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The Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara, Vol. I v1.c31: Chapter XXV. Literary Activity Under the First Aravidu Sovereigns

The Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara, Vol. I v1.c31

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Chapter XXV. Literary Activity Under the First Aravidu Sovereigns

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SUMMARY.—1. General remarks on Southern Indian Literature during this period.—2. Sadasiva and Rama Raya, as patrons of literature.—3. Ramarajabushana Bhattu Murti and his works.—4. Learned people that gathered round Tirumala and Ranga I.—5. Venkata II the greatest patron of literature of the Aravidu Dynasty.—6. Philosophers patronized by Venkata II.—7. Poets and grammarians favoured by the same monarch.—8. Learned people at the court of Tanjore.—9. Other contemporary writers throughout the Empire.—10. The ‘grant’ poets of the Aravidu family.—11. The University of Madura.—12. Course of Philosophy at the Madura University: a criticism.—13. Minor schools founded by the Jesuits.—14. Progress of the Jesuits in the study of Southern Indian languages.—15. First printed works in Tamil.—16. Extinction of the Nandinagari alphabet.

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CONTEMPORARY SOURCES.—1. Hindu inscriptions and grants.—2. Raghavendravijaya, Lakshmivilasam, Charuchandrodayam, Chandra-bhanu Charitram.—3. Jesuit letters.—4. Du Jarric.

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It is not our purpose here to write the history of the Literature in Southern India during the period covered by this volume. Our aim is merely to give an outline of the literary activity under the first monarchs of the Aravidu Dynasty, showing especially their relations with the poets, philosophers and other writers that flourished round the royal throne as well as under several of the feudatory chiefs of the Empire. Learning was liberally encouraged under the regime of the Aravidu Dynasty, and consequently was highly developed under the kindly shade of royal patronage. According to Prof. Julien Venson, this period is marked out from the others by the publication of the prolific Vaishnava literature. As Mr. M. Srinivasa Aiyangar calls the time extending from 1450 to 1850 the Modern Period of Literature, the different authors and works we propose to enumerate fall under this denomination. During this Modern Period, “the works produced were not confined to any one subject or department of literature,” says Mr. Srinivasa Aiyangar. “They embraced Hindu theology, philosophy, ethics, traditions and grammar. Islamism and Christianity also added their contributions to the Tamil literature of this period”¹. The majority of the works however were written in Telugu; another proof of the dominating power of the Telugu race and language.

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¹ M. Srinivasa Aiyangar, *Tamil Studies*, p. 224.

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2. Literary patronage did not belong exclusively to the Aravidu Dynasty. Several of the preceding sovereigns of Vijayanagara were declared patrons of the literary activity of their subjects; and Sadasiva, the last representative of the Tuluva family, favoured several learned people during the first stage of his Regent’s rule. In 1545 the young Emperor granted two villages, one to Srimat Talapaka Tirumalayagaru, called ‘the establisher of the two schools of the Vedanta’²; and another to Tiruvengalanatha, styled ‘the establisher of the path of the Vedas’³. Again in 1549-50 Sadasiva granted the village of Mamidipundi to Acharayya, a learned Brahman, who is said to be ‘a lion to the elephants, which are his controversialists’⁴.

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² Rangacharya, II, p. 783, 337.

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³ Ibid. p. 784, 343.

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⁴ Butterworth, I, p. 100, vv. 45-49.

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Sadasiva’s Regent, the powerful Rama Raya, was also a patron of learned men, more especially of poets, and was, perhaps, even a poet himself. The British Museum plates of Sadasiva state that Rama Raya is ‘a King Bhoja in exercising imperial sway over the sentiments of poetry’⁵. One of the protégés of Rama Raya was the great sage Ramanuja, to whom the grant recorded in the British Museum plates was made by Sadasiva at the request of Rama Raya⁶. His guru, Tatacharya, who lived with them for some time at Chandragiri⁷, wrote a work entitled *Panchamatabhanjanam*⁸. The Madhva teacher Vijayindra, the successor of Surendra, was also patronized by Sadasiva's Regent; he was well versed in several arts and wrote works on various religious subjects. Rama Raya honoured him with ‘jewel baths’ and presented him with several villages ¹. Shashta Parankusa of the Ahobala *matha*, was also prominent among Rama Raya's attendants; he wrote a number of works, such as the *Siddhantamanidipam*, *Panchakaladipika*, *Prapattiprayoga*, and *Nrisimhavastav* ². This Vaishnava teacher was for a time the agent of Rama Raya ³. But the highest literary authority of the court of Rama Raya was the poet Bhattu Murti, who received the title of Ramarajabushana, ‘the ornament of the court of Rama Raya.’

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⁵ *Ep. Ind.*, IV, p. 4.

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⁶ Ibid., p. 2.

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⁷ Cf. Ch. III, No. 9.

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⁸ Gopinatha Rao, *The Arivilimangalam Plates*, *Ep. Ind.*, XII, p. 347.

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¹ Raghavendravijaya, S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 252.

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² Rangacharya, II, p. 971.

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³ 65 of 1915.

