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Bannanje Govindacharya (3 August 1936 – 13 December 2020) was an Indian philosopher and
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
scholar versed in Veda Bhashya, Upanishad Bhashya, Mahabharata, Puranas and Ramayana. He wrote Bhashyas (commentaries) on Veda Suktas,
Upanishads The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...
, ShataRudriya, BrahmaSutra Bhashya, Gita Bhashya and was an orator. He was awarded the
Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...
by the Government of India in 2009.


Early life

Govindacharya was born on August 3, 1936, in the Bannanje neighborhood of
Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...
, in present-day southern Indian state of
Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Kar ...
. He started his Vedic studies under his father, Tarkakesari S. Narayanacharya, and went on to study under Vidyamanya Tirtha Swamiji of the Palimaru
Matha A ''matha'' (; sa, मठ, ), also written as ''math'', ''muth'', ''mutth'', ''mutt'', or ''mut'', is a Sanskrit word that means 'institute or college', and it also refers to a monastery in Hinduism.
and Vidyasamudra Tirtha Swamiji of the Kaneyur
Matha A ''matha'' (; sa, मठ, ), also written as ''math'', ''muth'', ''mutth'', ''mutt'', or ''mut'', is a Sanskrit word that means 'institute or college', and it also refers to a monastery in Hinduism.
, both in Udupi. He later studied under Vishwesha Tirtha of the
Pejawara Matha Pejavara Matha is one of the Ashta Mathas of Udupi, which was started by Sri Adhokshaja Tirtha, who was a direct disciple of Sri Madhvacharya, the founder of the Dvaita school of Hindu philosophy. Till date, 32 Swamijis have headed this math ...
.


Career


Vedic studies

Sanskrit scholar versed in Veda Bhashya, Upanishad Bhashya,
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...
,
Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
and
Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages e ...
. He wrote Bhashyas or commentaries on Veda Suktas,
Upanishads The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...
, ShataRudriya, BrahmaSutra Bhashya, Gita Bhashya and was an orator. He wrote new Vyakarana Sutras where Panini left and also did vyakhyana for the words written before
Pāṇini , era = ;;6th–5th century BCE , region = Indian philosophy , main_interests = Grammar, linguistics , notable_works = ' ( Classical Sanskrit) , influenced= , notable_ideas= Descriptive linguistics (Devanag ...
. He synchronised all the philosophical texts to understand the texts composed by Vedavyasa. He was one of the greatest exponents of Bhaagavata chintana and commented on the philosophical meaning of Bhagavata and other Puranas. Even though by birth he was the follower of Madhvacharya, he had studied Mayavada and other philosophies and then read Madhvacharya's Tattvavaada. He was a well-known philosopher, speaker in Sanskrit and Kannada. He has around 4000 pages of Sanskrit Vyakhyana to his name with 50 odd books and around 150 books, including those in other languages. He wrote screenplay for the Sanskrit film "Bhagavadgita" and Shankaracharya. He hailed from Bannanje locality of
Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...
in Karnataka, India. He was born in 1936. He was in particular one of the greatest experts on the '' Madhvas Tattvavada'' or Madhva philosophy. He is best known for his ''pravachanas'' or discourses, which are very popular among Tuluvas and Kannadigas all over the world. His speeches have covered almost all the philosophical texts and amount to more than 10,000 hours. His ''pravachanas'' (discourses) have made him a household name among Tuluvas and Kannadigas. He is very popular in Kannanda literary world and hailed by Jnaanapeetha awardee Da.Ra.Bendre. He also wrote on this Naaku-Tanti. His literary achievements also include his translation and commentaries of the complete texts of Shri Madhwacharya. He was awarded the
Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...
by the Government of India in 2009.


Preservation of manuscripts

In 2005–2006, Professor P.R. Mukund (a disciple of Sri Bannanje) along with his colleague Dr. Roger Easton from the
Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in the town of Henrietta, New York, Henrietta in the Rochester, New York, metropolitan area. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree ...
in New York and Dr. Keith Knox of the Boeing Corporation in Hawaii, undertook the painstaking process of imaging and preserving the original ''Sarvamoola Granthas'' authored by
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...
himself. Knox and Easton had earlier imaged fragments of the
Dead Sea scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts discovered between 1946 and 1956 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the ...
and are on the imaging team for the
Archimedes Palimpsest The Archimedes Palimpsest is a parchment codex palimpsest, originally a Byzantine Greek copy of a compilation of Archimedes and other authors. It contains two works of Archimedes that were thought to have been lost (the '' Ostomachion'' and the ...
project. Bannanje suggested this task as a project of enormous importance and was using the images in his studies of the manuscript.


