CHAMARASA

1. Chamarasa (ಚಾಮರಸ)
2. cAmarasa
3. 15^th Century, 1430 A.D.
4. Born in Naganapura near Gadag, Dharawar district, lived at Hampi, the seat of Vijayanagara dynasty, Bellary district
5. Veerashaiva
6. Proudhadeva Raya -2, King of Vijayanagara
7. Chamarasa is an important poet who composed a biographical epic delineating the life of Allamaprabhu the well known veerashaiva saint of the twelfth century. Chamarasa was a contemporary of Kumaravyasa, another great poet hailing from the same region. Chamarasa is proud of the fact that he is not wrting about wars, bloodshed and a greed for ephemeral things. On the contrary ‘Prabhulingaleele is about a great saint and philosopher who has moulded the Kannada language to enable it to express exalted ideas. Chamarasa has succeeded in depicting medival Karnataka in its pluralistic setting. Portrayal of Goraksha, Siddarama, Akka Mahadevi and the royal surroundings provided as a backdrop to Mayadevi are captivating. ‘Prabhulingleele’ is a successful attempt in deifying a saint and converting him in to a religious icon. It contains fifteen chapters and approximately six hundred poems composed in Bhamini shatpadi and written in medival Kannada (Nadugannada) The language is simple and powerful and the style is not at all pedantic. Some of the descriptions involving Mayadevi's childhood, Allama's confrontation with her and his tryst with other shiva sharanas are suffused with poetic beauty and dramatic strength. ‘Prabhulingaleele’ is perhaps the only text fro Kannada which is translated in to Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Sanskrit. Prabhulingaleele along with other texts has playd a crucial role in furthering the tradition of Veerashaiva philosophy and religion and it's equally important as a literary work of genuine merit.

Chamarasa belongs to the small groups of luminaries in Kannada who have tried to forge a meaningful relationship between history and literature.

1. ‘Prabhulingaleele’
2. Criticism and translations:

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