Annamacharya
Also called: Tallapaka Annamacharya · Topic: Bhakti and Sufi Traditions · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Annamacharya, also called Tallapaka Annamacharya, was a Telugu saint-composer of the 15th century from Andhra. He wrote thousands of devotional songs called sankirtanas. They praise Venkateshwara, the form of Vishnu worshipped at Tirupati. He sang in the everyday Telugu of the people. He is often called the first great composer of Telugu devotional songs, and he shaped later South Indian (Carnatic) music.
Example
Annamacharya's family had his songs inscribed on copper plates. These were kept at the Venkateshwara temple at Tirumala-Tirupati, which is how they survived. His song "Brahmam Okkate" says that the one God is the same for high and low, and is still widely sung.
Don't confuse with
- Alvars: also Vaishnava devotees, but they sang in Tamil, centuries earlier, from c. 6th–9th century.
Related concepts
- Adi Shankaracharya
- Advaita Vedanta
- Shankaracharya mathas
- Ramanuja
- Vishishtadvaita
- Madhvacharya
- Haridasa movement
- Purandara Dasa
- Kanaka Dasa
- Basavanna