Rudrabhatta

Rudrabhatta was an influential 12th-century Kannada poet in the court of the Hoysala Empire King Veera Ballala II(r.1173–1220 CE). According to Kannada language expert Narasimhacharya, the poet was also patronized by a minister of the King.Narasimhacharya (1988), p20 The literary critic Mukherjee feels that after a century of literary revolution caused by the Veerashaiva poets, a benevolent atmosphere created by the king may have encouraged this Vaishnava writer and poet.Mukherjee (1999), p333

Magnum opus

Rudrabhatta was a Brahmin and a Smartha (believer of monistic philosophy). Based on the Sanskrit classic ''Vishnu Purana'', he wrote the epic ''Jagannatha Vijaya'' in the ''Champu'' metrical form (mixed prose-verse). The epic '' kavya'' (a narrative poem) describes the life of the Hindu god Krishna leading up to his fight with the demon Banasura. In this work, Rudrabhatta envisions the Hindu gods Hari (Vishnu), Hara (Shiva) and Brahma as one composite supreme deity (''Parabrahma'') who takes the form of the god Krishna (an ''avatar'' of Vishnu). According to Dalal, Rudrabhatta influenced later day notable Kannada poets such as Kumaravyasa and Lakshmisha, and Haridasa (carnatic music) composers such as Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa.Dalal (2011), p347 The Kannada scholar L.S. Sheshagiri Rao feels Rudrabhatta was essentially a poet for the learned classes.Sastri (1955), p364Rao in Datta (1988), p1181 However, according to the literary critic Shiva Kumar, though Rudrabhatta's form was ancient, his content is more medieval, making him a poet of transition in Kannada literature. Shiva Prakash and Dalal consider him adept at both the mainstream (''marga'') and the native (''desi'') styles of composition.Shiva Prakash in Ayyappa Paniker (1997), p203 Based on epigraphs from the period of Veera Ballala II, the scholar Narasimhacharya dates ''Jagannatha Vijaya'' to about 1180 CE.Narasimhacharya (1988), p39

According to the scholar Sreekantaiyya, based on internal evidence, the authorship of an important Sanskrit classic called ''Rasakalika'' is assignable to Rudrabhatta. According to him, references made by the later day Kannada poet Salva (1550 CE) in his writing ''Rasaratnakara'' gives the required evidence. Sreekantaiyya feels the author of a Sanskrit book (on love and aesthetics in poetry) called ''Sringaratilaka'', who goes by the same name, is not the Rudrabhatta of the Hoysala court. According to Dalal, the author of ''Sringaratilaka'' belonged to the 10th century and also goes by the name Rudratta.Srikantaiya (2001), p35 According to Sankaranarayanan, Rudrabhatta's ''Rasakalika'' played an important role in the development of Indian aesthetics. It was the source for poet Vidyanatha's work ''Prataparudriya''. The poet Vasudeva quotes from ''Rasakalika'' in his comments on the writing ''Karpurmanjari'' by Rajasekhara. He feels that today's scholars have not fully recognized the influence of Rudrabhatta of the Hoysala court.

See also

*Hoysala literature
*Kannada literature

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Sastri, Nilakanta K.A. 955(2002). ''A history of South India from prehistoric times to the fall of Vijayanagar''. New Delhi: Indian Branch, Oxford University Press. .
* Narasimhacharya, R (1988). ''History of Kannada Literature''. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. .
* Mukherjee, Sujit (1999). ''Dictionary of Indian Literature One: Beginnings - 1850''. Oriental Blackswan, New Delhi.
* Sreekantaiyya, K N. (2001). ''Indian Poetics''. Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi.
* Datta, Amaresh (1988) ''Encyclopaedia of Indian literature''. Sahitya Akademi. New Delhi.
* Shiva Prakash, H.S. (1997). "Kannada". Edited by Ayyappa Panicker. ''Medieval Indian Literature'', An Anthology, Volume 1. Sahitya Akademi. New Delhi.
* Dalal, Roshan. (2011). ''Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide''. Penguin Books. ,

{{Karnataka topics

History of Karnataka
Kannada poets
Hindu poets
12th-century Indian poets
Poets from Karnataka
Indian male poets