Sri Dattatreya

Dattatreya (Sanskrit: दत्तात्रेय, Dattātreya) or Datta is considered by Hindus to be god who is an incarnation of the Divine Trinity Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. The word Datta means "Given", Datta is called so because the divine trinity have "given" themselves in the form of a son to the sage couple Atri and Anasuya. He is the son of Atri, hence the name "Atreya."

In the Nath tradition, Dattatreya is recognized as an Avatar or incarnation of the Lord Shiva and as the Adi-Guru (First Teacher) of the Adinath Sampradaya of the Nathas. Although Dattatreya was at first a "Lord of Yoga" exhibiting distinctly Tantric traits,[citation needed] he was adapted and assimilated into the more 'devotional' (Sanskrit: bhakti) Vaishnavite cults; while still worshiped by millions of Hindus, he is approached more as a benevolent god than as a teacher of the highest essence of Indian thought. Dattreya is the author of Tripura Rahasya given to Parsurama, best treatise on Advaita Vedanta.