Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c7.s3.3

v1.c7.s3.3

Of all these that which has gained most popularity is the Telugu origin of the first dynasty. In fact, the mention of a Idumakaṇṭi Gaṅgi Reḍḍi Gāru as a servant under Bukkarāya Oḍeya in Nellore about A.D. 1314-5;² the marked leaning which the Vijayanagara rulers showed, especially during and after the times of Kṛṣṇa Dēva Rāya the Great, for all things Telugu; and the prominence which the last dynasty—the Āraviḍu—acquired in the annals of the Vijayanagara Empire—all heighten the belief that the founders were really of Telugu origin. It is said, for example, according to tradition that Harihara and Bukka "were descended from a series of petty princes or landholders, possibly feudatories of the Belal kings, or even of Pratāpa Rudra, who took advantage of a period of public commotion to lay the foundation of a new state;"³ and that these two "fugitives from Warangal after it was taken by the Mohamedans encountered the sage in the woods, and were elevated by him to sovereignty". This makes the two brothers officers of the Muhammadan conqueror of Warangal, who were sent by their master, after the capture of that city, against the Ballāḷa Rāya. They were defeated, their army dispersed, and they fled into the woods where they founded Vijayanagara.¹