Dadu Dayal (Devanagari: दादू दयाल, Saint Dādūdayāl, 1544–1603) was a poet-saint religious reformer who spoke against formalism and priestcraft and was active in Rajasthan.

[3] In Sambhar, Dādū Dayāl claimed to hold debates with orthodox religious figures, and preached a "middle path" between various sects.

According to the Dādu panthī tradition, Dādū Dayāl visited the court of Akbar on the invitation of Bhagavantdās, Kachvāhā ruler of Amber.

Dadu Dayal later moved to Naraina, near Jaipur Rajasthan, where he gained a group of followers, forming a sect that became known as the Dadupanth.

Bairagi military akharas generally did not follow the prohibition against eating meat or taking narcotics.

Dadu believed that devotion to God should transcend religious or sectarian affiliation, and that devotees should become non-sectarian or "Nipakh".

Dadu ji spent the latter years of his life in Naraiana, a small distance away from the town of Dudu, near Jaipur city.

Dadupanth has continued in Rajasthan to the present-day and has been a major source of early manuscripts containing songs by Dadu and other North Indian saints.