Vachana sahitya
Encyclopedia
Vachana sahitya is a form of writing in Kannada (see also Kannada poetry
) that evolved in the 12th Century C.E. as a part of the Veerashaiva 'movement'. Vachanas literally means "(that which is) said". These are readily intelligible prose texts.
Madara Chennaiah, an 11th-century cobbler-saint who lived in the reign of Western Chalukyas
, is first poet of this tradition and was considered by later poets, such as Basavanna (1160), who was also the prime minister of southern Kalachuri
King Bijjala II
, as his literary father.
led by the vachana writers, such as Basaveshvara, Akka Mahadevi
, Allama Prabhu
and Siddheshwar .This fact has been attributed to the popularity of the movement. More than 200 Vacahana writers (Vachanakaras) have been recorded, more than 30 of who were women.
is invoked or offered Pooja. In style, they are epigrammatical, parallelistic and allusive. They dwell on the vanity of riches, the valuelessness of mere rites or book learning, the uncertainty of life and the spiritual privileges of Shiva Bhakta (worshiper of lord Shiva). The Vachanas call men to give up the desire for worldly wealth and ease, to live lives of sobriety and detachment from the world and to turn to Siva for refuge.
Authors of a particular Vachana can be identified by the style of invocation of God (Basveshvara invokes "Kudala Sangama Deva", while Allama Prabhu invokes "Guheshwara", Akkamadevi invokes "Channa Mallikarjuna", Siddhrama (Siddheshwar) of Solapur invokes "Kapilasidda Mallikarjuna") in the vachana. The existing readings of the vachanas are mostly set by the European understanding of the Indian traditions.
About 20,000 vachanas have been published. The government of Karnataka has published Samagra Vachana Samputa in 15 volumes. Karnataka University Dharwad has published collections of individual vachana poets.
Devara (Jedara) Dasimaiah is called the 'Adya Vachanakara' (The First Vachanakara).
"Vachanadalli nAmAmR^ita tumbi
nayanadalli nimma mUruti tumbi
manadalli nimma nenahu tumbi
kiviyalli nimma kIruti tumbi
kUDala saMgama devA
nimma charaNakamaladoLagAnu tumbi "
Meaning:
The words spoken (by me) are full of ambrosia of (Your Holy) Name !
The eyes are enriched with the vision of Your Form !
The mind is full of Your thoughts !
The ears are filled with Your Glory !
Oh Lord of kUDala saMgama,
in Your Feet lotus, I am there as a bee !
neerige naiDile sR^i~Ngaara
samuDrake tereye sR^i~Ngaara
naarige guNave sR^i~Ngaara
gaganake chandrama sR^i~Ngaara
namma kUDala sangana sharaNara
nosalige vibhUtiye sR^i~Ngaara
Meaning:
For the water (pond) water-lily is the charm;
For the ocean tides are the charm;
For the woman character is the charm;
For the sky moon is the charm;
For foreheads of the devotees of the
Lord of kUDala sangama, the holy ash is the charm.
Kannada poetry
Kannada poetry is poetry written in the Kannada language spoken in Karnataka. Karnataka is the land that gave birth to eight Jnanapeeth award winners, the highest honour bestowed for Indian literature...
) that evolved in the 12th Century C.E. as a part of the Veerashaiva 'movement'. Vachanas literally means "(that which is) said". These are readily intelligible prose texts.
Madara Chennaiah, an 11th-century cobbler-saint who lived in the reign of Western Chalukyas
Western Chalukyas
The Western Chalukya Empire ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, between the 10th and 12th centuries. This dynasty is sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukya after its regal capital at Kalyani, today's Basavakalyan in Karnataka and alternatively the Later Chalukya from its theoretical...
, is first poet of this tradition and was considered by later poets, such as Basavanna (1160), who was also the prime minister of southern Kalachuri
Kalachuri
Kalachuri Empire is this the name used by two kingdoms who had a succession of dynasties from the 10th-12th centuries, one ruling over areas in Central India and were called Chedi or Haihaya and the other southern Kalachuri who ruled over parts of Karnataka...
King Bijjala II
Bijjala II
Bijjala II 1130 - 1167 CE was the most famous of the southern Kalachuri kings and ruled initially as a feudatory of Chalukya Vikramaditya VI. He ruled as the Mahamandalesvara or chief and ruled over Karhada 4,000 and Tardavadi 1,000, designations given to...
