana to send him back to them. Janārdana not only complied but also commanded Ekanātha to marry and settle down as a householder at Paiṭhaṇ. Accordingly, Ekanātha married an extraordinarily pious girl Girijābāī and started living with his grandparents. His grand parents passed away soon after that.
During his long stay at Paiṭhaṇ, he not only spread the message of the Bhāgavata in the local language but also performed many miracles which ultimately silenced his enemies, critics and cavilers. Some of the miracles attributed to him are:
- Being seen in more than one place simultaneously
- His dead ancestors appearing physically to eat the food offered in the śrāddha
- Postponing the time of death of Kṛṣṇadāsa until he completed his literary work on the Rāmāyana
- Making the stone image of Nandi[4] in a temple, eat grass
- Etc.
- Renovation of the tomb of the saint Jñāneśvara at ālandī near Puṇe or Poona.
He passed away in A. D. 1606.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore