ABSTRACT

This chapter investigates aspects of the history and importance of the Datta saṃpradāya, a western Indian religious tradition comprised of worshipers of the god Dattātreya and his incarnations, as they pertain to the history of bhakti in India and specifically to the tradition of devotion to a guru. It examines, on the one hand, how Sarasvatī Gangadhara presents bhakti in the Gurucaritra, and on the other, how he places great importance on following the rules (vidhi). The chapter explores how the two foci are in creative tension with each other. It then discusses the dynamics between bhakti and vidhi in the Datta saṃpradāya practice of reciting the Gurucaritra in contemporary western India. The chapter concludes by exploring various social, religious and historical forces that may have given rise to the śāstric bhakti one can find in the Datta saṃpradāya and the unique function of the guru the tradition demonstrates.