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3. There has been much controversy about the identity of this person. Some maintain that he is not actually one person, but that the name discloses two different poets, one called Bhattu Murti and the other Ramarajabushana. The *Vasucharitramu* is mentioned as the work of the former, and the *Narasabhupaliyamu* assigned to the latter. There can however be no doubt about their identity; the commentators of the *Vasucharitramu*, who flourished shortly after him, say that he wrote the *Narasabhupaliyamu* to illustrate the figures of speech used in his former work, the *Vasucharitramu*. He appears to have been born at Battupalli during the reign of Krishna Deva Raya, though he did not begin to write before 1560. He acquired such fame in the six years that Rama Raya's life was still to last, that in so short a period he earned the most flattering title of ‘the ornament of his court’. His great works however were written after his patron's death. He continued to be the court-poet during the reign of Tirumala, to whom his great work, the *Vasucharitramu*, is dedicated. This poem reproduces the story of Vasu, King of Pratishtana, who fell in love with Girikanyaka, supposed to be the daughter of the mountain Kolahala. She had been found by Vasu in the forest while hunting. The work is full of poetical exaggerations; but it was nevertheless much admired by its contemporaries, and even became a model for later poets. As a matter of fact, the descriptions of nature are excellent and the diction of the poem undeniably good.

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His second work, the *Narasabhupaliyamu*, is dedicated to Narasaraya, a nephew of Rama Raya and Tirumala. This work is a Telugu translation of the Sanskrit *Prataparudriya*. The examples and the portion dealing with the drama were omitted, and substituted by other examples prepared by the poet himself. Another work of his, the *Harischandra-Nalopakhyana*, was composed in his ripe old age, probably during the reign of Venkata II ¹.

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¹ Wilson, *The Mackenzie Collection*, p. 295; S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 221; Subramiah Pantulu, *Discursive Remarks*, *Ind. Ant.*, XXVII, p. 332-5.

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4. We have already mentioned Tirumala as a patron of Battu Murti. He was indeed a lover of learning. It would seem he was a poet himself; this the title of Bhoja, given him in the Krishnapuram plates, would imply ². He enjoyed the company of poets; once Tirumala asked those who were assembled at his court to compose verses describing him, ‘charging them at the same time to be true to nature and not to exaggerate’. It was then that Battu Murti compared the one-eyed King with Vishnu ³. He flattered Tirumala, though at the same time he was true to nature ⁴.

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² *Ep. Ind.*, IX, p. 338, v. 92.

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³ S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 221.

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⁴ Cf. Ch. XI, No. 1.

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Tirumala has been supposed to be the author of the commentary entitled *Srutiranjani* on the *Gita Govinda*; but one of the copies possessed by the Maharaja Sarfoji’s Saraswati Mahal Library, Tanjore, professes to have been composed by Lakshmanasuri, a worshipper of Dakshinamurti and a younger brother of Kondubhatta of Cherukuru. Dr. Hultzsch seems to believe that this was the actual author of the commentary, and Tirumala his patron ⁵. Lakshmanasuri, called also Ramanandasrama and Lakshmidhara, was a *sannyasi* pupil of Krishnasrama, whose family came from Cherukuru on the Krishna river. He is the author of the *Anargharaghava* and the Prakrit grammar *Shadbashachandrika*, based on the grammars of Trivikrama, Hemachandra and Bhamaja¹.

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⁵ Hultzsch, *Reports on Sanskrit MSS.*, III, p. VIII.

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¹ Ibid., p. VIII-IX.

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Together with his two eldest brothers, Venkatadri is said in the Kallakursi grant to have been patron of poets like King Bhoja². He patronized Tallapaka Tiruvengalanatha, the author of the *Paramayogivilasamu*. The *Svaramelakalanidhi* of Ramamatya was written by Rama Raya's order at the instance of Venkatadri³.

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² *Ind. Ant.*, XIII, p. 157.

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³ H. Krishna Sastri, *The Third Vijayanagara Dynasty*, l. c., p. 179.

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Ranga I also was a patron of poets. His court poet was Rayasam Venkatapati, an officer of his court, who wrote the Telugu poem *Lakshmivilasam*⁴. Another of his ministers, named Rayasa Ahobala, wrote a Sanskrit drama entitled *Kuvalaya Vilasa*⁵; while Bhattakalanka wrote the *Sara-traya* at the request of the same King⁶.

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⁴ S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 230.

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⁵ Ibid., note.

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⁶ R. Narasimachar, *The Karnataka Country*, *Q. J. M. S.*, X, p. 256.

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5. But the great patron of literature among the first monarchs of the Aravidu family was Venkata II. He himself was considered one of the wisest men of his kingdom. We read in the Dalavay Agraharam plates that ‘he was comparable to the ocean in the profundity of his learning’⁷; and in the Mangalampad grant he is said to be ‘a very moon to the lotuses, which are scholars’⁸. Accordingly Fr. Ricio tells us in one of his letters that “the King has disputations on God, Philosophy, and Mathemetics with the teachers or philosophers almost every day”. Sanskrit was the medium in these disputations. Hence Ricio says that though they were present several times they could not join in the debate, since they understood nothing ¹.

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⁷ *Ep. Ind.*, XII, p. 186, vv. 27-39.

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⁸ Butterworth, I, p. 36, v. 59.

