Sripada Srivallabha (Sanskrit: श्रीपाद श्रीवल्लभ) was an Indian guru of Dattatreya tradition (sampradaya), who is regarded as the first incarnation of Lord Dattatreya. He was born and lived in Pithapuram, a town in present-day Andhra Pradesh in India. He is considered one of the first complete Avatars (incarnations) of the deity Dattatreya in Kali Yuga.
It is believed that the Avatar Sripada Srivallabha is Chiranjeevi (immortal) and that he took ‘Jalsamadhi’ in Kuravapura or Kurugaddi, a river island on river Krishna near Raichur, Karnataka. He disappeared since then as a human but still exists in Tejorup (in Pure energy form)
Sometime after Vallabha disappeared, a Brahmin named Vallabhesh vowed to go to Kuravapur and feed 1,000 Brahmins if he earned more than his usual profit. Near Kuravapur, he encountered bandits in disguise who robbed and beheaded him. Vallabha suddenly appeared from nowhere and killed the bandits with his Trishula; one, who appealed to the saint as Shiva, was spared. Vallabha asked him to reattach Vallabhesh’s severed head to his body and brought him back to life. Vallabhesh Brahmin completed his vow and became a disciple of Sripada Srivallabha.
Vallabhesh Brahmin is considered the mula-purush (founder) of the Hedgewar family. K. B. Hedgewar, founder of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), was a ninth-generation descendant of Vallabhesh.