“Basaveshwara, one of the leading social reformers of the 12th century Vachana revolution, fought for equality, fraternity, social justice and freedom of speech. All these principles are incorporated in the Constitution and even in the United Nations Human Rights Council,” Vice-Chancellor of Central University of Karnataka Battu Satyanarayana has said.
He was addressing a gathering at the valedictory function of the online lecture series on Vachana literature and its interface with other disciplines.
The lecture series, organised by the university in association with Sasava Samithi at Anubhava Mantapa in Kalaburagi, was held between April 30 and May 28, 2022.
“We are the beneficiaries enjoying the fruits of the great fight that Basaveshwara and other Sharanas [reformers] waged against injustice in the 12th century. The ideas of the Sharanas are still relevant and they serve as the guiding principles for the present generation. To inculcate the noble ideas that the Sharanas advocated among students, we are planning to introduce a paper, Human Values of Sharanas, in the next academic year. Basava Samithi’s efforts to take the Vachanas beyond Kannada are commendable. We have also joined hands with Basava Samithi for the cause and taken up the task of translating the Vachanas to Spanish, German and Chinese languages,” Prof. Satyanarayana said.
University Registrar Basavaraj Donur held that the Vachanas were composed not just to preach others but for one to practice.
“The Sharanas spoke to their soul to purify themselves and transform themselves into good human beings. They wrote what they practised. Social reform initiatives have always met with stiff resistance from vested interests that wanted to maintain status quo. The Sharana movement was no exception,” Mr. Donur said.
Vikram Visaji gave a brief introduction to Kalyanada Sharanaru written by Veeranna Dande and released at the event. “The book has a list of more than 1,600 Sharanas. No other Indian literary tradition has so many writers as the Vachana literary tradition has. It is a very special book and a significant contribution to Indian literature,” Mr. Visaji said.
Basava Samithi president Arvind Jatti said that the papers presented in the online lecture series will be published in the 500th special issue of Basava Patha which will come in July 2022.
Dr. Veeranna Dande, Jayashree Dande, Visavathi Khuba, Uddandayya, Anand Siaddamani and others were present.
