| Suranna | |
|---|---|
| Pen name | Nutana-kavi ("New Poet") |
| Occupation | Poet |
| Language | Telugu |
| Citizenship | Vijayanagara Empire (in present-day southern India) |
| Period | 15th or 16th century |
| Notable works | Dhanabhi-ramamu |
| Relatives | Tikkana |
Sūranna (or Surana), who styled himself as Nūtana-kavi ("New Poet") was a Telugu language poet from the Vijayanagara Empire of present-day southern India. He probably lived during the 15th or the 16th century, and is notable for Dhanabhi-ramamu, the story of a contest between Manmatha (the god of love) and Kubera (the god of wealth).
Biography
Little is known about Suranna's life. He lived in the Vijayanagara Empire, and claimed to have been born in the family of the famous poet Tikkana. He highly praises the deity Bhimeshvara of Draksharamam (in present-day Andhra Pradesh).
Suranna mentions the 14th-century poet Nachana Somanatha in his book. A verse by Suranna is included in Pedapati Jagganna's anthology Prabandha-ratna-karamu (c. 1600 CE). This suggests that Suranna probably lived during the 15th-16th century. Estimates of his period include 1420–1475, 1425–1480, and c. 1550.
Works
Kubera, the god of wealth, in Nutana-kavi Suranna's Dhanabhi-ramamuAn ugly man becomes handsome,
a bad man becomes good,
a fickle one turns stable,
a coward is made into a warrior,
low-caste becomes high-caste,
an idiot achieves wisdom,
the crude turns elegant,
an illiterate lout becomes expert
in all branches of learning—
if only he has money.
Suranna composed Dhanabhi-ramamu (or Dhanabhi-ramam) and a drama titled Vishnu-Maya-Vilasa. In Dhanabhi-ramamu, Manmatha (the god of love) and Kubera (the god of wealth) debate whether humans care more about beauty or wealth. In the end, the god Shiva resolves the dispute by stating that both looks and money are equally important. Besides its literary merits, the work is of historical interest as it provides information about the ornaments and dress of the contemporary period.
References
- ^ P. Sree Rama Sarma (1979). Saluva Dynasty of Vijayanagar. Prabhakar. p. 275. OCLC 10117617.
- ^ Velcheru Narayana Rao; David Shulman, eds. (2002). Classical Telugu Poetry: An Anthology. University of California Press. pp. 216–221. ISBN 9780520344525.
- ^ M. Srinivas Chary (2003). The Hindu Temple Traditions of Draksharama: The Shaivite Tradition. Studies in Asian thought and religion. Edwin Mellen. p. 72. ISBN 9780773467651.
- ^ Srinivas Sistla (2007). The Body as Temple. Drusya Kala Deepika. p. 69. OCLC 196263920.