Bannanje Govindacharya
Encyclopedia
Shri Bannanje Govindacharya (Tulu
:ಬನ್ನಂಜೆ ಗೋವಿಂದಾಚಾರ್ಯ) is a scholar, well-versed in Madhva tradition. He hails from Bannanje locality of Udupi in Karnataka
, India
. He was born in 1936. He is in particular one of the greatest experts on the Madhva
Tattva Shastras or Madhva philosophy. He is best known for his pravachanas or discourses which are very popular among Tuluvas and Kannadigas
all over the world. Though his pravachanas (discourses)have made him a household name among Tuluvas and Kannadigas
his contributions to vedic scholarship also extend to voluminous writing. He is the author of numerous translations and commentaries both in Sanskrit
and Kannada of the Vedic texts
. His literary achievements also include his translation and commentaries of the complete texts of Shri Madhwacharya.
by Shri Hrishikesha Tirtha, a direct disciple of Shri Madhwacharya of the 13th CE. It comprises 2000 pages in five volumes complete with footnotes and colophons. Two other works of Shri Madhwacharya, Tithinirnaya and Nyasa Paddhathi which were unknown were discovered and included in this work.A great work
early in his life. He has written book on life of Shree Madhwa acharya called Acharya Madhva: Baduku-Bareha published by RastraKavi Govinda Pai Samshodhana Kendra,Udupi.
Another notable contribution of his is to the Indian and Kannada film industries. He served as the expert consultant for G V Iyer's movies on Adi Shankaracharya, Shri Madhwacharya, Sri Ramanujacharya and the Bhagavad Gita
. He also wrote the scripts for the Adi Shankaracharya and Madhwacharya movies. Adi Shankaracharya incidentally was the first ever Sanskrit movie.
in New York and Dr. Keith Knox of the Boeing Corporation in Hawaii, undertook the painstaking process of imaging and preserving the original Sarvamoola Granthas authored by Madhvacharya
himself. Knox and Easton had earlier imaged fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls
and are on the imaging team for the Archimedes Palimpsest
project. Bannanje suggested this task as a project of enormous importance and is using the images in his studies of the manuscript.
Tulu language
The Tulu language |?]]]) is a Dravidian language spoken by 1.95 million native speakers mainly in the southwest part of Indian state Karnataka known as Tulu Nadu. In India, 1.72 million people speak it as their mother tongue , increased by 10 percent over the 1991 census...
:ಬನ್ನಂಜೆ ಗೋವಿಂದಾಚಾರ್ಯ) is a scholar, well-versed in Madhva tradition. He hails from Bannanje locality of Udupi in Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. He was born in 1936. He is in particular one of the greatest experts on the Madhva
Madhvacharya
Madhvācārya was the chief proponent of Tattvavāda "Philosophy of Reality", popularly known as the Dvaita school of Hindu philosophy. It is one of the three most influential Vedānta philosophies. Madhvācārya was one of the important philosophers during the Bhakti movement. He was a pioneer in...
Tattva Shastras or Madhva philosophy. He is best known for his pravachanas or discourses which are very popular among Tuluvas and Kannadigas
Kannadigas
Kannadiga , or Kannadati is a reference to the people who natively speak the Kannada language. Kannadigas are mainly located in the state of Karnataka in India and in the neighboring states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and Maharashtra...
all over the world. Though his pravachanas (discourses)have made him a household name among Tuluvas and Kannadigas
Kannadigas
Kannadiga , or Kannadati is a reference to the people who natively speak the Kannada language. Kannadigas are mainly located in the state of Karnataka in India and in the neighboring states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and Maharashtra...
his contributions to vedic scholarship also extend to voluminous writing. He is the author of numerous translations and commentaries both in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
and Kannada of the Vedic texts
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
. His literary achievements also include his translation and commentaries of the complete texts of Shri Madhwacharya.
Early life
He started his study of the vedic texts and scriptures under his father Tarkakesari S. Narayanacharya and His Holiness Shri Vidyamanya Tirtha Swamiji of Palimaru Matha. But the person who shaped Bannanje's future was the late Shri Vidyasamudra Tirtha Swamiji of Kaniyooru matha.His works
Shri Bannanje Govindacharya has many contributions to Vedic scholarship to his name. He has authored numerous commentaries, translations and original works on the subject. He has also contributed hundreds of articles in magazines and journals. He also travels all over India and around the world giving discourses in Indian philosophy and Hindu scriptures.Publications edited
Works of Madhwa : This monumental work is a painstakingly crafted reconstruction of the complete commentary on Madhwa's worksWorks of Madhvacharya
The extant works of the Dvaita founder-philosopher, Sri Madhvacharya, called the Sarvamūla Granthas, are many in number. The works span a wide spectrum of topics concerning Dvaita philosophy in specific and Vedic thought in general. They comprise of commentaries on the Vedas, Upanishads,...
by Shri Hrishikesha Tirtha, a direct disciple of Shri Madhwacharya of the 13th CE. It comprises 2000 pages in five volumes complete with footnotes and colophons. Two other works of Shri Madhwacharya, Tithinirnaya and Nyasa Paddhathi which were unknown were discovered and included in this work.A great work
Translation of major Sanskrit works into Kannada
Apart from the Vedic texts, Shri Bannanje has also translated several other Sanskrit works into Kannada. These include,- Bana Bhattana kadambari - A translation of Bana Bhatta's novel
- KalidasaKalidasaKālidāsa was a renowned Classical Sanskrit writer, widely regarded as the greatest poet and dramatist in the Sanskrit language...
