D. V. Gundappa

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D. V. Gundappa bigraphy, stories - Philosophers

D. V. Gundappa : biography

17 March 1887 – October 7, 1975

Devanahalli Venkataramanaiah Gundappa, popularly known as DVG, was a Kannada writer and philosopher. He is best known for Manku Thimmana Kagga, a collection of verses.

Awards and honours

Gundappa was awarded Padmabhushan by the Government of India in 1974. The State of Karnataka under Chief Minister Sri Veerandra Patil honored him for his services to Kannada literature in 1970 at Ravindra Kalkshetra, Bengaluru and awarded a purse of Rs 90,000. DVG donated the entire award money to found the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA) located in Bull Temple Road, Basavanagudi, India. India Post issued a commemorative stamp of Dr. Gundappa in 1988.

In 2003, a statue was erected to honor DVG in Bugle Rock Park, Basavanagudi.

Early life

DVG was born in 1887 in Mulbagal/Mulabagilu taluk of Kolar district in the Indian state of Karnataka. He completed his primary school education in Kannada in 1898. He also leasrned English and Sanskrit as a result of his own interest. Later he continued his education in Mysore from the Maharaja high school. Despite failing to pass the matriculation exam (10th Standard) and discontinuing his formal education after that, his essays were selected as chapters for Graduation text books and as subjects of research theses. He worked in these areas:

  • Veda, Vedanta, BrahmaSutra, DharmaSutra
  • Sanskrit, Kannada, and other Indian languages.
  • Political situation of Karnataka
  • Ramayana and Mahabharata
  • Engineering (was assistant of Sir. M. Vishveshwaraiah, who engineered the K.R.S Dam, which was the largest Dam in Asia at that time)
  • Freedom fighters (Had been associated with Mahatma Gandhi and Lokamanya Tilak)
  • Western Literature (has translated several Shakespeare plays and other Greek plays to Kannada)
  • Islamic literature (Umarana osage, a translation of poems of Omar Khayyam in Kannada)

He was closely associated with the Gokale institute of Public Affairs, Bangalore. Sri Nittoor Srinivasa Rao, The then Chief Justice of Karnataka, Sri Masti Venkatesa Iyengar, V.T.Srinivasan, the Principal of Vijaya College, Bangalore were some of his close associates.

DVG died on 7 October 1975. Chief Minister and several minsters of the state of Karnataka came to pay their last respects at his residence in Nagasandra road (now called DVG Road) in Basavanagudi.

Mankuthimmana Kagga

D. V. G wrote a sequel to Mankuthimmana Kagga, known as Marula Muniyana Kagga. He also wrote Srimad BhagavadGeeta Tatparya, also known as Jeevana Dharma Yoga, which has received the Kendra Sahitya Academy award.

Publications

Poetry

  • Kavite
  • Nivedana
  • Umarana Osage
  • Mankuthimmana Kagga
  • Marula Muniyana Kagga
  • Shri Rama PareekShaNaM
  • Antahpura Geete
  • Geetha Shaakuntala

Essays

  1. Jeevana saundarya mattu saahitya
  2. Saahitya Shakti
  3. Samskruti
  4. Baaligondu Nambike
  5. Gnapaka chitra shaale

Drama (ನಾಟಕ)

  1. Vidhyaranya Vijaya
  2. Jack ked
  3. Macbeth
  4. Kanakaaluka
  5. Tilottamey

Others

  1. Purushasookta
  2. Devaru
  3. Rutha, Satya mattu Dharma
  4. Eshavasya Upanishat
  5. Halavu mahaneeyaru
  6. Mysorina Divanaru
  7. Kalopasakaru