Gorakhnath

(13th c.?) Medieval yogi and wonderworker who is the founder of the
Nathpanthi ascetics. There is little
doubt that Gorakhnath was a historical
person, and his teacher was named
Matsyendranath (also known as
Minanath). However, the accounts of his
life tell of him performing so many miracles and wonders that they cannot be
taken as factual. He is generally believed
to have lived early in the thirteenth century, since the Maharashtrian poet-saint
Jnaneshvar (1275–1296?) described his
own spiritual preceptor as one of
Gorakhnath’s disciples.
Tradition regards Gorakhnath not
only as a magician and a wonder-worker,
but also as the author of the
Gorakhshatakam. This text is a religious manual that gives instruction on a
specific type of yoga practiced
by Nathpanthi ascetics. The ultimate
goal of this yogic practice is to transform
the perishable elements in the physical
body into immortal elements. Whether
or not Gorakhnath authored this
text, the spiritual instructions therein
are consistent with those of the
Nathpanthi ascetics who claim to be
his disciples. According to legend,
Gorakhnath and his most accomplished
followers have never died, and their
victory over death is a sign of their
spiritual accomplishment. The most
complete source on Gorakhnath and
his followers, despite its age, is
George Weston Briggs, Gorakhnath
and the Kanphata Yogis, 1973;
and Shashibhushan B. Dasgupta,
Obscure Religious Cults, 1962. See
also Maharashtri.