Dattatreya Upanishad

• Topic: Revealing Dattātreya Mantras
• Interlocutors: Brahmā, Nārāyaṇa, Dattātreya (teacher).

Note: The text is confusing about the teacher. Seems like the conversation starts between Brahmā and Nārāyaṇa. Then, it moves to Brahmā and Dattātreya.

Meaning of Datta-Traya

• “Datta” means “the one who is given” or revealed.
• It refers to the Supreme Self revealed through knowledge.
• The text says repeat: "I am Datta as a contemplation."
• Datta-Treya means: Three Supreme Selves; Dattātreya's form is the unified Trimūrti—Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Nārāyaṇa.

The One-Syllable Mantra

• Dattātreya’s seed syllable (bīja) is ḍām. This is a tāraka mantra for crossing of saṃsāra.
• “ḍam” is known as the Haṃsa principle, and with a long vowel it becomes ḍām. ḍam denotes individual self; ḍām is the supreme divine.
• The text says both ḍam and ḍām are bīja, but it also uses drāṃ. The commentary says the same.

Insight: All three are the bīja because this is Dattātreya, three divine forms in one. So mantra would be = oṃ ḍam ḍām drāṃ dattātreyāya namaḥ

Auxiliary information

• Meter: gāyatrī chandaḥ
• Seer: sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity: dattātreyaḥ devatā

Six-Syllable (Ṣaḍakṣara) Mantra

oṃ śrīṃ hrīṃ klīṃ glauṃ drāṃ

Auxiliary information

• Meter: gāyatrī chandaḥ
• Seer: sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity: dattātreyaḥ devatā

Eight-Syllable (Aṣṭākṣara) Mantra

drāṃ dattātreyāya namaḥ

• Here, dattātreyāya refers to the Supreme Reality whose nature is Sat–Cit–Ānanda;
• “Namaḥ” represents bliss and surrender to the Supreme, described as the embodiment of completeness (pūrṇānanda).
• This mantra has a longer 23-syllable version per the commentary:
  drāṃ dattātreyāya satyānandacidātmakam
  namaḥ pūrṇānandaikavigraham

Auxiliary information

• Meter—gāyatrī chandaḥ
• Seer—sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity—dattātreyaḥ devatā
• Kīlakam—dattātreyāya
• Bījam—drāṃ/dattātreyāya
• Śaktiḥ—namaḥ

Twelve-Syllable (Dvādaśākṣara) Mantra

oṃ āṃ hrīm kroṃ ehi dattātreya svāhā

Note: Text & commentary say āṃ. This seems incorrect; it should be drāṃ.

Auxiliary information

• Meter—jagatī chandaḥ
• Seer—sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity—dattātreyaḥ devatā
• Kīlakam—saṃbuddhiḥ (just invoking the deity)
• Bījam—oṃ
• Śaktiḥ—svāhā

Nyāsa for chant

• drām hṛdaye — heart
• hrīṃ klīm śīrṣe — head
• ehi śikhāyām — tuft
• datta kavace — protective armor
• ātreya cakṣuṣi — eyes
• svāhā astre — weapon

Sixteen-Syllable (Ṣoḍaśākṣara) Mantra

oṃ aiṃ kroṃ klīṃ klūṃ hrāṃ hrīṃ hrūṃ sauḥ dattātreyāya svāhā

• This is called mantrarāja, king of mantras.
• This ṣoḍaśākṣara mantra is extremely powerful;

Auxiliary information

• Meter—gāyatrī chandaḥ
• Seer—sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity—dattātreyaḥ devatā
• Kīlakam—dattātreyāya
• Bījam—oṃ * Śaktiḥ—svāhā

Nyāsa for chant

• oṃ hṛdaye — heart
• klāṃ klīṃ klūṃ śīrṣe — head
• ehi śikhāyām — tuft
• datta kavace — protective armor
• ātreya cakṣuṣi — eyes
• svāhā astre — weapon

Anuṣṭubh Meter Mantra

dattātreya hare kṛṣṇa 
unmatta-ānanda-dāyaka

digambara mune bāla piśāca jñāna-sāgara

• This is a root mantra (mūla-mantra) for qualification to higher mantras.

Auxiliary information

• Meter—anuṣṭubh chandaḥ
• Seer—sadāśiva ṛṣiḥ
• Deity—dattātreyaḥ devatā

Nyāsa for chant

• dattātreya hṛdaye — heart
• hare kṛṣṇa śīrṣe — head
• unmatta-ānanda śikhāyām — tuft
• dāyaka mune kavace — protective armor
• digambara cakṣuṣi — eyes
• piśāca-jñāna-sāgare astre — weapon

Mālā Mantra

oṃ namo bhagavate dattātreyāya
smaraṇa-mātra-santuṣṭāya
mahā-bhaya-nivāraṇāya
mahā-jñāna-pradāya
cid-ānanda-ātmane
bāla-unmatta-piśāca-veṣāya 

mahā-yogine avadhūtāya
anasūyā-ānanda-vardhanāya
atri-putrāya
sarva-kāma-phala-pradāya
bhava-bandha-mocanāya —
hrīṃ sakala-vibhūti-dāya —
krom sādhya-ākarṣaṇāya —
sauḥ sarva-manaḥ-kṣobhaṇāya —
śrīṃ mahā-oṃ —
oṃ cirañjīvine —
vaṣaṭ vaśī-kuru vaśī-kuru —
vauṣaṭ ākarṣaya ākarṣaya —
huṃ vidveṣaya vidveṣaya —
phaṭ uccāṭaya uccāṭaya —
ṭha ṭhe stambhaya stambhaya —
kha khe māraya māraya —
namaḥ saṃpannāya
 poṣaya poṣaya —
svāhā paramantra-para-yantra-para-tantrān
chindhi chindhi
 grahān nivāraya nivāraya 

vyādhīn nivāraya nivāraya duḥkhaṃ haraya haraya

vidrāvaya vidrāvaya dehaṃ poṣaya poṣaya

cittaṃ toṣaya toṣaya

sarva-mantra-sarva-yantra-
sarva-tantra-sarva-pallava-rūpāya

oṃ namaḥ śivāya

Fruit of the Dattātreya Vidyā

• Mantra is chanted for self-purification to become a jīvanmukta (liberated while still living).