In the Hindu tradition lineage is given a lot of importance. The family one is born into or the school one went to is given a lot of importance. For example, music, dance, the gharana or the style of singing and dancing is taken into consideration. If you belong to a reputed school or if your master is reputed you are valued more. Just as is the case with modern education; an IIT graduate or an IIM management student is valued more than a engineer or management student from any other institution. In the same way the lineage is lot more important in the religious field.
Lord Dattatreya
The guru parampara is traced and accordingly the religious leader is fixed into a school of thought. There are self-made or self-styled people but it is proven that there must have been some preceptor whom they do not reveal or they might have culled out the teachings of many and made into a capsule that is easily understandable by his or her followers. In this thought if Shri Swami Samarth’s lineage is traced we reach at Lord Dattatreya. Lord Dattatreya is said to be the powerful incarnation of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva; in the Hindu mythology they stand for creation, sustenance and destruction respectively.
It is believed that Lord Dattratreya reincarnated three times and Shri Swami Samarth was the third. Lord was the son of sage Atri and Anasuya. The birth of this lord was the result of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva testing the chastity of Anasuya. They lords failed in their test and blessed Anasuya with a child have the qualities of all the three lords. Lord Dattatreya is in the form of an ascetic with three heads and has dogs around him. He is known to have 24 preceptors, some of them being fire, water, sun, moon, pigeon and more.
Sripad Sri Vallabh
Sripad Sri Vallabh is believed to be the first incarnation of Lord Dattatreya. He was born to pious parents Aparaj and Sumati. They were devotees of Lord Dattatreya but had lost most of their children. Of the two sons who were alive, one was blind and the other was crippled. Once for a ceremony for ancestors, Sumati served a guest before serving the Brahmins. The guest was none other than Lord Dattatreya and blessed them with a son who would become famous. Thus was born Sripad Sri Vallabh who had a normal childhood. When he was sixteen his parents wanted to get him married but he reminded his parents he was born to become an ascetic and not a married man.
Sri Narasimha Saraswathi
After serving the people for many years Sri Vallabh wilfully entered into Samadhi. A tomb was built around his Samadhi. In January 1378 Lord Dattatreya reincarnated through Amba’s womb, as promised by Sripad Sri Vallabh and was named Narahari. Even as an infant he chanted OM. He soon became the popular and adored Sri Narasimha Saraswathi. After hundreds of years of service to mankind and hundreds of years of penance, Sri Narasimha Saraswathi disappeared from earth and came back as Sri Swami Samarth. This then was lineage of Shri Swami Samarth and he is rightly called the incarnation of Lord Dattatreya.
