The warning that went unheeded

A few years before he passed away in 1564, Purandara Dasa warned the people of Vijayanagar about the dangers of forsaking god and falling into the trap of gaining wealth and leading an improper life. He sang, “Neechadhiree Bhagya” but the Emperor and the masses remained oblivious. Retribution was swift and the Vijayanagar forces lost in 1565 and Hampi was plundered and thousands of people put to the sword.

He also sang,

“Dharma shravana vetake  murkhage

Karma anushtana vansega dhiruva ,

Durmargi etka Brahmana Janma”

Konage veene gana videtake,

Manikhyavetake  markatge,

Tranavu tolagida hennigethake ,

Katani muthina haravu koralige.

Sadhu rasannavidetake,

Garthabha  udugore  sahithale shvananige,

Kadu vratthavahage  mai neardu hennina,

Odane  bhogipenembabila seyake.

Huttu kurudage  deepavidetake,

Bharastannigetke  kula dharma,

Srushtiyola damage  purandara vittlana

Muti bhajipenemba abhilaksha vetake.

Both Vyasa Raja (1447-1539), the Guru of Purandara Dasa (1480-1564) and the Dasa himself had foreseen the fall of Vijayanagar after the death of Krishna Deva Raya.

Krishna Deva Raya (1509-1530) was an Emperor who had upheld the Hindu dharma and he laid great store by the advice of Vyasa Raja, his Raja Guru. Krishna Deva Raya had immense respect and devotion to Vyasa Raja and he always went by his advice.

When Vyasa Raja warned him about the Kuhu Dosha, Krishna Devara Raya had gone by the perceptor’s advice. He had made Vyasa Raja the Emperor of Vijayanagar and he was reluctant to take back the Kingdom. But Vyasa Raja insisted that Krishna Deva Raya take back the Kingdom.

When Krishna Deva Raya pointed out that he had handed over the Kingdom to a saint and ascetic and that he could not take back what he had given as Dhana or offering, the erudite Madhwa seer turned this very same argument against the Emperor.

Vyasa Raja pointed out gently to the Emperor that he was only a wandering mendicant. He said a mendicant or sage had no interest in worldly things and that a sage could not be expected to take on the duties of a King.

Vyasa Raja then buttressed his arguments by quoting from the Bhagavath Geetha. He said Krishna had clearly said in the Geetha that one must do what one is asked to do or what one is best suited to do. “I am a wandering mendicant and I have no wordly attachment. I was taken away by my guru, Brahmanye Theertha, when I was young. I was brought up to lead a scholastic and monastic way of life. I am best at it. You, who are a King, know how to rule”, said Vyasa Raja.

He said a man who had given up everything to be near Hari had no attachment and even a Kingdom held no interest. Moreover, OI was sent to earth to fulfill a mission and I am still discharging the duty. O, King, I give back the Kingdom to you in the same manner that you gave me. Hence, there is no dosha or sin. No blame will accrue on you and you rule in a just and fair manner. That is all I ask of you”, Vyasa Raja said.

Though Krishna Deva Raya and Vyasa Raja did have difference of opinion, it never came in the way they respected each other. Krishna Deva Raya’s respect to the seer increased manifold when he was saved from the Kuhu Dosha and after he emerged victorious over the Adil Shah forces from Bijapur at the battle of Raichur.

Krishna Deva Raya then inscribed the sign, “Vyasa Raja is mu guru” on a panel in the Virupaksha Temple in Hampi. Krishna Deva Raya passed away in 1529 or 1530, grieving deeply over the death of his only male heir, Tirumala Raya, who appeared to have been poisoned to death.

Though Achuta Deva Raya, the brother of Krishna Deva Raya,  ascended the throne of Vijayanagar and ruled from 1529 to 1542, he had a tough time quelling challenges from Krishna Deva Raya’s son-in-law Rama Raya, also known as Aliya Rama Raya.

Achuta Deva Raya continued to pay respect to Vyasa Raja who was his Raja Guru too. When the time for entering Brindavana came in 1539, Vyasa Raja appears to have warned the Vijayanagar Emperor about the dangers that the Kingdom faced.

Unfortunately, Achuta Deva Raya was unable to rectify the faults that Vyasa Raja and Purandara Dasa pointed. Rama Raya, for some reason, appears to have taken a hostile attitude towards Madhwas and this led to the gradual erosion of support to the Emperors.

The Hindus had been the mainstay of the Vijayanagar Empire for close to three centuries. Once Rama Raya began antagonizing them, they began moving away from Vijayanagar.

The movement of the Hindu intelligentsia, including Haridasas like Kanaka Dasa 1509-1609 (he moved away from Hampi after the death of Purandara Dasa and in his last days, he lived in Tirumala), Vadiraja 1480-1600 (he went back to Sonda after the passing away of Vyasa Raja), Vijendra Theertha (he came to Vijayanagar to pay respect to the Brindavana of his ashrama Gurugalu Vyasa Raja, and then went back to Kumbakonam), Belur Vaikunta Dasa 1480-1550 (He went back to Belur in Hassan district after the death of Vyasa Raja) signaled the decline of Hindu literature.

