RANNA

1. Name (Psyudonyms if any) : Ranna,(ರನ್ನ) ranna

2. Period: 949 A.D. (10^th Century)

3. Place : muduvoLalu, (Now called Mudhol) (Bagalakot District, Karnataka)

4. Religion : Jaina, Belonged to the community of bangle sellers. (baLegaara)

5. Patronage : chaavunDaraaya, (Minsiter in Ganga dynasty, daana chintaamaNi attimabbe, immaDi tailapa ( chaalukya dynaasTy)

6. Titles: Sri Kavi Ratna, One among Ratnatraya, three great Champu poets.

7. Brief Introduction: Ranna who was deeply influenced by Pampa , his great predeccessor, could carve a niche for himself among the ancient poets of Kannada by his powerful narration and a few innovative techniques. Like Pampa , he composed two epics, one on a Jaina Teerthankara and another on Mahabharata. For ‘sahasabheema

vijayam

, He chose Bheema as his hero and infused Duryodhana the villain with many noble qualities a la Karna in Vikramarjunavijaya. He equated his hero with Immadi Tailapa his royal patron. His ‘Gadayuddha’ narrates the story of Mahabharata by making use of the flash back technique which he calls ‘Simhavalokanakrama’. Gadayuddha is known for its dramatic interludes and powerful dialogues. ‘Ajitapurana’, an epic dealing with the life of Ajitanatha the second theerthankara is known for its philosophical musings and religious fervour.

8. Works : a. ajitha teerthamkara puraaNa

b. saahasa bheema vijayam ( gadaayuddham)

c. parashuraama charitam (Not found)

d. chakreshvara charitam (Not found)

e. ranna kanda ( Found but incomplete) ( Dictionary)

9. Criticism: a. Books:1. Ranna Kavi Prashasti, Ed. B.M.Srikantaiah

2. Ranna: aaru upanyaasagalu, Karanataka University

3. gadaayuddha naaTakam, B.M.Srikantaiah

b. Articles 1. shaktikavi ranna, (vibhuutipuuje)

2. kannada saahitya sangaati, K.D.Kurtakoti

c. Translations:

1. Gadayuddha Bhimasenadambara

H.K.Ramachandramurthy, T.R.S. Sharma

2. Gadayuddha Duryodhana Vilapa Raghavendra Rao K.

3. Ajitapurana Vimalavahana Vishvanatha Mirle

4. Ajitapurana Attimabbe D.R.Shashidhara

10. Links : 1. Ranna - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2. Literary Cultures in History By Sheldon I. Pollock

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