A great sage atri lived with his wife in an ashram near Sucheendram, near Kanyakumari, at the southern tip of India. A temple honouring Dattatreya stands near the ashram. When they grew up, Chandrea went to Chandralok to live and shine, Durvasa went to the forests to meditate, while Dattatreya stayed back and looked after his parents.

In the general depictions, Dattatreya is portrayed with a cow and four dogs at his feet. The cow represents the mother earth and four dogs represent the four Vedas. Dattatreya is generally depicted with three heads, symolising Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva; past, present and future and creation, preservation and destruction. As Dattatreya was born of a boon granted by the Trinity, he is often depicted as one with three heads representing Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Dattatreya served his parents selflessly and was later born as an avatar purush (holy incarnation), considered to be the Sai Baba of Shirdi.

Dattatreya left home at an early age to wander naked in search of the Absolute. He came down to spread the universality of true religion. His presence is not limited to any one country or sphere, as he is considered the Guru (teacher of all Gurus. Lord Dattatreya observed nature carefully, the elements, the sun and the moon, birds and animals, men and women and gained an insight into the nature of the world. Inspired, he went on to compose the Avadhuta Gita - the song of the recluse that explains the doctrine of detachment.

Through various occult sciences like Tantra and mystical disciplines like Yoga, Dattatreya taught mankind the means to yoke oneself to the way of the cosmos. His students called him the fountainhead of all knowledge, the supreme teacher, Adinatha. He wandered around the world as a mendicant with his cow, Bhoodevi herself, and four dogs. Lord Dattatreya is popular deity famous among world as lot of are his devotees.

Shri Dattatreya or Datta Guru, an incarnation who came to light the lamp of wisdom among the people. Shri Dattatreya is a splendorous form. His face radiates all wisdom and draws us away from the lures of the world. Though He is the Supreme Lord of this universe, yet He is a total and supreme recluse. Though He moves from place to place, His favorite abode is the Holy Audambar tree (A type of fig type, Ficus glomerate). He has matted hair on His head. His body is ever smeared with holy ashes and He wears tiger-skin for His garment.

A cow and four dogs are always with Him as His constant companions. He is an 'Avadhoot', ever anchored in Spirit, but always overflowing with compassion for all the beings and the entire creation. He is the embodiment of total Godhead. All the aspects of Godhead are fully manifest in Him. His faces and form are ever radiant with peace and divine charm.

The twenty four gurus that Dattatreya found in Nature and Society became very famous and is part of several scriptures. The Uddhava Gita a song embedded in the Bhagavata Purana, there is a story of Dattatreya sung by Krishna which enumerates a list of his twenty-four gurus: earth, air, sky or ether, water, fire sun, moon, python, pigeons, sea, moth, bee, bull elephant, bear, deer, fish, osprey, a child, a maiden, a courtesan, a blacksmith, serpent, spider, and wasp. The 24 Gurus of Dattatreya come from the 24 gurus of Avadhut described in the Bhagavata Purana.

Thousands of years ago, Guru Dattatreya gave Ashtanga Yoga (either fold path of Yoga) Lessons to the world, as follows:
1. Yama – truthfulness, non-receiving of any gifts. Moral discipline
2. Niyama – study and self-surrender to God.
3. Asana – posture
4. Pranayama – breath control exercises.
5. Pratyahara – withdrawal of senses from sense objects.
6. Dharana – concentration.
7. Dhyana – meditation and knowledge.
8. Samadhi – the state of being merged with the God.