ABSTRACT
Śivakōṭyācārya’s Vaḍḍārādhane (Veneration to the Elders) is the earliest extant prose work in Kannada language written by Śivakōṭyācārya during 940 CE. This classical text reflects the oral tradition of narrating stories of legendary religious ascetics based on the gāhās which were taken from Bhagavatī Ārādhanā. This is a peculiar but commendable way of presenting stories of the senior and respectable ascetics combining oral and written styles of narration. Thus,
Vaḍḍārādhane stands as an excellent example for an ancient classical text, fit for linguistic and cultural study. Each story in this collection, is wonderful in its own way. Generally, religious stories do not evoke interest but present a series of dull events. However, this text is full of incidents depicting human values, ways of wicked people, self-imposed vows, violence and non-violence and human life with all types of experiences.
Another distinguishing feature of Vaḍḍārādhane is that there is not a whiff of intolerance towards other religions or faiths or sects and this is most remarkable when we recall that most of our early writings indulge in belittling doctrines of faiths other than their own. This positive attitude, in a sense, makes this religious text absolutely liberal and almost secular.
Vaḍḍārādhane is now rendered into contemporary English by a team of writers and linguists.
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