A Wisdom Archive on Vikramarjuna Vijaya

The Old Kannada phase marks the period from the 10th century to approximately the 12th century. This period consists mainly of Jain religious literature. The most famous poet from this period is Pampa (902-975 CE), one of the most famous writers in the Kannada language. His Vikramarjuna Vijaya (also called pampa bharatha)is hailed as a classic even to this day. With this and his other important work Adipurana he set a trend of poetic excellence for the Kannada poets of the future. The former work is an adaptation of the celebrated Mah ...

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Kannada poets have the unique distinction of sowing the seeds of one of the richest forms of classical music: South Indian Carnatic music. The Dasas or saints, around 15th century, sang the glory of God through poems. These poems called Padas were usually of 10 to 20 lines. They expressed the desire of the Bhakta or devotee to be one with God. This form of poetry was highly amenable to musical composition and exposition. This music evolved into the highly sophisticated and codified Carnatic music. The Haridasas spread the message of peace, love and bhakti in their Dasa Sahitya, w ...

Read more here: » Kannada poetry: Encyclopedia II - Kannada poetry - Bhakti

The first example of Kannada writing can be found in the Halmidi inscription, dated c. 450 CE. The famous Badami inscriptions from the 7th century provide more examples of early Kannada writing. However, the first available book in Kannada is the Kavirajamarga, written in the 9th century by Amoghavarsha Nrupatunga. The book is a treatise of sorts on Kannada poetry, Kannada language and Kannada speaking people in general. Based on the references that the book makes to earlier Kannada works, historians estimate that literature in Kannada must have begun a couple of centuries before, in the 6th-7th centuries CE. H ...

Read more here: » Kannada literature: Encyclopedia II - Kannada literature - Early writing

The Rashtrakutas were feudatories to the Chalukyas and came into prominence under Dantidurga around 753 CE. Rashtrakutas find mention in the edicts of Ashoka, where they are referred to as the Rathika or Rastika. The Rashtrakuta's ruled nearly all of Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh for several centuries. Dhruva (780 CE - 793 CE) considerably expanded the kingdom. The Rashtrakuta's were involved in several wars and alliances with other deccan kingd ...

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The Middle Kannada period gave birth to several genres in Kannada literature, with new forms of composition coming into use, including Ragale (a form of blank verse) and meters like Sangatya and Desi. The works of this period are based on Jain, Hindu and secular principles. Two of the early writers (13th century) of this period are Harihara and Raghavanka, trailblazers in their own right. Harihara established the Ragale form of composition, and most of his works are based on the Shaiva and ...

Read more here: » Kannada literature: Encyclopedia II - Kannada literature - Middle KannadanaDugannaDa