Chavundaraya

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About

Indian military commander, architect, poet and minister. He served in the court of the Western Ganga Dynasty of Talakad (in present day Karnataka, India).

A person of many talents, in 982 he commissioned the Gomateshwara, a monolithic sculpture in Shravanabelagola, an important place of pilgrimage for Jains.

He was a devotee of the Jain Acharya Nemichandra and Ajitasena Bhattaraka and was an influential person during the reign of Kings Marasimha II, Rachamalla IV, and Rachamalla V (Rakkasa Ganga).

A courageous commander with the title of Samara Parashurama, he found time to pursue his literary interests as well and became a renowned writer in Kannada and Sanskrit. He wrote an important and existing prose piece called Chavundaraya Purana (also known as Trishasthi Lakshana Purana) in Kannada (978) and Charitrasara in Sanskrit. He patronised the famous Kannada grammarians Gunavarma and Nagavarma I and the poet Ranna whose writing Parusharama Charite may have been a eulogy of his patron.

Because of his many lasting contributions, Chavundaraya is an important figure in the history of medieval Karnataka.

Chavundaraya Basadi (10th century) on Chandragiri Hill	Kannada poets: Chavundaraya and Nemichandra