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¹ From Fr. F. Ricio to Fr. Aquaviva, Chandragiri, September 10th, 1603, Ap. C, No. VII.

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Again the Mangalampad grant says that Venkata was ‘devoted to the protection of the learned’ ². An inscription of 1612 at Kommaddi, Cuddapah, records a grant of Venkata II to the learned people of Vuputur ³. In 1602-3 the same King granted the village of Mangalampad to Sri Rangaraja, son of Jagganatharaya, ‘the foremost of the students of the Yajus Sakha’, a descendant of the cook of the great Ramanujacharya. This cook had himself been famous for his learning in all the scriptures ⁴. The Vilapaka grant was also made to a learned man of Urputur, named Tiruvengalanatharaya; he is said to be ‘conversant with the eighteen Puranas’ ⁵.

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² Butterworth, I, p. 31, v. 23.

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³ Rangacharya, I, p. 612, 448.

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⁴ Buttterworth, I, p. 34-6.

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⁵ Ep. Ind., IV, p. 270, vv. 47-8.

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6. Naturally a great number of scholars always crowded the outer halls of the imperial palace, first at Chandragri, and then at Vellore. One of the philosophers favoured by Venkata was the Madhava teacher Sudhindra. He had travelled over the country refuting the teachings of the other religious sects. He defeated all his opponents at the court of Venkata, and was presented by the sovereign with the conch and other emblems of victory. He lived at the town of Kumbhakonam, and was also honoured by Raghunatha of Tanjore with the ceremony of bathing in gold ⁶.

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⁶ Raghavendravijaya, S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Sourees, p. 252.

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A contemporary of Venkata also was the great guru Ananda Namasivaya Pandaram, a disciple of the great Chidambaram guru, Guhainamasivaya. He was the author of Paramarahasyamalai, Chidambara venba, Annamalai venba and other works ⁷. An inscription of 1592 at Virinjipuram, North Arcot, states that Periya Errama Naik of Punnarrur granted a house for the establishment of a *matha* to this Ananda Namasivaya Pandaram ¹. His work seems to have been to supervise the offerings to be distributed among the Saiva mendicants in the Nataraja temple at Chidambaram ².

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⁷ Rangacharya, I, p. 105.

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¹ 61 of 1887.

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² 349 of 1913.

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But the great philosopher of Venkata's court was his own *guru* Tatacharya, called, as previously noted, 'the ornament of the wise' ³. The philosophical work he wrote was entitled *Sattvikabrahmavidyavilasa*. He composed also a legendary account of a shrine of Vishnu as Panduranga, who is supposed to have sanctified by his presence in this form the town of Pandharpur, on the left bank of the Bhima; this work is named *Pandurangamahatmy* ⁴. We have previously spoken of this man and shall return to him in the following chapter, when reviewing the progress of Vaishnavism during the reign of Venkata II.

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³ Dalavay Agraharam plates of Venkata II, *Ep. Ind.*, XII, p. 186, v. 27-39.

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⁴ Subramiah Pantulu, *Discursive Remarks*, *Ind. Ant.*, XXVII, p. 327.

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7. Among the poets of his court we must mention Chennamaraju, who was patronized by the genaral Pemmasani Timma. Once the poet carried from the Emperor to his patron the various insignia of his position. Out of these Pemmasani Timma presented the poet with the white turban, the white chauks, the palankin, and Talichankattu ⁵.

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⁵ *Charuchandrodayam*, S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 242.

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Another poet of fame was Tenali Ramalinga. He was first introduced to the court of Krishna Deva Raya, and was still one of the court poets during the reign of Venkata II. In order to please this sovereign he became a Vaishnava in his old days, and then changed his name to Tenali Ramakrishna. His *Lingapurana* was written in the early years of his life. He was born, it seems, in the village of Tenali in the Krishna district; and he studied Telugu so earnestly from his boyhood that he became a perfect master of this language. His wit and humour are praised even today by students of Telugu literature 1.

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1. Subramiah Pantulu, o. c., p. 324-6. This author relates the following humorous anecdote of the life of this poet: "He was of a humorous character and loved to play practical jokes. The guru Tatacharya was a very orthodox man, and was in the habit of visiting a cow-stall every morning as soon as he rose from bed, being taken to the place blind-folded in order to view the cow's excrement as the first object seen during the day, thinking it to be a very meritorious act. His habit was to keep his eyes shut and laying hold of a cow's tail to wait till she evacuated when he opened his eyes to behold the excrement. One morning Ramakrishna got up early, and removing the cow from the stall, stood in its place stark naked. The guru came as usual, and instead of the cow's tail he found a man. His rage knew no bounds, and running up to the King, he laid a complaint against Ramakrishna. The King became exceedingly angry and ordered the poet to be forthwith executed. The executioners carried him to a plain and buried him in the earth as far as the neck leaving only his head above ground, agreeable to the sentence passed on him. They left him thus, intending to return with a certain number of elephants to trample him to death. It so chanced that a hump-backed washerman was passing by, and asked the poet how he came to be in such a predicament. 'My good friend', said he, 'I was born a hump-back like yourself, and having long suffered the scorn of ill-mannered individuals, I applied to a sage who had great knowledge of the occult sciences, and begged of him to relieve me from my misfortune. He informed me that if I should consent to be buried up to my neck in this identical spot, I should be entirely cured of my deformity. In pursuance of his directions, I got some of my friends to bury me here, and as I really believe that I am cured already, I shall be very thankful to you if you will verify my statement'. The washerman did as the poet requested and to his utter amazement found him a well-made man; and as he was a credulous fellow, he believed in all that the poet had said. 'As one good deed deserves another', said the washerman to the poet, 'I now ask you to bury me in this place that I may be cured of my bodily deformity as you have been'. Ramakrishna with a grave countenance buried the poor washerman up to the neck, and after the lapse of an hour went to the King to inform him that by the personal interposition of a god, he had been restored to life. The executioners in the interim had executed the washerman, and were making their report to the King that they had killed the poet according to the royal commands. The whole court were consequently astonished to see Ramakrishna, and as the King really believed that the poet had been killed and restored to life by some god, he promised to forgive him the first hundred crimes that he should commit in future".

