Astadiggajas

Ashtadiggajas (Telugu: అష్టదిగ్గజాలు) is the collective title given to the eight Telugu poets in the court of the emperor Sri Krishna Deva Raya who ruled the Vijayanagara Empire from 1509 until his death in 1529. During his reign, Telugu literature and culture reached its zenith. In his court, eight poets were regarded as the eight pillars of his literary assembly. The age of Ashtadiggajas is called Prabandha Age (1540 AD to 1600). All of the Ashtadiggajas had composed at least one Prabandha Kavyamu and it was Ashtadiggajas who gave Prabandha its present form. Most of the Ashtadiggajas are from southern part of present-day Andhra Pradesh state (Rayalaseema, Nellore) and Ashtadiggajas, Allasani Peddana, Dhurjati, Nandi Thimmana, Madayyagari Mallana and Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu are from the Rayalaseema region. Tenali Ramakrishna hailed from the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh.

The title Ashtadiggajas (Ashta + dik + gaja) means elephants in eight directions. It refers to the old Hindu belief that eight elephants hold the earth in eight directions which are namely Airaavata, Pundareeka, Vaamana, Kumuda, Anjana, Pushpadanta, Sarwabhouma, Suprateeka, whose wives are Abhra, Kapila, Pingala, Anupama, Taamraparni, Subhradanti, Angana, Anjanaavati. The court of poets were also called Bhuvana Vijayam (Conquest of the World).

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