Early History
Basavanna was a social reformer and philosopher who was mainly responsible for establishing the Lingayat tradition in the 12th century. He rebelled against the rigid practices of the caste system then prevalent in orthodox Hindu society, and eventually began expounding his own philosophy with a casteless society at its core. His egalitarian philosophy and reform movement attracted large numbers of people. Saints like Allama Prabhu, Akka Mahadevi and Channabasavanna also played pivotal roles in the growth of the Lingayat tradition.
Basavanna lived and taught in the northern part of what is now Karnataka. This movement found its roots during the brief rule of the southern Kalachuri dynasty in those parts of the state. Like Martin Luther who came nearly three hundred years after him, Basavanna preached that the devotion of people to God was a direct relationship and did not need the intervention of the priestly class. Temple building is generally not practised among Lingayats.
Read more about this topic: Lingayatism
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or history:
“It was common practice for me to take my children with me whenever I went shopping, out for a walk in a white neighborhood, or just felt like going about in a white world. The reason was simple enough: if a black man is alone or with other black men, he is a threat to whites. But if he is with children, then he is harmless, adorable.”
—Gerald Early (20th century)
“No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now.”
—Richard M. Nixon (b. 1913)