Sri Annamacharya

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Sri Annamacharya

 

Sri Tallapaka Annamacharya (popularly known as Annamayya) was a saint

composer of the Fifteenth Century, who hailed from Tallapaka village

(Rajampeta Mandal) of Cuddapah District, Andhra Pradesh, India. He was

believed to be the Nandakaamsham of Lord Venkateswara. He was born on

a Vaisakha Shuddha Paurnami. Though he was born in Smartha (Shivite)

tradition, he was later taken into the fold of Vaishnavism.

Annamacharya was the very first Vak-geyakaara (composer of

sankeerthanas using colloquial language) in Telugu and established a

tradition which was later followed by a number of saint composers like

Tyagaiah, Kshetraiah, Ramadasu, etc. Purandaradasa, Kannada composer,

praised the Sankeerthanas of Sri Annamacharya and said that the

Sankeerthanacharya is the incarnation of Lord Venkateswara Himself.

 

Sri Tallapaka Annamacharya is believed to have born somewhere

in/around Salivahana Saka 1330 (corresponding to 1408 AD) and attained

Kaivalyam sometime in/around Salivahana Saka 1424 (corresponding to

1503 AD). Lord Venkateswara gave this composer His Darshan when he was

16 years old and directed him to compose kirthanas (Some say, the

composer started his Sankeerthanas when he was just 8 years old. Some

others say that one day while he was cutting grass with a sickle, it

hit his hand and blood oozed out forming Shankam and Chakram of the

Lord which diverted his way from leading a normal life towards

composing thousands of Sankeerthanas). One of his two wives

(Acchamamba) was also the first woman-writer in Telugu (She wrote

'Subhadra Parinayam').

 

Sri Annamacharya has in total composed 32,000 Sankeerthanas in

Venkatachala Mudra, in different ragas, in praise of Lord

Venkateshwara (He sang at least one a day during his lifetime) from a

very young age. When he set forth on a pilgrimage to Tirumala, he is

said to have had Darshan of Alamelu Manga (Padmavathi Devi); soon

after which he sang a set of 100 poems (Alamelu Manga Shatakamu) in

Sri Venkatesha makutam.

 

Sankeerthanaacharya was also in the court of King Salva Narasimha at

Penugonda (grand father of Sri Krishna Deva Raya of the Vijayanagara

Empire) for about a year or so. He was the one who ensured that all

kirthanas were carved/engraved on copper plates; some of which are now

in the possession of Sri Venkateswara Oriental Research Institute,

Tirupati.

 

Annamayya Sankeerthanas

 

In all, Annamacharya composed 32,000 sankeerthanas in Telugu out of

which only 12,000 are found now. The Lord perhaps kept with Himself

the rest 20,000 keerthanas when Annamacharya put forth these

Sankirthanas before Him, as is evident from this Keerthana: Daachuko

Nee Paadalaku...

 

Even out of these 12,000 sankeerthanas, only 2,000 could be deciphered

and brought in consonance with the present form of language practice

and ragas in vogue. (Telugu during 14th Century was somewhat different

from the language now used and spoken.) Even out of these 2,000

keerthanas, only about 200 have become popular and very popular.

Annamacharya's great adeptness and command over Telugu literature and

its extensive usage is evident from his keerthanas like

Srimannarayana, Hari namame kadu anandakaramu, Ide sirasu manikyam,

Bhavamulona baahyamu nanduna, Bhavayami Gopalabalam, Tiruveedhula

merisi devadevudu, Kadaludipi neeradaga talachu vaaralaku, Ksheerabdi

kanyakaku, Tirutiru javarala, etc. (just to name a few). But at the

same time, unlike many composers who confine themselves to literary

(grandhika) form of language, Annamayya used the language of the

lowest strata of the society, the language they used in their daily life.

 

Annamacharya considered his compositions as floral offerings to God.

In the poems, he praises Venkateswara, describes his love for him,

argues and quarrels with the Lord, confesses the devotee's failures

and apprehensions, and surrenders himself to Venkateshwara. His songs

are classified into Adhyaatama (spiritual) and Sringaara (romantic)

samkirtanaas. The keerthanas are in the form of a one-to-one dialogue

of the Composer with the Lord Himself, as also in the forms of

Gobbillu, Changu Bhala, etc. with dieties like Alarmelmangai / Alamelu

Manga, Lord Narasimha, Lord Rama, Lord Hanuman, etc.