, as his literary father.
Vachanas and Lingayatism
This form of writing, in the 20th century, has come to be closely linked with what is called the social revolution of that period in KarnatakaKarnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
led by the vachana writers, such as Basaveshvara, Akka Mahadevi
Akka Mahadevi
Akka Mahadevi was a prominent figure of the Veerashaiva Bhakti movement of the 12th century Karnataka. Her Vachanas in Kannada, a form of didactic poetry are considered her greatest contribution to Kannada Bhakti literature. In all she wrote about 430 Vachanas which is relatively fewer than that...
, Allama Prabhu
Allama Prabhu
Allama Prabhu is a mystic-saint and Vachana poet of the Kannada language in the 12th century. Prabhu is the patron saint , the undisputed spiritual authority, and an integral part of the Lingayata movement that decisively shaped society in medieval Karnataka and...
and Siddheshwar .This fact has been attributed to the popularity of the movement. More than 200 Vacahana writers (Vachanakaras) have been recorded, more than 30 of who were women.
Style
Vachanas are brief paragraphs, and they end with one or the other local names under which ShivaShiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
is invoked or offered Pooja. In style, they are epigrammatical, parallelistic and allusive. They dwell on the vanity of riches, the valuelessness of mere rites or book learning, the uncertainty of life and the spiritual privileges of Shiva Bhakta (worshiper of lord Shiva). The Vachanas call men to give up the desire for worldly wealth and ease, to live lives of sobriety and detachment from the world and to turn to Siva for refuge.
Authors of a particular Vachana can be identified by the style of invocation of God (Basveshvara invokes "Kudala Sangama Deva", while Allama Prabhu invokes "Guheshwara", Akkamadevi invokes "Channa Mallikarjuna", Siddhrama (Siddheshwar) of Solapur invokes "Kapilasidda Mallikarjuna") in the vachana. The existing readings of the vachanas are mostly set by the European understanding of the Indian traditions.
About 20,000 vachanas have been published. The government of Karnataka has published Samagra Vachana Samputa in 15 volumes. Karnataka University Dharwad has published collections of individual vachana poets.
Devara (Jedara) Dasimaiah is called the 'Adya Vachanakara' (The First Vachanakara).
Example
Some of the vachanas by Basava..."Vachanadalli nAmAmR^ita tumbi
nayanadalli nimma mUruti tumbi
manadalli nimma nenahu tumbi
kiviyalli nimma kIruti tumbi
kUDala saMgama devA
nimma charaNakamaladoLagAnu tumbi "
Meaning:
The words spoken (by me) are full of ambrosia of (Your Holy) Name !
The eyes are enriched with the vision of Your Form !
The mind is full of Your thoughts !
The ears are filled with Your Glory !
Oh Lord of kUDala saMgama,
in Your Feet lotus, I am there as a bee !
neerige naiDile sR^i~Ngaara
samuDrake tereye sR^i~Ngaara
naarige guNave sR^i~Ngaara
gaganake chandrama sR^i~Ngaara
namma kUDala sangana sharaNara
nosalige vibhUtiye sR^i~Ngaara
Meaning:
For the water (pond) water-lily is the charm;
For the ocean tides are the charm;
For the woman character is the charm;
For the sky moon is the charm;
For foreheads of the devotees of the
Lord of kUDala sangama, the holy ash is the charm.
See also
- BasavaBasavaBasava was a philosopher and a social reformer. He is also called Vishwa Guru and Bhakti-Bhandari. His teachings and preachings which are universal, go beyond all boundaries of belief systems...
- Palkuriki SomanathaPalkuriki SomanathaPalkurthy Somanatha was one of the most noted Telugu language writers of the 12th or 13th century. He was also an accomplished writer in the Kannada and Sanskrit languages and penned several classics in them...
- Kannada literatureKannada literatureKannada literature is the corpus of written forms of the Kannada language, a member of the Dravidian family spoken mainly in the Indian state of Karnataka and written in the Kannada script....
- Southern KalachuriKalachuriKalachuri Empire is this the name used by two kingdoms who had a succession of dynasties from the 10th-12th centuries, one ruling over areas in Central India and were called Chedi or Haihaya and the other southern Kalachuri who ruled over parts of Karnataka...
Kingdom