Adikavi Pampa
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Pampa (Kannada: ಪಂಪ) born in 902 C.E., also known as Adikavi Pampa, is one of the greatest Kannada poets of all time. He was born in Vemulavada, Andhra Pradesh and was the court poet of King Arikesari, a Rashtrakuta feudatory.
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[edit] Early life
Born to a Jaina family of Brahmin ancestry, he grew up mastering the Sanskrit and Prakrit classics as well as Jain Philosophy. Known from an early age as being deeply interested in various subjects like music, philosophy, economics and sculpture, he soon gained mastery over many of these subjects. Sensitive, modest and imaginative, Pampa has earned a veritable place in the world of Kannada literature, which has remained unquestioned even today.
[edit] Poetic life
A well travelled man, he settled down as the court poet of King Arekesari II, a Chalukya king and a Rashtrakuta feudatory. At the age of 39 he wrote his first masterpiece, Adipurana in 941 and a little later he completed Vikramarjuna Vijaya popularly known as Pampa Bharata. These two works have remained unparalled works of classic Kannada composition.
[edit] Adipurana
Adipurana written in Champu style, a mixed form of prose and verse is a Kannada version of the Sanskrit work by Jinasena and details the life of Adinatha (Vrishabhadeva) in sixteen cantos, the first Jain Thirthankara. The work focusses in his own unique style the piligrimage of a soul to perfection and attainment of mukti. In the work, Pampa describes the struggle for power and control over the entire world of two brothers Bharata and Bahubali, sons of Vrishabhadeva. While Bahubali wins, he renounces the wordly persuits in favour of his brother. Many Jaina puranas of middle ages found a role model in this work.
[edit] Vikramarjuna Vijaya
Vikramarjuna Vijaya, also known as Pampa Bharata, is a Kannada version of the Mahabharatha which was originally written by Vyasa. While Vyasa's work does not focus on any one particular hero of the epic, various sections of the epic tend to eulogise various characters. However, Pampa choose to make in his work king Arikesari a hero. He personified the king and centred his work around the Pandava, Arjuna. So much is his focus on Arjuna that through out the epic, Arjuna remains the hero. Even after the war of Kurukshetra, it is not Dharmaraya who is crowned king but Arjuna and his wife Subhadra becomes the queen royal. It is said that Bhima who played such a big role in Vyasa's epic and Draupadi who suffered much humiliation are not given much credit in Pampa's work.
[edit] References
- Dr. Suryanath U. Kamat, A Concise history of Karnataka from pre-historic times to the present, Jupiter books, MCC, Bangalore, 2001 (Reprinted 2002)
- Prof K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, History of South India, From Prehistoric times to fall of Vijayanagar, 1955, OUP, New Delhi (Reprinted 2002).
- Adikavi Pampa, Shivakumar, Mysore
- Kannada literature under Rashtrakutas, Dr. Jyotsna Kamat