's ShakuntalaShakuntalaIn Hindu mythology Shakuntala is the wife of Dushyanta and the mother of Emperor Bharata. Her story is told in the Mahabharata and dramatized by Kalidasa in his play Abhijñānaśākuntalam .-Etymology:Rishi Kanva found her in forest as a baby surrounded by Shakunta birds... - ShudrakaSudraka' was an Indian King. Three Sanskrit plays are ascribed to him - Mricchakatika , Vinavasavadatta, and a bhana , Padmaprabhritaka.. He has been identified as Abhira King Indranigupta, who used the pen name Sudraka.- References :* Ryder, Arthur William. Translator...
's Mrichakatika as Aaveya Mannina Atada Bandi, won the Sahitya AkademiSahitya AkademiThe Sahitya Akademi ', India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India...
's award for translation in 2001 - Bhavabhuti's Uttaramacharita
- Mahashweta's SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
stories - Several Sanskrit poems.
Short commentaries in Sanskrit
- Anandamala of shri trivikramarya dasa
- Vayu StutiVayu StutiVayu Stuti is one of the most famous Stutis composed by Sri Trivikrama Panditacharya in praise of Sri Madhvacharya, the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy...
of Shri TrivikramaTrivikrama PanditacharyaSri Trivikrama Panditacharya was one of the disciples of Sri Madhvacharya, the great Dvaita philosopher. He composed the Vayu Stuti, one of the most famous Stotras in the Madhva tradition....
Pandita - Vishnu Stuti of Shri Trivikrama Pandita
- Chaturdashastotra – different stotras in Sanskrit
- Raghavendra stotra
- Jayathirtha stuti
- vada ratnavali of Shri Vishudasacharya
- A philosophical dialectic in SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
- Short commentaries for six upanishads with commentaries of Trivikramarya Dasa
Detailed commentaries in Sanskrit
Some of Bannanje's detailed commentaries in Sanskrit include,- Nirnaya Bhava Chandrika Tippani on Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya by shri Madhwacharya
- Teeka(critique) on Mahabharata Tatparya (yamaka bharatha) by Shri Madhwacharya
- Teeka on Shri Madhwavijaya of Narayana Pandita
- Tippani on Bhagavata tatparya by shri Madhwacharya
Translation of Sanskrit to kannada
- Purusha suktaPurusha suktaPurusha sukta is hymn 10.90 of the Rigveda, dedicated to the Purusha, the "Cosmic Being". One version of the Suktam has 16 verses, 15 in the meter, and the final one in the meter...
- Shri sukta
- Shiva stuti, Narashimha stuti
- Talavakaropanishad (Kenopanishad)
- Krishnamritamaharnava of Shri Madhwacharya
- Tantra sara sangraha of Shri Madhwacharya
- Sangraha Ramayana of Shri Narayana PanditacharyaNarayana PanditacharyaSri Narayana Panditacharya is the author of Sumadhvavijaya, a biography of the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy, Sri Madhvacharya. Sri Narayana Panditacharya was the son of Trivikrama Panditacharya, one of the direct disciples of Sri Madhva....
- Madhwa Ramayana
- Parashara kanda para tattva (Kannada rendering of Shri Vishu Purana)
- Prameya nava malika of Shri Narayana PanditacharyaNarayana PanditacharyaSri Narayana Panditacharya is the author of Sumadhvavijaya, a biography of the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy, Sri Madhvacharya. Sri Narayana Panditacharya was the son of Trivikrama Panditacharya, one of the direct disciples of Sri Madhva....
- Anu Madhwa Charita & Sampradaya paddhati
- Mangalashtaka of Shri Rajarajeshwara yati
- Yajneeya mantropanishat (Ishavasya)
- Bhagavad GitaBhagavad GitaThe ' , also more simply known as Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata, but is frequently treated as a freestanding text, and in particular, as an Upanishad in its own right, one of the several books that constitute general Vedic tradition...
- Ananda Thirthara Bhakti Geetegalu (Kannada rendering of Shri Madhwacharya's SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
devotional songs)
Other contributions
Apart from his voluminous writing, Bannanje has also contributed more than 800 articles on various important issues are published in different books, journals and magazines. He also served as the editor at UdayavaniUdayavani
UDAYAVANI Udayavani is a leading Kannada Daily Newspaper with editions from Manipal, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hubli and Gulbarga.Launched in 1971 by Shri. Mohandas Pai and Shri...
early in his life. He has written book on life of Shree Madhwa acharya called Acharya Madhva: Baduku-Bareha published by RastraKavi Govinda Pai Samshodhana Kendra,Udupi.
