other mantras. There is nothing higher to be known than the real nature of the Guru (spiritual teacher). Thus, the hagiographic roots of the Aghor tradition are traced to Lord Dattatreya, an avatar of Shiva. Aghor tradition believes that Jagadguru Dattatreya propounded the tradition of Aghor later followed in the sixteenth century by the great saint Baba Kinaram. The life story of Baba Kinaram tells of his wandering for years until he attained complete knowledge upon encountering Bhagwan Dattatreya, who appeared to him in the Girnar Mountains, a holy place in Gujarat state in northwest India. Later in his life, Baba Kinaram settled in the holy city of Varanasi and wrote a book called Viveksar, recognized now as the most authentic treatise on the principles of Aghor. He claimed that the contents of Viveksar were revealed to him by Lord Dattatreya. Through this revelation, he saw that the whole world, the whole universe, is situated in each human body, a vast world perfect in all respects. Baba Kinaram later established an ashram in Varanasi, called Krim Kund. He initiated many social reforms during the tumultuous times of the Moghul invasion when the Indian people were being persecuted. The early devotees of Aghor comprised a diffuse network of wandering ascetics who passed down their beliefs and practices through oral teaching in many different lineages. In the 1960s, the then-guru of the Baba Kina Ram lineage, Baba Bhagwan Ramji (1937-1992), instituted reforms of the Aghor tradition, banning taboo substances such as alcohol, marijuana, and ashes. Baba Bhagwan Ramji "challenged his devotees to embrace polluted people instead of polluted substances." Aghor instead became focused on social reform, maintaining a vamachara tradition of spirituality by helping people who have been shunned from mainstream society, such as lepers and orphans. When Baba Bhagwan Ramji attained Aghor in this lineage, he was compared to Baba Kinaram because he had a strong sense of social responsibility, identifying himself with suffering humanity. Numerous accounts describe how he helped struggling people to battle social injustices. Lineage The direct lineage of the twelve Aghoreshwars that began with Bhagwan Dattatreya extends from the sixteenth century until the present day. Baba Kalu Ram (Bhagwan Dattatreya) Aghoraacharya Baba Kinaram (16th century) Baba Bija Ram Baba Dhouta Ram Baba Gaibi Ram Baba Bhavani Ram Baba Jainarayan Ram Baba Mathura Ram Baba Saryu Ram Baba Dal Singar Ram Baba Rajeshwar Ram Baba Bhagwan Ramji Baba