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¹ Subramiah Pantulu, o. c., p. 324-6. This author relates the following humorous anecdote of the life of this poet: "He was of a humorous character and loved to play practical jokes. The guru Tatacharya was a very orthodox man, and was in the habit of visiting a cow-stall every morning as soon as he rose from bed, being taken to the place blind-folded in order to view the cow's excrement as the first object seen during the day, thinking it to be a very meritorious act. His habit was to keep his eyes shut and laying hold of a cow's tail to wait till she evacuated when he opened his eyes to behold the excrement. One morning Ramakrishna got up early, and removing the cow from the stall, stood in its place stark naked. The guru came as usual, and instead of the cow's tail he found a man. His rage knew no bounds, and running up to the King, he laid a complaint against Ramakrishna. The King became exceedingly angry and ordered the poet to be forthwith executed. The executioners carried him to a plain and buried him in the earth as far as the neck leaving only his head above ground, agreeable to the sentence passed on him. They left him thus, intending to return with a certain number of elephants to trample him to death. It so chanced that a hump-backed washerman was passing by, and asked the poet how he came to be in such a predicament. 'My good friend', said he, 'I was born a hump-back like yourself, and having long suffered the scorn of ill-mannered individuals, I applied to a sage who had great knowledge of the occult sciences, and begged of him to relieve me from my misfortune. He informed me that if I should consent to be buried up to my neck in this identical spot, I should be entirely cured of my deformity. In pursuance of his directions, I got some of my friends to bury me here, and as I really believe that I am cured already, I shall be very thankful to you if you will verify my statement'. The washerman did as the poet requested and to his utter amazement found him a well-made man; and as he was a credulous fellow, he believed in all that the poet had said. 'As one good deed deserves another', said the washerman to the poet, 'I now ask you to bury me in this place that I may be cured of my bodily deformity as you have been'. Ramakrishna with a grave countenance buried the poor washerman up to the neck, and after the lapse of an hour went to the King to inform him that by the personal interposition of a god, he had been restored to life. The executioners in the interim had executed the washerman, and were making their report to the King that they had killed the poet according to the royal commands. The whole court were consequently astonished to see Ramakrishna, and as the King really believed that the poet had been killed and restored to life by some god, he promised to forgive him the first hundred crimes that he should commit in future".

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The famous general of Venkata Matla Ananta, was another of his favourite poets. The Sidhout inscription records that he is the author of the well-known Telugu poem *Kakusthavijayam*. He also composed several other works, which were highly praised by scholars¹.

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¹ S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 248; *M.A.D.* 1915-1916, p. 42, No. 19. Cf. *M. E. R.*, 1916, p. 148.

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Tarigoppula Datta Mantri, another of Venkata's officers, was a patron of poets. His brother Tarigoppula Mallana was one of the court-poets; he gives this information about Datta Mantri in the *Chandrabhanu Charitram*².

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² S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 247.

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Ayalu Bhaseara was likewise another of his court poets. Once he was asked by the King to produce some poem. This request he complied with by translating from the Hala Kanada language into Telugu, the work of a man named Retta. This work, entitled *Retta Matam*, is a most heterogeneous medley of different topics, as much related to one author as the rain is to the science of divination, the devils to the sun, moon and planets and the rainbow to the familiar spirits³.

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³ Taylor, *Catalogue Raisonnée*, III, p. 169-70.

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We must not omit the names of two grammarians who lived at Venkata's court. One of them was Erramadhavarya, who wrote a grammatical work called *Tripadadyotini* and was one of the *pandits* of this sovereign⁴. The other was Battalanka, the author of a work entitled *Sabdanusasana*⁵.

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⁴ Hultzsch, *Reports on Sanskrit MSS.*, I, p. VIII.

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⁵ Narasimachar, *The Karnataka Country*, Q. J. M. S., X, p. 256.

