"Kanaka Dasa".
Kanaka Dasa 1509 - 1609 C.E. was one of the devotees of Krishna and an influential mahatma in the Vaishnava bhakti movement in Karnataka. He was born in Kaginele of Dharwad district of Karnataka, a state of India.
Like Tukaram, his life demonstrated that devotion to God was the sole criteria for acceptance, not ancestry. For more information, see Vaishnava Theology.
Kanaka Nayaka being of the warrior community (Kuruba) his defeat in the field of battle, directed him to the path of devotion. Kanaka Nayaka threw away his sword when the "inner call" came. He was initiated by Vyasaraja and came to be called as Kanakadasa. Kanaka Dasa spent later years of his life most in the company with Vyasaraja, He was already an author of Narasimha stotra, Ramadhyana Mantra, Mohanatarangini before he became a follower of Vyasaraja. The deity he worshipped was Adikeshava of Kaginele, presently in Haveri district of Karnataka. Kaginele, now a village, was a prosperous place and trading center in middle ages. He lived at Tirupathi in his last days.
Although he comes from Kuruba caste and belonged to Kshatriya varna, he is literally worshipped as saint and social reformer by all sections of society.
Kanaka Dasa was well educated, had a sharp eye and a mind that analysed social developments. His poems and kirtans deal with every aspect of life and expose the futility of external rituals. They stress the need for cultivation of moral values in life. He neutralised the dissidences of Caste and groups and attempted at the solidarity of all castes by abrogating references to Jati, Kula and other distinctions. Kanakadasa made supreme effort in reforming the lower castes, weaning them away from ignorance, superstition and barbaric practices, in order to favour the growth of Bhakthi and devotion in them. His love of his own people compelled him to disregard his own life and to shed the blood of martyr for the sake of their transformation into a life of Ahimsa. God does not ask for blood, what he wants of you is only Bhakthi.
Though an ardent devotee of God, Kanakadasa was a rebel who protested against social evils like caste system, untouchability, etc. through his poems. Commenting on the Brahminical hypocrisy, he says that he would like to be a servant of a chandala than to be a vicious Brahmin.
Kanakadasa wrote about two hundred songs (kirtans, padas and mundiges or philosophical songs) besides five major works In Ramadhanyacharitre, an allegory on the conflict between the socially strong and weak castes and classes, presented as an argument between two foodgrains, rice and ragi, is a most creative literary piece with a powerful social message,In the work, rice represents the socially powerful, such as Brahmins, and ragi (millet) represents the working people. The two grains come before Rama to argue their case and establish their superiority. In the end Rama sends both of them to prison for six months. At the end of the period, rice has turned rotten while the hardy ragi survives, earning Rama's blessings.
Kanakadasa, once wanted to have a 'darshan' (encounter) of the Lord Krishna in Udupi. He was not allowed into the shrine by orthodox Brahmins as he was not a Brahmin by birth. Kanakadasa then started singing praise of Shri Krishna and was lost to outside world in a corner outside the temple. Legend has it that the idol of Krishna, which heretofore had been facing east, turned around to face west, as the western wall collapsed so that Kanakadasa could have darshan, A small window was constructed at the breach later. The idol of Lord Krishan is still today worshipped through the window. This window came to be known as Kanakana kindi (Kanaka’s window). The memory of Kanakadasa was permanently etched in the temple of his beloved Lord Krishna .It is scientifically believed that there was a minor earthquake at night when Kanakadasa was singing outside the western wall. A crack appeared in the western wall and Kanakadasa was able to see the idol of Krishna in plain view. In a composition of Kanakadasa, he makes a reference to the shaking of the earth at night, while he was praying with his eyes closed. Today that window stands as a tribute to the unique saint of Karnataka.
Bhakti movement | Hindu religious figures | Vaishnavism | Madhva religious figures | People of Karnataka
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It uses material from the "Kanaka Dasa".
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