Another notable contribution of his is to the Indian and Kannada film industries. He served as the expert consultant for G V Iyer's movies on Adi Shankaracharya, Shri Madhwacharya, Sri Ramanujacharya and the Bhagavad Gita
Bhagavad Gita
The ' , also more simply known as Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata, but is frequently treated as a freestanding text, and in particular, as an Upanishad in its own right, one of the several books that constitute general Vedic tradition...
. He also wrote the scripts for the Adi Shankaracharya and Madhwacharya movies. Adi Shankaracharya incidentally was the first ever Sanskrit movie.
Preservation of manuscripts
In 2005–2006, Professor P.R. Mukund (a disciple of Sri Bannanje) along with his colleague Dr. Roger Easton from the Rochester Institute of TechnologyRochester Institute of Technology
The Rochester Institute of Technology is a private university, located within the town of Henrietta in metropolitan Rochester, New York, United States...
in New York and Dr. Keith Knox of the Boeing Corporation in Hawaii, undertook the painstaking process of imaging and preserving the original Sarvamoola Granthas authored by Madhvacharya
Madhvacharya
Madhvācārya was the chief proponent of Tattvavāda "Philosophy of Reality", popularly known as the Dvaita school of Hindu philosophy. It is one of the three most influential Vedānta philosophies. Madhvācārya was one of the important philosophers during the Bhakti movement. He was a pioneer in...
himself. Knox and Easton had earlier imaged fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
and are on the imaging team for the Archimedes Palimpsest
Archimedes Palimpsest
The Archimedes Palimpsest is a palimpsest on parchment in the form of a codex. It originally was a copy of an otherwise unknown work of the ancient mathematician, physicist, and engineer Archimedes of Syracuse and other authors, which was overwritten with a religious text.Archimedes lived in the...
project. Bannanje suggested this task as a project of enormous importance and is using the images in his studies of the manuscript.
Recognition and honours
Bannanje has won numerous awards and various titles have been conferred on him by esteemed institutions. Some of these include- Padma ShriPadma ShriPadma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
, India's fourth highest civilian honour, 2009 - The state award conferred by the Government of KarnatakaGovernment of KarnatakaThe Government of Karnataka is a democratically elected body with the Governor as the constitutional head. The Governor who is appointed for a period of five years appoints the Chief Minister and his council of ministers...
for his meritorious service and scholarship in Vedic literature and philosophy. - The Sahitya AkademiSahitya AkademiThe Sahitya Akademi ', India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India...
's award for translation in 2001 - Vidya Vachaspati - by Shri Admar Mutt swamiji, Udupi
- Pratibhambudhi - conferred on him by Puttige Mutt and Palimar Mutt swamijis
- Shastra savyasachi - a title conferred by Akhila Bharata Madhwa Maha Mandala, Bengalooru
- Shri Krishanugraha Prashasthi - an award presented by PejavaraPejavaraPejavara is a village located in the Mangalore taluk of Dakshina Kannada, formerly known as South Canara or South Kanara, district of Karnataka, India. It houses one of the eight ashta mathas established by Madhvacharya, the Dvaita philosopher. It also houses a branch of the Krishnapura matha,...
Mutt swamiji - Sahitya sarvabhouma - saraswata maha vishwa vidyalaya, Bengalooru
- Samshodhana Vichakshana : by shri admar & shri palimar mutt
- Pandita Ratna : by palimar mutt swamiji
- Pandita shiromani - by Pratibha Ranga, Shivamogga
- Pandita Ratna : by Dwarakanath swamji of Partagali Gokarna Mutt
- Vidya Ratnakara - title conferred by Shri Palimar Mutt swamiji
- The Academy of General Education, ManipalManipalManipal is a university town situated in the state of Karnataka in India. It is a suburb within Udupi city and is administered by Udupi City Municipality. It is located in the rocky hinterland of the Malabar Coast of south west India, about 8 km from the Arabian Sea...
presented him a fellowship for the meritorious service and scholarship in Indian religion and philosophy.
Conferences attended
- Brand Ambassador of India in World Conference on Religion & Peace, Princeton, USA in 1979.
- Participated in World Sanskrit Conference in DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
in 1980s. - Was president to Sanskrit Parishat of South CanaraSouth CanaraSouth Canara was a district under the British empire, located at . It was bifurcated in 1859 from Canara district. It was the undivided Dakshina Kannada district...
. - Served as President of All India Madhwa Sammelanna in ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
in 1995. - Served as President of the Sahitya Sammelanna in Udupi in 2001.
- Participated in number of poetic symposiums and debates.
External links
- ANANDAMALA (Exclusive Website on Shri Bannanje and IshaVasya Prathistana, containing his lectures, articles, poems and much more )
- A lecture series on the Mandukopanishat
- Guru Govindaacharya - Prof. Easton writes about his interactions with Bannanje during the imaging of the Sarvamoola Granthas
- Bannanje Govindacharya Interview, 'Is the Ego an Illusion?'
- VNN World - Interview With Sri Bannanje Govindacharya
- madhva.net - shrI Bannanje Govindacharya