Tallapaka Annamacharya (1424-1503)

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Annamacharya is the greatest of the poets born in the Tallapaka family of poets, music composers and scholars in Telugu and Sankrit popularized the Srivaishnava faith in Andhra Pradesh in the 15th and 16th centuries. He is also by his given name Annamayya.

Annamayya was born in 1424 A.D. in Tallapaka, a village in Cuddapah district. Born with a gift for poetry and song, the boy Annamayya would improvise songs on Venkateswara and was always preoccupied by Him. It is said,Annamayya had a vision of Lord Venkateswara when he was 16 and then spent the rest of his life composing kIrtanAs and padams on Him, which totalled 32,000. Of these only 14,000 are available now engraved on copper plates which were hidden for centuries in a niche of Sri Venkateswara temple at Tirumala.

He ran away to Tirupati and lived in Tirumala for some time and was initiated into Sri Vaishnava faith. Sometime later his people sought him out and took him home where he was married. His marriage did not interfere with his spiritual interests and he became a disciple of the saint Shathakopayati of Ahobalam and studied all the sacred texts. Although he propitiated other deities like Rama, Krishna, Narasimha and Vitthala, he viewed them as forms of Venkateswara, the Ultimate Reality. He spent the rest of his life in His service and devoting his time between TAllapAka and Tirumala. Annamayya breathed his last in 1503.

Annamayya's songs, which he considered as "flower- offerings" to God are his outstanding achievements. In them he praises Venkateswara, describes his love for Him, argues and quarrels with Him, meditates on His attributes, confesses his failures and apprehensions, and surrenders himself to Him. Traditionally his songs are classified into Adhyaatama and Sringaara samkirtanaas.

However very little is known about his music and musical thoughts,even though his poetry was preserved, and the copper plates mention about the raga for the song, what musical form and tala Annamayya assigned to his songs is not known. Though Annamayya's SamkIrtanams resemble Daasarapadagalu in structural patterna and very likely in musical pattern too, he did not have the advantage of an institution like Daasakoota which has, in a way preserved the tradition of singing Daasarapadagalu.