A History of Dasnami Naga Sanyasis

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The size of this book has been greatly reduced from what was originally planned, because of the necessity to reduce the cost of printing, and there- fore many useful details have been unavoidably cut out. But it is the author's hope that even in its shortened form this book will give a general picture of the main course of the history of the Dasnami sect and their past service and present position in the life of the Indian nation. The chapters on Rajendra Giri and his disciples have been written by Professor Nirod Bhusan Roy M. A. (of the Santi Niketan University). He has incorporated my previous writings on the subject (in my Full of the Mughal Empire, 4 Vols.) and also used my manuscript notes and summaries on that period. His final draft has been revised and passed by me before printing. I thank him for this collaboration, which has made it possible to complete the book without further delay.

As the author, I must thank Mahant Dattagir of the Nirvani Akhara, Allahabad, for the invaluable help which he has given me by the mass of original documents and authentic records placed by him in my hands. But for these materials a trustworthy history of the sect would have been impossible. For thirty years Mahant Dattagir has corresponded and travelled all over India, visiting maths, princely States, and notable individuals and exploring their records and taking transcripts of useful documents for this history. If there is any merit in this volume the reader's gratitude is due to this history-loving monk, Dattagirji.

The Dashnami Sampradaya is perhaps the most powerful monastic order, which has played a great part in the history of India.

The cult of the nagas, naked ascetics, has a preterohistoric ancestry. It must have been founded when Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were no more than swamps. The famous Mohen-jo-daro seal depicts Pashupati sitting naked and being worshipped by animals. The Vedas refer to the longhaired ascetics, Lord Shiva sitting on Mount Kailash, almost naked and besmeared with ashes, is their appropriate guardian deity,

Monastic orders of such ascetics existed in India long before the dawn of history. The Greeks, when they came with Alexander, met the naked philosophers, the Gymnosophists. Buddha and Mahavir were in fact leaders of two Orders, of monks who later spread their doctrines. The digambars, the Nagas of the Jain persuasion, are still found in many parts of India.

Most of the Nagas go without. ceremonial occasions. Some of them, however, adhere to their vows of keeping no possessions.

Most of the Nagas belong to the nashitaini Sambradaya organised by Shankaracharya the oldest, the biggest and the most effective of our monastic Orders.

On initiation, the Dashnami, as the very name indicates, is given a name combined with one of the ten words: Giri Puri, Bharati, Van, Aranya, Par-vat, Sagar, Tirth, Ashram or Saraswati.