Other contributions

Apart from his voluminous writing, Bannanje also contributed more than 800 articles on various important issues which are published in different books, journals and magazines. He also served as the editor at
Udayavani ''Udayavani'' ("Morning Voice" in Kannada) is a Kannada daily newspaper with editions from Manipal, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hubballi, Davanagere and Gulbarga. Launched in January 1970 by Mohandas Pai and T. Satish U Pai, Udayavani with a combined ci ...
early in his life. He wrote book on life of Shree Madhwa acharya called Acharya Madhva: Baduku-Bareha published by RastraKavi Govinda Pai Samshodhana Kendra, Udupi. Bannanje Acharyaru also did a lot of work to propagate and preserve the Chaturdasha Bhajans, 14 songs in Sanskrit penned by Acharya Madhwa's direct disciples and prominent followers of his philosophy. This is a great contribution to the Madhwa community. Another notable contribution of his is to the Indian and Kannada film industries. He wrote script in Sanskrit for
G V Iyer Ganapathi Venkataramana Iyer (3 September 1917 – 21 December 2003) was a well-known Indian film director and actor. He was nicknamed "Kannada Bheeshma", and was the only person who made films in Sanskrit. His film '' Adi Shankaracharya'' (1 ...
's movies Bhagavadgeeta, ''
Adi Shankaracharya Adi Shankara ("first Shankara," to distinguish him from other Shankaras)(8th cent. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya ( sa, आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, Ādi Śaṅkarācāryaḥ, lit=First Shank ...
'', Shri Madhwacharya,
Sri Ramanujacharya Ramanuja (Middle Tamil: Rāmāṉujam; Classical Sanskrit: Rāmanuja; 1017 CE – 1137 CE; ; ), also known as Ramanujacharya, was an Indian Hindu philosopher, guru and a social reformer. He is noted to be one of the most important exponents o ...
. He also wrote the scripts for the
Adi Shankaracharya Adi Shankara ("first Shankara," to distinguish him from other Shankaras)(8th cent. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya ( sa, आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, Ādi Śaṅkarācāryaḥ, lit=First Shank ...
and Madhwacharya movies. ''Adi Shankaracharya'' incidentally was the first ever Sanskrit movie.


His works

Shri Bannanje Govindacharya has many contributions to Vedic scholarship to his name. He authored numerous commentaries, translations and original works on the subject. He also contributed hundreds of articles in magazines and journals. He also travelled all over India and around the world giving discourses in Indian philosophy and Hindu scriptures.


Publications edited

Works of Madhwa : This monumental work is a painstakingly crafted reconstruction of the complete commentary on Madhwa's works by Shri Hrishikesha Tirtha, a direct disciple of Shri Madhwacharya of the 13th CE. It comprises 2000 pages in five volumes complete with footnotes and colophons. Two other works of Shri Madhwacharya, ''Tithinirnaya'' and ''Nyasa Paddhathi'' which were unknown were discovered and included in this great work.


Translation of major Sanskrit works into Kannada

Apart from the Vedic texts, Shri Bannanje also translated several other Sanskrit works into
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
. These include, * ''Bana Bhattana kadambari'' - A translation of Bāṇabhaṭṭa's novel *
Kalidasa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and ...
's
Shakuntala Shakuntala (Sanskrit: ''Śakuntalā'') is the wife of Dushyanta and the mother of Emperor Bharata. Her story is told in the '' Adi Parva'' of the ancient Indian epic ''Mahabharata'' and dramatized by many writers, the most famous adaption be ...
* Shudraka's Mrichakatika as ''Aaveya Mannina Atada Bandi'', won the
Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...
's award for translation in 2001AKADEMI TRANSLATION PRIZES 1989-2005
* Bhavabhuti's Uttaramacharita * Mahashweta's
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
stories * Several Sanskrit poems.


