page_title: Vijayanagara literature in Kannada
section_title: Overview
hierarchical_section_title: Vijayanagara literature in Kannada / Court literature / Overview
caption_attribution_description: English: This photograph was taken at the Shivappa Nayaka palace and museum in Shivamogga city (formerly Shimoga) in Karnataka state, India. Kumaravyasa was in the patronage of the Vijayanagara Empire king Devaraya II
context_page_description: Vijayanagara literature in Kannada is the body of literature composed in the Kannada language of South India during the ascendancy of the Vijayanagara Empire which lasted from the 14th through the 16th century. The Vijayanagara empire was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I. Although it lasted until 1664, its power declined after a major military defeat by the Shahi Sultanates in the battle of Talikota in 1565. The empire is named after its capital city Vijayanagara, whose ruins surround modern Hampi, now a World Heritage Site in Karnataka.
  Kannada literature during this period consisted of writings relating to the socio-religious developments of the Veerashaiva and Vaishnava faiths, and to a lesser extent to that of Jainism. Writing on secular topics was popular throughout this period. Authorship of these writings was not limited to poets and scholars alone. Significant literary contributions were made by members of the royal family, their ministers, army commanders of rank, nobility and the various subordinate rulers.
context_section_description: Before the 12th century, Jain writers had dominated Kannada literature with their champu (verses mixed with prose) style of writings popular in court literature. In the later medieval period, they had to contend with the Veerashaivas who challenged the very notion of royal literature with their vachana poetry, a stylised form of spoken language, more popular in folk genres. The popular growth of Veerashaiva (devotees of the Hindu god Shiva) literature began in the 12th century, while Vaishnava (devotees of the Hindu god Vishnu) writers began to exert their influence from the 15th century. Jain writers had to reinvent their art, moving away from the traditional themes of renunciation and tenets to focus on contemporary topics. Andayya's 13th century classic Kabbigara Kava ("Poets defender") was an early example of the change in literary style, and also reflected the hostility toward the Veerashaivas; the Jain author found it ideal to narrate the story of Manmatha, the God of Love, who turned Shiva into a half woman. The Veerashaivas had initiated an important change, casting aside the concept of formal literature and making way for shorter local genres. The Vaishnava haridasas later popularised musical forms that were more acceptable to the common man. Written classics eulogising kings and commanders were a thing of the past. Kannada literature had moved closer to the spoken and sung folk traditions, with singability being its hallmark, and devotion to God its goal.
  This significant shift in the literary landscape was coupled with major political changes that were taking place in southern India in the early 14th century. With the decline of the regional Hindu kingdoms, the Vijayanagara Empire had risen as a bulwark against Muslim incursions from the north while creating an atmosphere conducive to development of the fine arts. In an important age of Kannada literature, competition between Vaishnava and Veerashaiva writers came to the fore. Literary disputations between the two sects were common, especially in the court of King Deva Raya II. Acute rivalry led to "organised processions" in honour of the classics written by poets of the respective sects. With the exception of the best-known writers from these faiths, many authors produced lesser quality writings with a sectarian and propagandist bent.
  The Vaishnava writers consisted of two groups who seemed to have no interaction with each other: the Brahmin commentators who typically wrote under the patronage of royalty; and the Bhakti (devotion) poets who played no role in courtly matters, instead taking the message of God to the people in the form of melodious songs composed using folk genres. Kumara Vyasa and Timmanna Kavi were well known among the Brahmin commentators, while Purandara Dasa and Kanaka Dasa were the most famous of the Bhakti writers. The philosophy of Madhvacharya, which originated in the Kannada–speaking region in the 13th century, spread beyond its borders over the next two centuries. The itinerant haridasas, best described as mystic saint-poets, spread the philosophy of Madhvacharya in simple Kannada, winning mass appeal by preaching devotion to God and extolling the virtues of jnana (enlightenment), bhakti (devotion) and vairagya (detachment).
  This was the age of the shatpadi metre, although only the most skilled of poets, such as Chamarasa, Kumara Vyasa, Kanaka Dasa and Bhaskara used it to the best effect. Mentioned for the first time in Kannada literature by Nagavarma I in his Chhandombudhi (c. 990) and successfully used by the 12th century Hoysala poet Raghavanka, this hexa-metre style suited for narrative poetry found immense popularity throughout the Vijayanagara period. The shataka metre (string of 100 verses) was put to best use by the Veerashaivas who produced most of the didactic writings in this metre, although the Jain poet Ratnakaravarni is the most famous exponent of it. The writings of Ratnakaravarni and Kanaka Dasa in sangatya metre are considered masterpieces from this period.
  In the royal courts, there was increased interaction between
caption: Gada Parva  (lit, "Battle of the clubs") section of Kumaravyasa's epic Kumaravyasa Bharata in Kannada (c.1425-1450)
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