The origin of the “Navnath Sampradaya Lineage” dates back over a thousand years to Saint Dattatreya. The ‘Nine Masters’, one of the branches of the Navnath Lineage became the Inchegiri Navnath Sampradaya. Founded by Shri Bhausaheb Maharaj, it is the direct line that leads to Shri Ramakant Maharaj.
This householder Lineage remains relatively unknown to this day, as the Masters were all very humble and deeply devotional. Shri Bhausaheb, Shri Siddharameshwar, Shri Nisargadatta, Shri Ranjit and the latest exponent, Shri Ramakant, were ordinary people who were usually married with families.
Oneness of Knowledge and Devotion, (Jnana and Bhakti) is key in the Lineage teachings. The Masters were dedicated to spreading the knowledge. Devotion is the Mother of Knowledge. Only by intense devotion to the Guru, and worshipping Him with full faith, will the knowledge of Self-Realisation be revealed. In the end, there is total unity between the knowledge and devotion.
Throughout the whole Lineage there is the recognition of grace at work and a very strong connection from Master to Master. Siddharameshwar Maharaj himself gave all credit to Bhausaheb Maharaj. Nisargadatta Maharaj did the same with Siddharameshwar Maharaj. Similarly, Ramakant Maharaj gave all credit to his Master, humbly stating,
“I am just a skeleton, a puppet of my Master, Nisargadatta Maharaj”.
“In our Lineage, we give ‘Direct Knowledge’ to your ‘Invisible Presence’, not intellectual knowledge for the mind”, says Shri Ramakant. “This knowledge is not bookish knowledge, but Spontaneous Knowledge direct from the Source. Although the words and the style of speaking may differ between Masters, the principle remains the same: There is nothing except Selfless Self”.
The way by which the Lineage Masters impart knowledge is rare: they do not simply talk about Reality but show Reality in the disciple. It is reminiscent of Swami Vivekananda’s long search for truth when he met Swami Ramakrishna. Desperate to find an authentic Guru, Swami Vivekananda asked one question only: “Have you seen God? Can you show me?” Ramakrishna said “Yes!” thus finally bringing Vivekananda’s long search to an end.
These pure teachings are solid and extremely powerful with the gravitas of the whole Lineage behind them. The direct knowledge, coming as it does from this long line of sparkling Masters, is further empowered by the sacred Naam Mantra.
Bhausaheb Maharaj (1843-1914), was initiated by Shri Raghunathpriya Maharaj whose Sadguru was Shri Gurulingajangam Maharaj. Bhausaheb Maharaj is known as the “Saint of Umadi”. He was a householder with many disciples, including Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj, Shri Gurudev Ranade, and Shri Amburao Maharaj, to mention just a few. His way came to be known as the “Ant’s Way”, employng the practices of meditation, dispassion and renunciation. He emphasised meditation over and above knowledge because many of his disciples came from rural communities and were illiterate. Bhausaheb Maharaj endured great hardships as he strove to find Reality. He stood in the forest for eighteen years without rest, meditating for twelve hours at a time. Stressing the importance of remembering the Divine Name, he would say tirelessly, “Take it to your bones. Always do fierce repetition of the Divine Name in the mind with meditation”. The book entitled Nama Yoga encompasses the teachings of Shri Bhausaheb.
Siddharameshwar Maharaj (1888-1936), was born in Pathri, Solapur. When Shri Bhausaheb saw Shri Siddharameshwar for the first time, he announced, “This man is greatly blessed”, and initiated him on that very same day. Shri Siddharameshwar spent seven years in the company of his Master.
After his Master’s passing, Shri Siddharameshwar was determined to attain Self-Realisation to the extent that he was prepared to sacrifice his life for it by carrying out the strictest sadhana and enduring long periods of fasting. It is said that Shri Siddharameshwar reached such extraordinary heights during meditation that he emitted a beautiful, nectar-like fragrance which perfumed the air all around him!
Like many other Masters of this Lineage, he had a job and a family. Being a householder was not to be seen as an obstacle but instead, a welcome opportunity for selflessness and detachment. Through his sadhana, it became clear to him that meditation was only a beginning stage – and an overly lengthy one at that – in the process of reaching the Final Reality. And so, he advanced the teachings from the slower “Ant’s Way” to the more rapid “Bird’s Way”. He realised that Ultimate Truth is indeed attainable if one utilises discrimination and dispassion on the journey from illusion to Reality! Put simply, he discovered that renouncing all that is illusory was unnecessary. One only had to perceive its deceptive form!