Short commentaries in Sanskrit

* ''Anandamala'' of shri trivikramarya dasa * ''
Vayu Stuti Vayu STUTI is one of the most famous Stutis (poems) composed by Sri Trivikrama Panditacharya in praise of Sri Madhvacharya, the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy. Madhvas, or the followers of Sri Madhvacharya, know that Madhvacharya is ...
'' of Shri Trivikrama Pandita * ''Vishnu Stuti'' of Shri Trivikrama Pandita * ''Chaturdashastotra'' – different stotras in Sanskrit * ''Raghavendra stotra '' * ''Jayathirtha stuti'' * ''Vada ratnavali'' of Shri Vishudasacharya * A philosophical dialectic in
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
* Short commentaries for six upanishads with commentaries of Trivikramarya Dasa


Detailed commentaries in Sanskrit

Some of Bannanje's detailed commentaries in Sanskrit include, * ''Nirnaya Bhava Chandrika Tippani'' on
Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya is a commentary on the Hindu epic Ramayana, birth of Veda Vyasa and Mahabharata by Sri Madhvacharya, the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy. Contents The ''Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya'' has 32 chapters. In ...
by Shri
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...
* ''Teeka'' (critique) on Mahabharata Tatparya (yamaka bharatha) by Shri
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...
* ''Teeka'' on Shri Madhwavijaya of Narayana Pandita * ''Tippani'' on Bhagavata Tatparya Nirnaya by Shri
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...


Translation of Sanskrit to Kannada

* '' Purusha sukta'' * '' Śrī Sūkta'' * '' Shiva stuti'' * '' Narashimha stuti'' * '' Talavakaropanishad'' (''
Kenopanishad The Kena Upanishad () is a Vedic Sanskrit text classified as one of the primary or Mukhya Upanishads that is embedded inside the last section of the ''Talavakara Brahmanam'' of the Samaveda.Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, M ...
'') * '' Krishnamritamaharnava'' of
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...
* '' Tantra sara sangraha'' of
Madhvacharya Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the '' Dvaita'' (dualism) sch ...
* '' Sangraha Ramayana'' of Shri
Narayana Panditacharya Sri Narayana Panditacharya (also referred as Narayana Pandita) ( IAST:''Nārāyaṇa Paṇḍitacārya'') (c. 1290 – c. 1370), is an Indian scholar and philosopher in the Dvaita Vedānta tradition. He was the youngest son of Trivikrama Pandi ...
* '' Madhwa Ramayana'' * ''Parashara kanda para tattva'' (
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
rendering of Shri
Vishnu Purana The Vishnu Purana ( IAST:, sa, विष्णुपुराण) is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of ancient and medieval texts of Hinduism. It is an important Pancharatra text in the Vaishnavism literature corpus. The manusc ...
) * ''Prameya nava malika'' of Shri Narayana Panditacharya * ''Anu Madhwa Charita'' & ''Sampradaya paddhati'' * ''Mangalashtaka'' of Shri Rajarajeshwara ''yati'' * ''Yajneeya mantropanishat'' (''Ishavasya'') * Bhagavad Gita * ''Ananda Thirthara Bhakti Geetegalu'' (
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
rendering of Shri Madhwacharya's
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
devotional songs)


Upcoming books

*VishnuTattvaNirnaya Tika by Narayana Panditacharya and its vyakhyana by Bannanje Govindacharya


Death

Govindacharya died on December 13, 2020, at his home in
Ambalpadi Ambalpady/Ambalpadi is a holy place which is part of Udupi town, the land of Lord Sri Krishna. With the ancient Sri Janardana temple with Mahakali Temple on one side, Janardana pushkarani in the front, an Anjaneya temple with an idol incorporati ...
in
Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...
. He was aged 85. He died due to a
Heart Attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...


