Akka Mahadevi: Life, Vachanas and Legacy
Akka Mahadevi was a 12th-century Kannada poet from Udutadi, in today's Shivamogga district of Karnataka, whose vachanas are addressed to Shiva as Chennamallikarjuna, "Mallikarjuna, the beautiful". She left home to live as a wandering devotee, joined the circle of Basavanna and Allama Prabhu at Kalya
Akka Mahadevi was a 12th-century Kannada poet from Udutadi, in today's Shivamogga district of Karnataka, whose vachanas are addressed to Shiva as Chennamallikarjuna, "Mallikarjuna, the beautiful". She left home to live as a wandering devotee, joined the circle of Basavanna and Allama Prabhu at Kalyana, and is remembered as one of the earliest women poets in Kannada. The Lingayat (Virashaiva) tradition reveres her as one of its great saints; whether that tradition is part of Hinduism or a separate religion is debated, as explained below.
| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Lived | 12th century (about 1130 is often given for her birth) |
| Born | Udutadi, near Shikaripura, Shivamogga district, Karnataka |
| Language | Kannada |
| Signature (ankita) | Chennamallikarjuna |
| Tradition | Lingayat / Virashaiva; contemporary of Basavanna and Allama Prabhu |
| Works | About 350 vachanas are attributed to her; other works are attributed by tradition |
| Died | Traditionally at Kadali, in the forests near Srisailam |
Life
What is known of her life comes from her own vachanas and from later devotional works, chiefly Harihara's Mahadeviyakkana Ragale and the 15th-century Shunyasampadane. These accounts say she was devoted to Shiva from childhood and chose Chennamallikarjuna, the form of Shiva worshipped at Srisailam, as her only husband. Some hagiographies say a local ruler named Kaushika wanted to marry her and that she left him; others say she never married. Scholars treat these episodes as tradition.
She left home and travelled as a wandering devotee, and her vachanas say she gave up clothing as well, covering herself only with her hair. She came to Kalyana, where devotees gathered around Basavanna. The Shunyasampadane describes Allama Prabhu questioning her at length before the gathering accepted her; she was then called Akka, "elder sister". She later left Kalyana for Srisailam, in today's Andhra Pradesh, and tradition says she ended her life in union with Shiva at Kadali, in the forest there, while still young.
Her vachanas
Like the other Lingayat saints, she wrote vachanas, short poems in everyday Kannada, each ending with her signature, Chennamallikarjuna. About 350 are attributed to her. Many are love poems to Shiva as her lord and husband. Others answer people who mocked her for wandering without clothes or family, rejecting shame and social rules in the name of devotion.
A selection is translated in A. K. Ramanujan's Speaking of Siva (Penguin, 1973), which places her beside Basavanna, Allama Prabhu and Devara Dasimayya. Later translators, among them Vinaya Chaitanya in Songs for Siva (2005), have published fuller selections. We give references here rather than quoting the translations.
Akka Mahadevi and the Lingayat question
Akka Mahadevi belonged to the movement around Basavanna that is now called Lingayat or Virashaiva. Many Lingayat organisations say that Lingayatism is a separate religion founded by Basavanna, while Virashaiva organisations generally see it as a Shaiva tradition within Hinduism. In 2018 the Karnataka government asked the Union government to recognise Lingayats as a religious minority, and the Union government declined. Our Basavanna page sets out this debate. HinduTone includes Akka Mahadevi in its Famous Hindus section because Hindus widely honour her, especially in Karnataka; that is not a judgement on the debate.
Legacy
She is counted among the first women poets in Kannada literature. Karnataka has honoured her in several ways: the Karnataka State Women's University in Vijayapura was renamed Karnataka State Akkamahadevi Women's University in her honour. Her vachanas are still sung in Karnataka and are read worldwide as women's devotional poetry.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Akka Mahadevi?
A 12th-century Kannada poet and devotee of Shiva, a member of Basavanna's circle at Kalyana, remembered as one of the first women poets in Kannada.
What is Chennamallikarjuna?
Her name for Shiva, meaning "Mallikarjuna, the beautiful". It is the signature at the end of each of her vachanas, and refers to the Shiva of Srisailam.
Where was Akka Mahadevi born?
At Udutadi, near Shikaripura in Shivamogga district, Karnataka.
How many vachanas did Akka Mahadevi write?
About 350 are attributed to her.
Where did Akka Mahadevi die?
Tradition says at Kadali, in the forests near Srisailam.
Sources
- A. K. Ramanujan (trans.), Speaking of Siva (Penguin Classics, 1973): introduction and Mahadeviyakka's vachanas.
- Vinaya Chaitanya (trans.), Songs for Siva: Vacanas of Akka Mahadevi (AltaMira Press, 2005).
- Sahapedia, "The Vachanas of Akkamahadevi".
- Onmanorama (19 March 2018) and The News Minute (December 2018) on the Lingayat minority-status proposal and the Union government's decision.
Last reviewed: 12 November 2026.
Related: Famous Hindus · Basavanna · The Nayanars · Andal
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