Saint
Eknath was a major saint of
the Varakavi Sampradaya founded by Jhanadeva. He was born in 1533 at
Paithan. He could not rget much parental love as he lost his parents at a
very early age.
Eknath was initiated by
Guru Janardana, a devotee of Dattatreya. He was unique as he represented a
blend of Vedanta and Sufism. He was a devout ‘gurabhakta’ and wrote by the
name of Eka-janardana meaning ‘ekanath of Janardana’.
Hej Dropagated two forms
of bhakti to Saguna Brahman-as an end in itself and as a means. Generally,
the Advaitic tradition identifies with the latter, considering that
meditation of God with form does not lead to moksha (liberation) but only
to Krama-mukti (gradual liberation).
He was also a prolific
writer and wrote ‘Bhavartha Ramayana’ numerous Abahngas’ and ‘Bharudas’.
His Bhagavata popularised the Vedanta philosophy to a great extent. He
explains beautifully the nine traditional limbs of the ‘Bhakti marga’ with
examples from saints
