1. Introduction

Datta Jayantī is a celebration of the birth of Deity Datta. Deity Datta was born in the evening of the full moon day (Pourṇimā) of the Hindu lunar month of Mārgashīrsha. Hence this day is celebrated as Deity Datta's birthday.

In the era gone by, demonic energies grew enormously in the gross and the subtle. The Deities efforts to vanquish them were unsuccessful. Then, under orders from Deity Brahmā, Deity Datta had to incarnate at various places, in various forms and destroy the demons. The day of His incarnation is celebrated as Datta Jayantī.

On the day of Datta Jayantī, the Deity Datta principle is 1000 times more active on Earth as compared to other times. On this day if one worships Deity Datta with devotion then one gets the maximum benefit from the Deity Datta principle.

2. The meaning of Deity Datta*

a. Deity Datta is one who has been given the unmanifest (Nirguṇ) spiritual experience that 'the Self is Brahman,' or that 'the Self is the soul' or that 'one is free.' A seeker has to do spiritual practice for many births in order to get this spiritual experience. The importance of Deity Datta can be understood from this point.
b. Deity Datta is the principle, which bestows the manifest (saguṇ) and unmanifest (Nirguṇ) waves of Deities to the embodied soul (jīva).

3. Function of the saviour (tārak) form of the Deity Datta principle*

a. Deity Datta blesses human beings by giving momentum to departed ancestors and reducing their ancestral problems. God relieves humans from the debt unto ancestors through the rites done to give momentum to ancestors and the chanting of Deity Datta's chant.
b. As per Hindu Holy Scriptures, every person has 4 debts - debt unto God, Sages, ancestors and unto society. Often people think that by fondly remembering their ancestors, displaying their photos or publishing an obituary they are helping to repay the debt unto ancestors. However this is not so. As per Hindu shāstra this debt is repaid to some extent by chanting Deity Datta's Name. From this one can understand that it is important to worship Deity Datta in order to be relieved from the debt unto ancestors. Worship of the Divine such as this also helps us to reduce the debt we have unto God.
c. The main Deity of the nether region (Bhuvalok) is Deity Datta and the specialty of Deity Datta is to give momentum to the subtle bodies (linga-dēha) in the nether region (Bhuvalok), so that they can move on to the next plane of existence.

4. The benefits of chanting the Datta chant*

a. As the embodied soul (jīva) gets spiritually pure (sāttvik) energy from Deity Datta, it can fight with negative energies.

b. An embodied soul (jīva) gets the energy from God (Shiv) by chanting the Datta chant.

c. Negative energy trouble reduces, if one chants the Datta chant while sitting in one place, every day for 15-20 minutes.

d. The atmosphere in the house remains blissful as the ancestors get momentum to go to the next subtle plane of existence.

5. How one is protected from ancestral problems by chanting the Datta chant?*

a. Formation of a protective shield: A protective shield is formed around the person through the energy created by chanting the Datta chant.

b. Ancestors getting momentum: As many people do not do regular spiritual practice, they are entangled in the materialistic world (Māyā). Therefore after death their souls (linga-dēha) remain unsatisfied. Such souls get stuck in the region of the dead (martyalok), which is between the Earth plane and the Nether region. By chanting Deity Datta's name, our ancestors trapped in martyalok get momentum. Hence, later they proceed towards the next region according to their deeds and gradually the trouble caused by them to the person reduces.

6. Which of the departed ancestors benefit most by the Datta chant?

When one chants the 'Sree Gurudev Datta' chant, the ancestors who have an intense yearning for further momentum, benefit most from the chant. The ancestors with desire for spiritual progress seek help from the descendents who do spiritual practice so that they perform the rites or the chants that will help the ancestors gain momentum. The ancestors, who have unsatisfied desires related to materialistic things (eating, drinking, etc.), possess the descendents who have similar desires, to fulfill these desires through the descendents.

* Based on Divine knowledge received by some seekers doing sādhanā per Gurukrupāyoga.

To know more about this Divine knowledge please visit the about us section of this website.

• Sree Datta Jayanti - a spiritual celebration

• Ancestral problems

• Why did Lord Datta acquire knowledge from twenty-four Gurus?

• What is the significance of chanting Shri Gurudev Datta?

• What are names and function of Lord Datta?