Ashtadiggajas

Ashtadiggajas is the collective title given to the eight Telugu scholars and poets in the court of Emperor Krishnadevaraya who ruled the Vijayanagara Empire from 1509 until his death in 1529. During his reign, Telugu literature and culture reached its zenith. In his court, eight poets were regarded as the eight pillars of his literary assembly. The age of Ashtadiggajas is called '' Prabandha Age'' (1540 AD to 1600). All of the Ashtadiggajas had composed at least one ''Prabandha Kavyamu'' and it was Ashtadiggajas who gave Prabandha its present form. Most of the Ashtadiggajas are from southern part of present-day Andhra Pradesh state (Rayalaseema) and Ashtadiggajas, Allasani Peddana, Dhurjati, Nandi Thimmana, Madayyagari Mallana and Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu are from the Rayalaseema. Pandit Ramakrishna (also called Tenali Rama because he belonged from the village of Tenali)hailed from the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. Ramarajabhushanudu was another Ashtadiggaja.

Etymology

The title ''Ashtadiggajas'' (Ashta + dik + gaja) means ''elephants in eight directions''. It refers to the old Hindu belief that eight elephants hold the earth in eight directions which are namely Airaavata, Pundareeka, Vamana, Kumuda, Anjana, Pushpadanta, Sarvabhauma, Suprateeka, whose wives are Abhra, Kapila, Pingala, Anupama, Taamraparni, Subhradanti, Angana, Anjanaavati. The court of poets were also called ''Bhuvana Vijayam'' (Conquest of the World).

Members

These poets were:
*Allasani Peddana
*Nandi Thimmana
*Madayyagari Mallana
*Dhurjati
* Ayyalaraju Ramambhadrudu
*Pingali Surana
*Ramarajabhushanudu
*Tenali Ramakrishna

Tenali Ramakrishna, Krishnadevaraya's court jester who authored several acclaimed works.

More Details

Though the above listed eight poets are widely regarded as the Ashtadiggajas, there are some differences of opinion as to who exactly constituted the Ashtadiggajas and if the composition of this body changed over time. Some literary works mention the name of ''Bhattu-Murti'' in place of Ramarajabhushanudu and some accounts mention Pingali Surana and Tenali Ramakrishna also as members of the later emperors. From the stone inscriptions of that time, it has been inferred that the village of Thippalur in the present-day Cuddapah district was given to the Ashtadiggajas by the emperor.

Tenali Ramakrishna (also known as Pandit Ramakrishna and Tenali Rama) was a poet, scholar, thinker and a Special Advisor in the court of Krishnadevaraya. He was a Telugu poet who hailed from what is now the Andhra Pradesh region, generally known for his wit and humour. He was one of the Ashtadiggajas or the eight poets at the court of Krishnadevaraya, the Vijayanagara emperor. When he was a child his father was led to death. So, to overcome the depression that Rama faced, his mother Lakshamma took him to Vijayanagara where he was an advisor and was also a great scholar of Telugu and Sanskrit.He was an advisor in court of Krishnadevaraya.

Works

Allasani Peddana wrote ''Swaarochisha Manu Sambhavam,'' dedicated to the Emperor Krishna Deva Raya. Nandi Thimmana wrote ''Parijataapaharanam'' and dedicated it to the emperor as well. Madayyagari Mallana wrote ''Rajasekhara Charitramu''. Dhurjati wrote ''Kalahasti Mahatyamu''. Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu wrote ''Ramaabhyudayamu''. Pingali Surana wrote ''Raghavapandaveeyamu'', a dual work that describes both Ramayana and Mahabharata. Ramarajabhushanudu wrote ''Kavyalankarasangrahamu'', ''Vasucharitramu'' and ''Harischandranalopakhyanamu''. Tenali Ramakrishna wrote ''Udbhataradhya Charitramu'', ''Panduranga Mahatmyamu,'' and Ghatikachala Mahatmyamu.

Literary style

Telugu literature reached its peak during their period. A new style called ''prabandha'' with added fiction and few omissions from the original stories followed during this period. Poets in earlier century like Tikkana and Potana translated the Sanskrit books and epics without changing the stories from the original. Ashtadiggajas usually took small, sometimes obscure, stories from Puranas and used them as plots for writing major Kāvyas. A ''Prabandham'' can be of three types, viz., Prakhyatam, Utpadyam, Misramam (famous story, purely fictional story, mixed story). Ashtadiggajas have written in all the three genres during the ''Prabandha Yugam''.

There are also at least two dual meaning works during this time. ''Raghavapandaveeyam'' by Pingali Surana simultaneously runs the stories of Rama and Pandavas. ''Harischandranalopakhyanamu'' by Bhattumurthy also simultaneously tells the stories of the emperors Harischandra and Nala.

See also

* Navaratnas, the label given to the court of the emperors Vikramaditya and Akbar.

Ashtadiggaja

References

* K.A. Nilakanta Sastry, History of South India, From Prehistoric times to fall of Vijayanagar, 1955, OUP, New Delhi (Reprinted 2002)
Golden age of Telugu Literature

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Telugu-language literature
Art and culture of Vijayanagar Empire
Cultural history of India tenali Rama