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8. The example of the Emperors of Vijayanagara in protecting learned people was followed by many of their feudatory chiefs. From Sevvappa Nayaka, the founder of the dynasty, all the Nayaks of Tanjore were most prominent as patrons of philosophers and poets. Sevvappa's greatest protégé seems to have been the famous Madhva *acharya* Vijayaindra Tirtha. He was the disciple, first of Vyasaraya Tirtha of the Vyasaraya *matha*, and then of Surendra Tirtha of the Sumatindra *matha*, from whom he received the robes of *sannyasi*, and whom he succeeded as the thirteenth guru and swami of the *matha*. He spent the last days of his life at Kumbhakonam. He earnestly defended the Madhva philosophy against the accusations of Apaiya Dikshita. He also wrote many commentaries on all the important Madhva works. His main books are the following: The Chakra-Mimansa, the Chandrikodahrita-Nyaya-Vivarana, Nyayamrita-Vyakhya, and the Appayyakapola-chepetika ¹. In 1576 Sevvapa Nayaka of Tanjore requested and obtained from Ranga I the village of Arivilimangalam as a grant to Vijayindra Tirtha. In the grant Vijayindra is said to be ‘like a peacock roaming about the garden called the school of Madhvacharya’; he is said moreover to be ‘a bee delighting in the scent, the inner meaning, of the flowers called the Sastras’ ².

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¹ Gopinatha Rao, The Arivilimangalam Plates, Ep Ind., XII, p. 344-6.

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² Ep. Ind., XII, p. 357, vv. 27-44.

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Vadiraja Tirtha was the co-student of Vijayindra Tirtha under Vyasaraya Tirtha. Vadiraja was also a great controversialist and commentator of the Madhva works. The account of his many pilgrimages is embodied in his Tirtha-prabandha ³.

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³ Gopinatha Rao, o. c., p. 346.

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Sevvappa's son and successor, Achyutappa Nayaka, was likewise a patron of learning. In 1595 he made a gift of money for the merit of Appaiya Dikshita ⁴. This was a good scholar of his court. But the most famous philosopher of his time was his minister Govinda Dikshita. He composed a long epic poem called Harivamsasaracharitram, in three cantos. There exists a commentary on it written by Appaiya Dikshita. Govinda Dikshita also wrote a musical work entitled Sangithasuthanithi. By order of Achyutappa Nayaka, at the instance of his minister, the Tiruvaiyarru Puranam was translated from Sanskrit into Tamil ⁵.

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⁴ 710 of 1904.

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⁵ Kuppuswami Sastri, A Short History, p. 7 and 10.

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9. Surappa Nayaka of Jinji was the patron of the famous poet Srinivasa Dikshita, on whom was bestowed the title of Ratnakheta Dikshita, on account of his excellent poetry. He wrote 18 dramas, the most famous among them being the Bhavanapurushottama. Besides he composed 60 epics, such as the *Sathakandavijayamu*, several works on rhetoric, and many commentaries ¹.

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¹ Ibid., p. 11-2.

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We have already mentioned Appaiya Dikshita as a protégé of Sevvappa Nayaka Tanjore. He was a Tamil Brahman, who has left more than a hundred works ². He was also patronized by the Emperor Venkata II at whose instance he wrote a work on Alankata, called *Kuvalyananda* ³. But this famous Saiva-Advaita philosopher enjoyed the special favour of Chinna Bomma Nayaka of Vellore. In the colophon of his *Sivadityamanidipika* he mentions Chinna Bomma as his patron ⁴. This chief performed the ceremony of bathing in gold to honour the scholarship of Appaiya Dikshita. He is said to have with his own hands poured the gold coins out of the vessel ⁵. An inscription of Chinna Bomma, of 1582, in North Arcot, records that this scholar constructed the Kalakantheswara temple at Adaipalam ⁶.

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² Subramiah Pantulu, *Discursive Remarks*, *Ind. Ant.*, XXVII, p. 326.

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³ S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *Sources*, p. 250. Cf. *Ep. Ind.*, IV, p. 271.

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⁴ Hultzsch, *Reports on Sanskrit MSS.*, II, p. XII-XIII.

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⁵ S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *o.c.*, p. 251.

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⁶ 395 of 1911.

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In the petty state of Gandikota we find another poet named Pingali Surana. He was one of the poets of Nandyala Krishnaraja, to whom the work *Kalapurnodayamu* is dedicated. Krishnaraja’s successor, Nandyala Timmaya, who as an inscription of 1544 shows ⁷, was likewise a patron of learned men, also patronized this poet, the author of the *Raghavapandaviya*, the *Garudapurana* and several other works. Mr. Subramiah Pantulu thinks that Pingali Surana ‘is by far the best of mediaeval poets’ ⁸.

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⁷ Rangacharya, I, p. 580, 60.

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⁸ Subramiah Pantulu, *Discursive Remarks*, *Ind. Ant.*, XXVII, p. 328-32.

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In the state of Ikeri we must mention Sankanna Nayaka, who composed several literary works ⁹; and Vadiraja, a man of great erudition and author of several works; one of his pupils is mentioned in a grant of Venkatappa Nayaka of Ikeri in the year 1614 ¹.

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⁹ *Sivatattvaratnakara*, S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, *o.c.*, p. 339.

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¹ 110 of 1901.

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The Viceroy Tirumala of Seringapatam was also a patron of learning. From an inscription of 1610 we may deduce that Ramanujayya, called ‘the establisher of the path of the Vedas, follower of both Vedanta’, was one of his officers ². In 1614 the same Tirumala made a grant of a village to Vengadeyya Bhatta, styled also an ‘establisher of the path of the Vedas’ ³.

