VIJAYANAGARA LITERATURE

The Vijayanagara period saw the development, and patronage of Sanskrit, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu literature. Both religious of philosophical as well as secular works were written. Many poets and scholars received court patronage.

Sanskrit: Sanskrit was the language of higher culture throughout South India and a considerable volume of literature in its various branches arose due to the activity of scholars and poets.

Among the important kavyas written during. this period the earliest work was Madhuravijayam ('Conquest of Madurai') by Gangadevi, describing the achievements of Kumara Kampana, the son of Bukka I of Vijayanagara.  

Krishnadevaraya was a scholar and poet as well as a soldier and statesman. He wrote in both Sanskrit and Telugu. His. drama Jambavatikalvana is of a fairly high order.

In the field of the Advaita school of philosophical writings a great contribution was made by sage Vidyaranya. The famous Sarvadarsana-sangraha, by Sayana-Madhava tries to establish the superiority of Advaita by reviewing many of its rival philosophical systems.

Regarding the Visishtadvaita philosophy there were many important works that were composed just before the Vijayanagara period. Although Sri-Vaishnavism greatly prospered under the patronage of the Vijayanagara rulers of the second, third and fourth dynasties, and many authors wrote, there was little advance made in philosophical thought during this period.

Jayatirtha who was a contemporary of Vidyaranya was the greatest elucidator of the Dvalta philosophy of Madhvacharya. The next great name in the history of the DValta school was that of Vyasaraya, who was highly honoured by Krishnadevaraya. His works such as Tatparyandrika, Nyayometta and Tarka-tandava expounded the philosophy of his sect and presented arguments against rival philosophies.

Kannada:  Among the South Indian languages, after Tamil, Kannada is the oldest. The Jains, who had flourished in Karnataka had played an important role in the development of this language. During the Vijayanagara period the Jains were being gradually pushed out due to the rising influence. of various Saiva and Vaishnava schools. Yet they continued to write in Kannada on the lives of the tirthankaras and other holy persons.

After the Jains, the Virasaivas did the most for the development of Kannada Language and literature. They wrote many religious works in Kannada. They preferred the prose medium. The Lingayat or Virasalva literature of the Vijayanagara period falls under two heads - stories of reformers and devotees and expositions/ of doctrine. The Basava-purana of Bhimakavi was completed in the mid-14th century. It is on the Virasaiva reformer Basava and it describes him as an incarnation of Nandi, especially sent to re-establish the Virasaiva faith, on earth.

In the literature of the Virasaiva doctrine, several works were produced under Devaraya II who had two staunch Virasaiva ministers. One was Lukkana, who wrote Siva-tattva-cintamani, a treatise on thelteachings and rites of this sect. (The-minister-Jakkanarya-was-aloo-a great writer on Virasaivis in Kannada)

Popular songs by the dasas (mendicant singers) was another form of literature in Kannada during this period. These Vaishnava singers drew inspiration from Madhvacharya and Vyasaraya. Purandaradasa was the earliest, the most famous and the most prolific of these singers. He lived many years in the city of Vijayanagara.

Telugu: The reign of Krishnadevaraya marks the golden age of Telugu literature. The king himself was a distinguished Telugu writer. His Amuktamalyada is one of the five great kavyas in Telugu. Traditionally it is held that there were eight great Telugu writers in the court of Krishnadevaraya. 'hey are known as the Ashtadiggajas (the Eight Elephants of the Quarters). Among them the greatest was Allasani Peddana, on whom the monarch conferred the title of "Andhrakavitapitamaha" (Grandfather of Telugu poetry). His Manucarita is dedicated to Krishnadevaraya, who marked his appreciation for the poem by personally carrying the palanquin of Peddana.

Nandi Timmana, the second great Telugu poet of Krishnadevaraya's court, was the author of Parijatapaharana, which elaborates a beautiful verse an incident in Lord Krishna's life when he tries to appease his wife Satyabhama. In some ways the most interesting figure of the time was Tenali Ramakrishna, who started his career under Krishnadevraya but who lived on long after this monarch. Posterity remembers him more as a court jester who played many practical jokes on high-placed persons including the monarch. But he was also a talented poet and his Panduranga Mahatmya is one of the five great kavyas of Telugu.

Tamil: The heyday of Tamil literature was in the pre-Vijayanagara age. Though the Vijayanagara rulers were either Kannadigas or Telugus and most of their feudatories in the far south as far as Madurai were mostly Telugus, who had a decided preference for Sanskrit and Telugu, there was no setback to Tamil literary activity.

Among the many great Tamil writers of this age, a few deserve special mention. Among them are Arunagirinatha, author of Tiruppugal, a contemporary of Devaraya II and Haridasa, a Vaishnava poet in the court of Krishnadevaraya.