Eknāth (also spelled Ekanātha) was a saint-poet who lived in the ancient town of Paithan, in west-central India (the modern state of Maharashtra), during the 16th century. He is revered as one of the four main figures (with Jñāndev, Nāmdev, and Tukārām) whose religious poetry makes up the textual core of the major Marathi bhakti tradition – the Vārkarī Sampradāy. According to tradition, Eknāth was an only child born in a Brahman family, but he was raised by his grandparent…