The Adinath Sampradaya was a

sadhu ''Sadhu'' (, IAST: ' (male), ''sādhvī'' or ''sādhvīne'' (female), also spelled ''saddhu'') is a religious ascetic, mendicant or any holy person in Hinduism and Jainism who has renounced the worldly life. They are sometimes alternatively ...

sub-sect of the greater

Nath Natha, also called Nath (), are a Shaivism, Shaiva sub-tradition within Hinduism in India and Nepal. A medieval movement, it combined ideas from Buddhism, Shaivism, Tantra and Yoga traditions of the Indian subcontinent.

tradition. Followers of this tradition were given

Sannyasa ''Sannyasa'' (), sometimes spelled ''sanyasa'', is the fourth stage within the Hinduism, Hindu system of four life stages known as ''ashrama (stage), ashramas'', the first three being ''brahmacharya'' (celibate student), ''Gṛhastha, grihast ...

diksha, thus renouncing householder life, and thereafter lived as naked sadhus. Believing that sadhus should live alone until they had attained the goal, they lived in caves, huts, ruined buildings, or empty houses, and always away from towns and villages. Reference to the Adinath Sampradaya is pointed out by Rajmohan Nath (1964) who lists them among the twelve traditional sub-sects of the Nath

Sampradaya ''Sampradaya'' (/ səmpɾəd̪ɑjə/,; ), in Indian-origin religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, can be translated as 'tradition', 'spiritual lineage', 'sect', or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and transmissi ...

.Bandyopadhyay, P. K. (1992). ''Natha Cult and Mahanad''. page 73, Delhi, India: B.R. Publishing Corporation. The Adinath Sampradaya is also listed among the sub-divisions of Nath sects in the Census Report, Punjab, 1891, p. 114.Briggs, G. W. (1973). ''Gorakhnath and the Kanphata Yogis''. page 75, (Chart A) Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. The last sadhu holding authentic

guru Guru ( ; International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''guru'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian religions, Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: tr ...

status in the Adinath Sampradaya was Shri Gurudev Mahendranath, who died in 1991. Though he created, and gave Diksha into, a western householder variant of the Nath Tradition, he intentionally terminated the Adinath Sampradaya by refusing to bestow sannyasa diksha, an initiation required for succession.Mahendranath, Shri Gurudev
From the Dark into Light
in ''The Open Door: Newsletter of the International Nath Order''. Retrieved Feb. 6, 2007 The Sanskrit term ''Adi Nath'' means "first" or "original Lord," and is therefore a synonym for

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

and, beyond mental concepts, the "Supreme Reality" as originator of all things. G.W. Briggs noted, "although Adinath may have been a yogi preceding

Matsyendranath Matsyendranātha, also known as Matsyendra, Macchindranāth, Mīnanātha and Minapa (early 10th century) was a saint and yogi in a number of Buddhism, Buddhist and Hinduism, Hindu traditions. He is considered the revivalist of hatha yoga as we ...

, he is now identified with Shiva, and the name is used to trace the origin of the (Nath) sect to the greatest of yogis, the god Shiva".Briggs, G. W. (1973). ''Gorakhnath and the Kanphata Yogis''. page 231, Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.

References

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External links

Adityanath (2002). Nath FAQ.
Retrieved Oct. 20, 2004.
''The Open Door: Newsletter of the International Nath Order''
1985–present. Shaiva sects Hindu denominations Hindu religious orders