Self-enquiry leads to dispassion, and in turn, dispassion leads to detachment! His spirituality, like his Master’s before him, was pragmatic. He knew that if the knowledge of the Self is only understood intellectually, it will never be completely imprinted in one’s heart and mind. It would not become active in everyday life. Two years later, his beloved Master, Shri Bhausaheb, blessed him with a vision, communicating, “Now you have reached the Final Reality. There is nothing left for you to do”.
Shri Siddharameshwar started teaching, using simple language to convey the knowledge and devotion. It is said that he initiated countless people from all walks of life with the Naam Mantra. The figure is not exactly known, but it is believed that dozens of devotees were realised through this extraordinary Master. They include Ganapatrao Maharaj, Bainath Maharaj, Nisargadatta Maharaj, Ranjit Maharaj, Muppin Kaadsiddheshwar Maharaj and Balkrishna Maharaj. Shri Siddharameshwar encouraged his disciples to employ the methods of Self-enquiry, discrimination and dispassion while keeping his teachings practical, using ordinary examples from everyday life. To prevent the knowledge from remaining dry and hollow, he stressed the importance of devotion and honouring one’s Master. His book of teachings, “Master of Self-Realization”, is a spiritual classic.
Shri Bhainath Maharaj (1903 - 1981) is a disciple of Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj and very close Gurubandhu of Shri Nisargadatta Maharaj since 1941. His view of the teachings was very simple: "The truth is very simple: You are not the body and the ego is unreal, that's all."
Shri Nisargadatta Maharaj (1897 - 1981) though born in Bombay, was raised on a family farm in Kandalgaon, a rural village to the south in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri District. In 1920, a 23-year-old Maruti came back to Bombay to find work. He became prosperous in business as the owner of a chain of small retail shops with 30-40 employees, selling primarily tobacco and bidis, hand-rolled leaf cigarettes. In late 1933 he visited Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj and received instruction in meditation and formal initiation. He took on the name Nisargadatta, meaning “naturally (nisarga) given (datta)”. In 1937 he left Bombay, travelling on foot. After his eight months of wandering, pilgrimage and full awakening from the dream of “me”, he came once again to Bombay in 1938. He himself reduced all bodily needs to a minimum, living in the family apartment on 10th Lane in Khetwadi area. Here he could be found absorbed in meditative samadhi or singing bhajans or reading great Hindu scriptures of nondual wisdom and devotion. In 1951, after receiving an inner revelation from Siddharameshwar, he began to initiate students into discipleship. He undertakes tours four or five times a year to visit, along with some disciples, holy places like Bagewadi, Inchgeri and Siddhagiri.
Shri Samarth Muppin Kaadsiddheshwar Maharaj (1905 – 2001) met Siddharameshwar Maharaj in 1935, who became his guru. He was with him for a period of about 1 year. He was given a new outlook on the deep philosophical concepts and attained self-realization. He had not just renovated the Kaneri Math but renamed to Siddhagiri Math. It was during his tenure, the Math was transformed from a spiritual center to a social institution. His main focus was to make the people to lead a happy life by following bhakti path in their life.
Shri Ranjit Maharaj (1913 – 2000) met Siddharameshwar Maharaj in 1924. Ranjit was responsible for instigating the translation, printing and publication into the English language of His Guru. From his one-room apartment in Girgaum (Mumbai), he expounded a powerful philosophy of Advaita and Bhakti to seekers from all over the world.
Only in 1983, at the age of 70, he initiated his first disciple, Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj's granddaughter-in-law. Hereafter, he started to attract an international following. In 1996, he was invited to visit Germany, France and the USA. In the following years, he visited these countries several times, as well as the UK and Switzerland, until 2000, when he died.
Shri Ganapatrao Maharaj (1909 - 2004) was blessed and initiated by Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj at the age of 13. Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj also accepted him as his disciple and guided him to the path of Self attainment.
He carried on the mantle passed to him by his Sadguru, and strived for the uplifting of common people for 60 years.
Shanti Kuteer in Kannur is a hermitage founded by Maharaj in 1951.