Recognition and honours

Bannanje won numerous awards and various titles were conferred on him by esteemed institutions. Some of these include *
Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...
, India's fourth highest civilian honour, 2009 * The state award conferred by the
Government of Karnataka The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...
for his meritorious service and scholarship in Vedic literature and philosophy. * The
Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...
's award for translation in 2001 * ''Vidya Vachaspati - by Shri Admar Mutt swamiji,
Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...
* ''Pratibhambudhi'' - conferred on him by Puttige Mutt and Palimar Mutt swamijis * ''Shastra savyasachi'' - a title conferred by ''Akhila Bharata Madhwa Maha Mandala'', Bengalooru * ''Shri Krishanugraha Prashasthi'' - an award presented by Pejavara Mutt swamiji * ''Sahitya sarvabhouma'' - saraswata maha vishwa vidyalaya, Bengalooru * ''Samshodhana Vichakshana'' : by Shri Admar & Shri Palimar Mutt * ''Pandita Ratna'' : by Palimar Mutt swamiji * ''Pandita shiromani'' - by Pratibha Ranga,
Shivamogga Shimoga, officially known as Shivamogga, is a city and the district headquarters of Shimoga district in the central part of the state of Karnataka, India. The city lies on the banks of the Tunga River. Being the gateway for the hilly region o ...
* ''Pandita Ratna'' : by H.H. Shrimad Dwarakanath swamiji of Gokarna Mutt, Partagali- Goa * ''Vidya Ratnakara'' - title conferred by Shri Palimar Mutt swamiji * The Academy of General Education,
Manipal Manipal is a suburb and university town within Udupi, in coastal Karnataka, India. Manipal is located five kilometres away from the centre of Udupi City, in Udupi District, Karnataka (state) in south western India. It is administered by the ...
presented him with a fellowship for the meritorious service and scholarship in Indian religion and philosophy. * ''Veda Vyasya Sanman'' : by Sree Ramaseva Mandali, Chamarajapet, Bangalore


Conferences attended

* Brand Ambassador of India in World Conference on Religion & Peace, Princeton, USA in 1979. * Participated in World Sanskrit Conference in Delhi in the 1980s. * Was president to ''Sanskrit Parishat'' of
South Canara South Canara was a district of the Madras Presidency of British India, located at . It comprised the towns of Kassergode and Udipi and adjacent villages, with the capital in Mangalore city. South Canara was one of the most heterogeneous areas ...
. * Served as President of All India Madhwa Sammelanna in
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of ...
in 1995. * Served as President of the Sahitya Sammelanna in
Udupi Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road. ...
in 2001. * Participated in number of poetic symposiums and debates.


See also

*
Dvaita Dvaita Vedanta (); (originally known as Tattvavada; IAST:Tattvavāda), is a sub-school in the Vedanta tradition of Hindu philosophy. The term Tattvavada literally means "arguments from a realist viewpoint". The Tattvavada (Dvaita) Vedanta s ...
*
Ashta Mathas of Udupi The Tulu Ashta Mathas of Udupi ( kn, ಉಡುಪಿಯ ತುಳು ಅಷ್ಟ ಮಠಗಳು) are a group of eight '' mathas'' or Hindu monasteries established by Madhvacharya, the preceptor of the Dvaita school of Hindu thought with hi ...


References


External links


("Govindamala : Philosophical Discourse by Dr. Bannañje Govindācārya", is a Facebook Page. An effort to introduce to all Spiritual aspirants, each one of Acharyas, Philosophical discourse. Stay Tuned.... )

TARA PRAKASHANA (contains many articles on Poojya Shri Achaaryaru )




* ttp://www.wie.org/j17/bannanje.asp?page=2 Bannanje Govindacharya Interview, 'Is the Ego an Illusion?'
VNN World - Interview With Sri Bannanje Govindacharya

madhva.net - shrI Bannanje Govindacharya

Pravachana on "Bhagavadgeetha " by Vidyavachaspathi, Padmashree Bannanje Govinda Acharya

Sample Audio clips-1 of Shri Bannanje Govindacharya

Sample Audio clips-2 of Shri Bannanje Govindacharya
{{DEFAULTSORT:Govindacharya, Bannanje 20th-century Hindu religious leaders 21st-century Hindu religious leaders Indian Sanskrit scholars Dvaita Vedanta Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education People from Udupi Dvaitin philosophers Mangaloreans 2020 deaths Tulu people 1936 births Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Prize for Translation