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² *Ep. Carn.*, IV, Gu, 40.

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³ Ibid., 13.

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Prince Chinna Timmayadeva, the brother of Rama Raya Vitthala, must also be mentioned among the patrons of literature during this period. In 1544 he granted twelve puttis of land in the village of Tirumalapuram to its learned Brahmans ⁴. In the same year he gave the village of Annavaram to the poet Anantaraja ⁵. He was also the patron of Dosuri Koneru-kavi, the author of the *Balabhavatamu* ⁶.

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⁴ Rangacharya, II, p. 915, 67.

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⁵ Ibid., p. 915, 63.

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⁶ Ibid., I, p. 402; II, p. 915.

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10. Besides all the poets hitherto mentioned as living around the Emperors of Vijayanagara, there was a family of poets who always accompanied them, first from Vijayanagara to Penukonda, and later on from Punukonda to Chandragiri and Vellore. We refer to the composers of the imperial grants; which task seems to have been hereditary in a family. The British Museum plates of Sadasiva were composed by one Sabhapati ⁷, the same who had formerly composed the Unamanjeri grant of Achyuta Raya ⁸. But another grant of the same sovereign, of the year 1558, is written by Sabhapati’s son, Svayambhu ⁹. The Penuguluru grant ¹⁰ and the Tumkur plates of Tirumala ¹¹ were also written by Svayambhu, who is said to be the son of Sabhapati. The same Svayambhu was the composer of the Arivilimangalam plates ¹ and the Naredapalli grant of Ranga I ². This Svayambhu had probably no sons, because almost all the grants of Venkata II were composed by a certain Krishnakavi, who seems to be a nephew of Svayambhu, for he professes to be the son of Kamakoti and grandson of Sabhapati. He is the author of the Dalavay-Agraharam plates ³, of the Vellangudi plates ⁴, of the Padmaneri grant ⁵, and of two grants of 1586 ⁶ and of 1589 ⁷. The Vilapaka grant of the same monarch is written by a brother of Krishnakavi, named Rama ⁸. We know of only two grants of this sovereign composed by a person who seems not to belong to the family of Sabhapati; these are the Mangalampad grant ⁹ and a grant of 1613 ¹⁰. The author of both is called Chidambarakavi, the nephew of Sivasuryakavi.

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⁷ *Ep. Ind.*, IV, p. 2.

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⁸ Ibid., III, p. 151.

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⁹ *Ep. Carn.*, IX, Cp, 186.

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¹⁰ *Ep. Ind.*, XVI, p. 257, v. 177-178.

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¹¹ *Ep. Carn.*, XII, Tm, 7.

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¹ Ep. Ind., XII, p. 357, v. 65.

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² Ibid., XI, p. 329.

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³ Ibid., XII, p. 187, v. 200.

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⁴ Ibid., XVI, p. 329.

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⁵ Ibid., p. 297, vv. 152-153.

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⁶ Ep. Ind., XIII, p. 235.

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⁷ M. A. D., 1921, p. 31.

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⁸ Ep. Ind., IV, p. 272.

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⁹ Butterworth, I, p. 36, v. 60.

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¹⁰ Ep. Ind., XIII, p. 231.

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II. We have not spoken of the literary activity in the city of Madura, which was nevertheless a centre of learning in the South of India. The famous Sangams always attracted hundreds of students to the old city of the Pandyas. Fr. de Nobili, an impartial eye-witness, in a letter of 1610, says that there were then in Madura more than ten thousand students. There was not, it seems, a body of professors, corresponding to the staff of our Colleges and Universities; but the students selected the teacher they liked, and under him they were trained to pass their final examination before the Sangam. Fr. de Nobili only says that those ten thousand students ‘go to different professors’. The same missionary informs us that Venkata II and the Nayak of Madura, probably Muttu Krishnappa, had in order to foster study “royally endowed several Colleges for the maintainance of professors and students while they are studying; they are there supplied with victuals, clothes and every thing they are in need of”.

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The Madura teachers lectured on Philosophy and Theology. The philosophical lectures fell into four groups, corresponding to the four-fold division of this science: Argumentation, Knowledge, Evidence and Faith. In their Theological lectures the teachers explained the Vedanta, discussing the nature and attributes of God, starting from his unity. Fr. de Nobili gives the full programme of the philosophical studies followed in his days at Madura.

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12. Part first is on evidence, and deals with invocation or adoration, i. e. whether there be any God to be invoked at the beginning of the work. It contains these three sections:—

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1st. Certitude. a. Perfect certitude (*Karana*). b. Certitude of things which come into existence by generation or production. c. The formal aspect of certitude.

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2nd. The various species of objective reality, or objects that cause certitude. a. Local union or contiguity. b. Various kinds of union:—substantial, accidental and another which is not seen as not existing physically. c. Predicate and subject through negation (*Vipaksa*). d. The object of sight.

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3rd. The unity and indivisibility of human will, as able to co-ordinate the various perceptions received from the senses. a. The brightness of gold (as an instance). b. Reflective act through which man knows and understands himself.

