Lingayat

Lingayat
Name	Lingayat
Caption	Basavanna
Scripture	Vachana literature
Founder	Basavanna
Founded in	12th century CE
Region	Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala
Languages	Kannada, Marathi, Telugu, Sanskrit

Lingayat

Lingayat is a socio-religious community originating in medieval South India associated with devotional worship of a personal Shiva deity represented by a small icon called Ishtalinga. Emerging amid contemporaneous currents linked to figures such as Basavanna, Allama Prabhu, Akka Mahadevi, Channabasavanna and institutions like the Anubhava Mantapa, Lingayat developed distinctive theology, literature, and social reforms influencing regions governed by the Hoysalas, Kalyani Chalukyas, Seuna (Yadava) dynasty and later interacting with polities including the Vijayanagara Empire and the Mughal Empire.

Overview and Beliefs

The community centers on personal devotion to a wearable Ishtalinga symbolizing Shiva manifested through the tradition of Shaivism and the medieval reform movement led by activists such as Basavanna and Allama Prabhu. Core doctrines emphasize direct experience of the divine, rejection of Brahmanical hierarchy upheld by families like the Havyaka and ritual specialists from lineages such as Smarta Brahmins, and ethical precepts articulated by mystics including Akka Mahadevi. The theological corpus integrates concepts from Advaita Vedanta debates involving thinkers like Adi Shankaracharya and engages with devotional currents from figures such as Ramanuja and Madhvacharya. Institutional life historically intersected with royal patrons like Vishnuvardhana and reformist movements comparable to Bhakti movement leaders including Kabir, Tulsidas, and Namdev.

History and Origins

Origins trace to 12th-century Karnataka during the reigns of dynasties such as the Kalachuris of Kalyani and the Hoysalas, emerging around poet-philosophers in urban centers like Kalyana, Basavakalyan, Belagavi and Bijapur. Foundational assemblies such as the Anubhava Mantapa convened thinkers including Basavanna, Allama Prabhu, Siddharama, and Channabasavanna who produced vachanas and promoted reforms opposing practices endorsed in texts like the Manusmriti and ritual systems linked to communities like the Smarta and Dvaita adherents. Over centuries Lingayat communities interacted with colonial administrations such as the British East India Company and the British Raj, adapting under pressures from missionaries like William Carey and reformers such as Raja Ram Mohan Roy while engaging in legal petitions before institutions like the Privy Council.

Scriptures and Literature

Primary literature consists of vachanas composed in Kannada by poets including Basavanna, Allama Prabhu, Akka Mahadevi, Channabasavanna, Devara Dasimayya and Siddharama. Canonical compilations and commentaries include works by later scholars such as Harihara, Raghavanka, Janna and modern editors like M. M. Kalburgi and G. S. Shivarudrappa. Textual engagement extends to regional anthologies alongside counterparts like the devotional compositions of Tukaram, Namdev, Eknath and the Telugu poets Potana and Annamacharya. Scholarly debate has involved historians and philologists such as N. K. Wagle, S. R. Ganesh, R. S. Mugali and institutions including the Karnataka University, University of Mysore and the National Institute of Advanced Studies.

Practices and Rituals

Central ritual practice is the initiation and daily wearing of the Ishtalinga, administered by community leaders traceable to lineages such as the Siddhesvara priests and contemporaries like Jangama mendicants. Ritual life includes rites performed at shrines such as Gadag temples and festivals celebrated at sites like Basavana Bagevadi, Kudalasangama and Ulavi—places associated with saints including Chokhamela and Mallinath. Practices integrate elements found in regional traditions like Kannada Bhakti and involve liturgical and musical forms comparable to Haridasa and Vachana singers performing on instruments akin to those used by Varkari pilgrims. Funeral and marriage customs have distinctive forms shaped by reformist edicts from leaders such as Basavanna and codified in community organizations like the Jangama Sangha.

Social Structure and Institutions

Historically Lingayat social organization included hereditary occupational groups that negotiated status vis-à-vis castes such as the Kuruba, Banajiga, Mudaliar and communities like the Vokkaliga. Institutions such as the Anubhava Mantapa served as proto-parliamentary forums; later bodies included the Karnataka Lingayat Education (KLE) Society, All India Lingayat Federation and various mathas founded by saints and patrons linked to rulers like Bijjala II. Prominent mathas and mutts with historical figures include establishments associated with Siddarama Swami, Shivayogi, Tukaram-era lineages, and modern trusts like the Veerashaiva Basava Samithi. Educational and charitable initiatives relate to universities such as the Rashtrakavi Kuvempu University and organizations like the Karnataka State Open University.

Modern Developments and Politics

In the 19th–21st centuries Lingayat identity became a focus in debates over religious classification, legal recognition, and political representation involving entities such as the Government of Karnataka, the Supreme Court of India, the Karnataka High Court and political parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party, Indian National Congress and Janata Dal (Secular). Key personalities in contemporary movements include politicians such as B. S. Yediyurappa, social reformers like Basavalingaiah and scholars like M. N. Srinivas and Christopher Fuller. Contentious issues have involved attempts at separate religious status petitions before the Ministry of Home Affairs and legislative actions debated in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. Modern cultural production includes films featuring Lingayat figures, academic conferences at institutions like the Indian Institute of Science and publications by presses such as the Oxford University Press and HarperCollins India.

Category:Religions of India