Vijendra Theertha (1517-1614) too foresaw the fall of  Vijayanagar and he too warned the Vijayanagar Emperor but alas his warning was not taken seriously.

Purandara Dasa’s youngest son Madhwapathi Dasa continued composing Devara namas after his father passed away at the Purandara Mantapa in Hampi in 1564. He too was mildly critical of the epicurean lifestyle of the people of Vijayanagar and its Kings.  

Srinivasa Theertha, who ascended the Vyasa Raja Matha pontificate after Vyasa Raja, ruled till 1564. He passed away in 1564 and he was buried near his guru, Vyasa Raja in Nava Brindavana. Being the Raja Guru of Vijayanagar, he too warned the Vijayanagar Emperor, Achuta Deva Raya and other Kings who followed him but to no avail.

Srinivasa Theertha was followed by Rama Theertha and he became the Raja Guru of Vijayanagar in 1564. He headed the Vyasa Raja matha till 1584 and even he too appears to have forsaken Hampi once the Vijayanagars lost the battle of Rakasa Tangadi or Talikota.    

When the battle of Talikota took place in 1565, Rama Raya was beheaded by the Muslim forces who then converged onto Hampi or Vijayanagar and completely sacked it.  

Madhwapathi Dasa fled to Pune, while Kanaka Dasa took himself away from Hampi and wandered all over Karnataka. Belur Vaikunta Dasa spent his last days in Belur itself. Vijendra Theertha ruled from the Sri Matha pontificate in Kumbokanam.      

When a boy showed Hanuman to Purandara

It was sometime in the early 1500s and Hampi or Vijayanagar was a thriving City and the richest in the while world.

Krishna Deva Raya was the Emperor and Vyasa Raja or Vyasa Theertha was his preceptor. Krishna Deva Raya had ascended the Vijayanagar throne in 1509 and he had  defeated Bijapur, Golconda, Berar and even Ahmednagar Kingdoms.  He had extended the boundary of the Vijayanagar from coast to coast and put the fear of  God in his Muslim adversaries.

While Krishna Deva Raya presided over the Raja Durbar, there was another equally important durbar and this was conducted by the venerable Vyasa Theertha.  If the Raya’s durbar was full of pomp and gaiety, Vyasa’s was academic and religious and it was also the place where Dasa Sahitya and Vaishnava literature flourished.

Vyasa Raja one day consecrated the Yanthrodaara Praana Devaru temple (Hanumantha) in Hampi. He would visit this idol regularly with Purandara Dasa (1484-1564) and his other disciples.  Purandara had made it a point to pray to the deity every day and also offer naivedya.

One day, Purandara was called away for some work and he asked his young son, Madhwapathi,  to go to the shrine and  offer naivedya. Madhwapathi agreed and he went with the naivedya to the deity. He first prostrated before the deity, offered prayers and then called out to the monkey god to eat the naivedya.

When there was no response from the deity, Madhwapathi became angry and started calling out to Hanuman to come and take the food. He said if he refused to eat, he would hit himself. When still the deity remained unmoved, Madhwapathi began punishing himself.  

Hanuman was unable to see the young boy torture himself. He came in his physical form to towards the boy and took the naivedya. He also ate the naivedya and left back a small portion.

Madhwapathi went back home with the small portion of the naivedya. Both Purandara and his wife were surprised at the tale their son related. Both disbelieved Madhwapathi.

The next day, Purandara accompanied Madhwapathi to the place and asked his son to give naivedya to Hanuman. To his surprise and amazement, Hanuman emerged from the rock, ate the naivedya and went back.

A stunned Purandara realised that Hanuman had shown himself to his son as he was pure at hear and pure in mind. Moreover, Madhapathi’s heart was full of devotion and bhakti.  

Purandara then appreciated the devotion of his son and blessed him, saying that he was lucky to see God at such an young age.   Purandara blessed told Madhwapathi that he was very lucky to have obtained the grace of Hanumantha.

When Purandara was on his death bed, Madhwapathi pointed out that  he had been able to complete only four lakhs and seventy five thousand songs out of the target of five lakhs he had set himself. Purandara told Madhwapathi that he had left the rest 25,000 songs to be completed in the next generation. He blessed Madhwapathi saying that he (Madhwapathi) would be reborn as Vijaya Dasa and composed the rest 25,000 songs.

Madhwapathi as Vijaya Dasa (1682-1755) composed 25000 songs with the ankita (signature) of  Sri Vijaya Vittala. Today, much of our knowledge of the life and times of Purandara are sourced from the songs of  Vijaya Dasa.