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Part second is on knowledge, and deals with the following four sections:—

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1st. Means of acquiring knowledge (*Pramanas*). a. Terms of syllogism. (*Probans*). b. The conclusion (*Paramarsa*). c. Induction. d. Fallacies (*Hetvabhasas* : viz. *Asiddha*, *Viruddha*, *Anai-kantika*, *Prakaranasama* and *Kalatyayapadista*). e. Causes of fallacy. f. Its refutation. 2nd. Process of knowledge. a. Subject (*Paksa*). b. Discursive act. c. Causative signs. d. Every kind of sophism. 3rd. Relation (*Vyapti*). a. On conjunction or relation subsisting between things that are separable or not intimate (*Samyoga*). b. On privation. c. On the effect as proceeding from its cause. d. Conjunction in general (*Samyoga* and *Samavaya*). e. Final certitude or consequence. 4th. Casuistry. a. Cause. (*Karana*). b. Proof by self-evidence. c. Certitude from similarities (*Upamana*) d. The multiplicity of causes (*Samavay*, material or constituent cause ; *Asamavayi*, not constituent cause; *Nimitta*, efficient cause). e. The natural power and strength of the cause. f. The additional power of the cause by superaddition. 5th. Vicious states of mind (*Aprama*) a. Error. (*Bhrama*) b. Doubt (*Samsaya*) c. The variation of supposition (*Tarka*). d. False conclusion from true antecedents. e. The god Ruden (*Ruthru*) (as an instance). Part third is on authority, and speaks of the following subjects:— 1st. Oral testimony. a. Adequation of words to thoughts (*Sakti*). b. Common or universal consent, 2nd. Truth. a. The union of affections in relation to truth. b. Desire of truth. c. Corruption of the sounds. d. Corruption of the whole world, *viz.* can the whole world be deceived as to a truth? e. The excellency of the form of verifying truth. f. Whether what is not actually, could be affirmed. 3rd. Falsehood. a. Novelty of opinion. b. Annihilation. c. Personal imposture, *viz.* lie. d. How must the sign be.

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Such was the programme of philosophy followed in Madura in the beginning of the 17th century according to Fr. de Nobili. It was according to him a profound philosophy, but very different from scholastic philosophy¹. The course is properly a course of Logic, a kind of Tarkabhasa or science of reasoning, though much confused with psychological and metaphysical notions. This kind of Logic evidently belongs to the Syncretist school consequent upon the attempts of Sivaditya to amalgamate the earlier systems. The influence of the Tarkabhasa of Kesava Misra is quite evident, as well as that of the works of Annam Bhatta, who was at this time probably living².

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¹ From Fr. R. de Nobili to Fr. A. Laerzio, Madura, November 2nd, 1610, Ap. C, No. XXXI. Cf. Ganganatha Jha, *The Tarkabhasa*.

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² See Keith, *Indian Logic*, p. 36-41.

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13. There was moreover at Madura a small school commenced by Fr. Fernandes. It was supposed to be a primary school for Hindus. A Brahman, who finally became a Christian, was teaching the boys how to read and to write. Fr. Pimenta, when passing through Madura, distributed some prizes among the best pupils of the school³. Another similar school was erected in St. Thome at the same time by the same Fr. Pimenta. "A Seminarie was erected at Meliapor (Mylapor)", he says, "of the chiefe Children of the Badagades (Telugus), by the almes of Devout men, and a Schoole of the Malabars adjoyned, in which is taught the Tongue of Tamul (or vulgar) and the Badagan (Telugu) used by the Courtiers" 1. In 1567 Fr. H. Henriquez began a school of Tamil at Punnei Kayal for the young Goans who were sent there as catechists. Fr. Henriquez himself was teacher and a convert Brahman, named Luiz, was his assistant 2.

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³ Du Jarric, I, p. 650,

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³ Litterae Annuae of the Province of Malabar, 1604-1606, Ap. C, No. XXII.

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At the very court of Chandragiri the Jesuits started another school of this type. It was supposed to be a school for the sons of the Telugu nobles who were living at the court. There was in it a Hindu teacher under the direction of the missionaries, who besides defrayed the expenses of the institution 3. This school and that of Madura are mentioned again in another Jesuit letter of the following year 1607 4; and we suppose they continued in the following years. The Chandragiri school was perhaps transferred to Vellore when the capital was established there, and finally closed at the time of the final departure of the Jesuits.

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These were the first attempts of the Jesuits in the South of India to found the institutions of learning which were to have a marvellous development centuries after.

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14. The Jesuits had, moreover, earnestly studied the languages of the country; and some of them, as we have already seen in the case of Fr. de Nobili at Madura, mastered them to the general admiration of scholars. Among those who were working at the court of Venkata there were also some who became very proficient in speaking the vernaculars. "In this country of (around) Sao Thome," wrote Fr. Ricio in 1601, "two languages are spoken; one is the language of the country, the same that is spoken on the Fishery Coast and which was the first I learned; the other is the language of the Badaguas (Telugu); and since they are alike, I made quick progress in it; so much so that I was soon able to write a grammar of the same language as well as a summary of the Christian doctrine together with many mysteries of the life of Christ, all written in their own language¹. This summary of the Christian Faith was a translation of the one used in Konkani for the neophytes of the peninsula of Salsette, South of Goa, as Fr. Coutinho writes in a letter of the previous year².

