Damodardev | |
|---|---|
 Sri Sri Damordadeva Ata | |
| Born | January 1488 Nalaca, Nagaon[1] |
| Died | 1598 (aged 109–110) Vaikunthapur Sattra |
| Occupation | Ekasarana preceptor |
| Language | Assamese,Sanskrit |
| Period | medieval period |
Damodardev (1488–1598) was sixteenth centuryEkasarana preceptor from Nalaca,Nagaon. Damodardev was a follower ofSankardeva'sEkasarana dharma order.[2] He started his own order after the death of Sankardeva that came to be called theBrahmasamhati, which admitted Brahmanical rituals and greater adherence to thecaste system alongside the namadharma of Sankardev.[3] He was succeeded byBhattadeva.[4]
Damodardev was born in a village called Nalaca in (in present-day Nagaon) in the 1488, the third and youngest son of Sushila and Satananda a Brahmin couple.[5] Nalaca was close toBordowa than,Sankardev's native place, and Satananda was Sankardev's friend.[6] Damodardev and his family moved from theAhom territories after Sankardev moved from Dhuwahat toBarpeta in 1546 and settled, after some wandering close to Patbausi, or Chandravatipura[7] near Sankardev'ssattra.[8] Damodardev received his education along with his two brothers under Kalpacandra ofNavadwip in Bengal, where they studied detailed grammar, derivations and usage of words, fourVedas, fourteen scriptures,Gita,Bhagavata Purana and other religious books.
Early biographers of Damodardev are unanimous that he was inspired and influenced bySankardev in his religious practice and he began proselytising in Barpeta.[9] After meeting Damodar, Sankardev asked him to recite Bhagavata in his Sattra for which Damodar replied "Yours is the land where tree of Bhakti can grow", and this marked the beginning of friendship between them. Sankara requested him to initiate Brahmin disciples. Sankardev also initiated Damodardev to the Mahapurushiya cult.