Annamācārya
15th century · Tāḷḷapāka & Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh · Vaiṣṇava
Tāḷḷapāka Annamācārya, born at Tāḷḷapāka in the Kadapa region, devoted his life to Lord Veṅkaṭeśvara of Tirumala. Tradition says he composed some 32,000 saṅkīrtanas in Telugu and Sanskrit; about 13,000 survive, preserved by his family on copper plates at Tirumala.
He is honoured as the Pada-kavitā Pitāmaha, the grandfather of the song-poem form, and an early figure in South Indian devotional music. His songs range from tender love for the Lord to philosophy, as in “Brahmam okkaṭe” — “brahman is one” — which proclaims that king and servant, high and low, are the same before God.
Tirumala Veṅkaṭeśvara · Saṅkīrtanas on copper plates · “Brahmam okkaṭe”