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¹ From Fr. N. Pimenta to Fr. C. Aquaviva, Purchas, X, p. 210. Cf. Du Jarric, I, p. 638.

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² Besse, La Mission du Madure, p. 393.

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⁴ Litterae Annuae of the Province of Malabar, 1606-1607, Ibid., No. XXVII.

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¹ From Fr. F. Ricio to Fr. C. Aquaviva, Chandragiri, October 20th, 1601, Ap. C, No. I.

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² From Fr. B. Coutinho to Fr. C. Aquaviva, Chandragiri, July 17th, 1600, Ibid., No. V.

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It seems, indeed, that Fr. Ricio spoke Telugu to perfection; a Jesuit letter of the year 1606 says that he was a good Telugu scholar³. Nevertheless he did not venture to learn Sanskrit because of his age, as Fr. Laerzio wrote in 1604⁴. In the same letter we read that Fr. Coutinho had begun to learn Telugu. In another letter Fr. Ricio himself informs us that Coutinho is making progress in the study of Telugu⁵. He finally became master of it, as is evident from his protractedly sojourn at the court where he had to transact business for the King.

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³ *Litterae Annuae* of the Province of Malabar, 1604-1606, Ibid., No. XXII.

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⁴ From Fr. A. Laerzio to Fr. J. Alvarez, Cochin, January 18th, 1604, Ibid., No. X.

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⁵ From Fr. F. Ricio to Fr. C. Aquaviva, Chandragiri, October 20th, 1601, Ibid., No. I.

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15. A special feature introduced by the Jesuit missionaries of the Empire of Vijayanagara in the literary activity of India, was the casting of Tamilian characters; and consequently the printing of the first books in Tamil. According to Fra Paolino de San Bartolomeo, the first to cast Tamilian characters was the Jesuit Lay Brother Giovanni (Joao) Gonsalves. The same traveller affirms that the first book was printed in the year 1577. It was a summary of the Christian doctrine⁶. Fra Paolino does not name the author of this book; but it seems quite probable to us that Fr. Henrique Henriquez, a zealous Jesuit on the Fishery Coast, and a contemporary of St. Francis Xavier, was at least its translator. Fr. du Jarric states that Henriquez wrote many books in the language of Malabar, *in lingua Malabarica*, viz. in Tamil ¹. Now we know for certain that one of these books was a translation of a Christian Doctrine written in Portuguese by Fr. Marcos Jorge. Sartorius, while in Tranquebar, saw a copy of this book printed in 1679 ². This must be a later edition, for Fr. Henriquez had died by that time. Both editiors of this little book were printed at Cochin in the Jesuit College of the *Madre de Deus* ³. Fra Paolino says, moreover, that a new Tamil book appeared in 1578. It was entitled *Flos Sanctorum*, from which title we may assume that it contained the lives of some Saints ⁴. This work seems to have been printed at Punnei Kayal with Tamil type cast by Fr. Joao de Faria ⁵. Fr. De Souza, speaking of these early printings adds:—" Those countries were marvelling at the new invention, and pagans as well as Christians tried to obtain these printed books and prized them highly" ⁶.

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⁶ Fra Paolino de San Bartolomeo, *Viaggio*, p. 44. Cf. C. E. K. Notes on *Early-Printed Tamil Books*, *Ind. Ant.*, II, p. 180. Cf. Houpert, *The Madura Mission Manual*, p. 171. Bro. Gorsalves was a Spaniard. Cf. Souza, *Oriente Conquistado*, II, p. 67.

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¹ Du Jarric, I, p. 627.

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² *Notices of Madras and Cuddalore* p. 106. The title of this Christian Doctrine, as given by Sartorius, runs as follows: *Doctrina Christam, a maneira de Dialogo feita em Portugal pello P. Marcos Jorge, da Companhia de Jesu : Tresladada im lingua Malavar ou Tamul, pello P. Anrique Anriquez da mesma Companhia. Em Cochin, no Collegio da Madre de Deus, a os quartoze de Novembro, de Anno de MDLXXIX.*

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³ Fra Paolino de San Bartolomeo, l. c.

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⁴ Ibid.

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⁵ Cf. Gomez Rodeles-Cardou, *Early Jesuit Printing in India*, J. A. S. B., IX, p. 164.

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⁶ Souza, *Oriente Conquistado*, II, p. 67.

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16. Finally we must mention that the old South Indian Nandinagari alphabet disappeared during this period. Its latest examples are dated 1600. It was the favourite alphabet of the Madhva sect from the 14th century onwards, especially for writing on palm-leaves. The disciples of this sect were numerous in the Tamil country: Kanchivaram, Kumbhakonam, Tanjore and their surroundings. The characters had been formerly employed exclusively for writing on paper, but were latterly also used for writing on palm-leaves. Later on, after the Maratha conquest of Tanjore, the modern Nagari character was also introduced in the South ⁷.

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⁷ Burnell. *Elements of South Indian Palaeography*, p. 56.

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