Trilingual lexicon on Vachana literature released

Lexicograpgher G. Venkatasubbaiah during the release of 'Vachana Pada Sampada' Kannada, English, Hindi three languages dictionary in Bangalore on 11th October 2014. Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

A trilingual Kannada-English-Hindi dictionary titled “Vachana Pada Sampada” that provides meanings of words used in the Vachana literature of 12 Century Karnataka was released here on Saturday.

The voluminous dictionary puts together 4,000 Kannada words used by the Vachanakaras, the poet-reformers of the 12 Century, and provides equivalent phrases and meanings in Hindi and English that run to over 2 lakh words. It also explains grammatical nuances of some of the complex expressions and phrases.

Translation aid

Speaking after releasing the dictionary, well-known lexicographer G. Venkatasubbaiah said, it was a useful aid for researchers and translators in a context where Vachana literature had drawn wide attention beyond Karnataka.

This body of literature was unique to the Kannada tradition and needed to be translated to all the world languages, he said. Prof. Venkatasubbaiah said that while some Vachanas like those of Basaveshwara were direct and simple, others demanded close reading like those of Allama Prabhu.

Rich diction

T.R. Mahadevaiah, chief editor of the dictionary, said that the diction of Vachanas was special because it drew from a wide social milieu. “There were kings and scholars among the Vachanakaras, just as there were ordinary workers and artisans from the lower strata of society,” said Prof. Mahadevaiah. It drew into its fold women writers and reformers, which also reflected a wide social spectrum from royalty to street sweepers, he added.

Another unique feature of the Vachana movement, Prof. Mahadevaiah said, was that its revolutionary concepts that broke caste and class barriers drew people from other parts of India as well. “Some of them came here, learnt Kannada and composed Vachanas in this language, further adding to the richness of the language repertory,” he said.

The dictionary, published by Basavatatva Prachara and Samshodhana Kendra at BEML Layout, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bangalore, is priced at Rs. 800. Call 080-28605660 for details.