Madhwa Brahmins
Madhva Brahmins or Madhvas, are Hindu Brahmin communities in India, who follow the Dvaita philosophy profounded by Madhvacharya. They are also called as Sadh-Vaishnavas, since they are followers of Sadh Vaishnavism. They are found mostly in the Indian states of Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh.
History
The Madhwa community traces its philosophical origins to Madhvacharya, the first said Vaishnava acharya, who lived around 13th century. The Ashta Mathas of Udupi were established by Madhvacharya by his disciples.Other Acharya's who established mathas after Madhvacharya include Padmanabha Tirtha, Naraharitirtha, Akshobhya Tirtha, Jayatirtha, Sripadaraja, Vyasatirtha, Vadiraja Tirtha, Vijayendra Tirtha, Raghavendra Tirtha.
The affiliations of the Madhwa philosophy extended in the form of temples and monasteries from Udupi in the south to Dwaraka in the North India.
The town of Udupi is famous for the Sri Krishna temple of 13th century. The Madhwas believe that the human soul is saved by the grace of God and God bestows on true devotees. Devotional worship is central to the lives of madhwas.
Occupations
During the rule of Qutb shahis of Golkonda in 17th century, several Deshastha Madhva Brahmins held high administrative positions such as Deshmukh, Deshpande, Majumdar, Mannavar etc. in the districts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana States.Demographics
In Karnataka, the Brahmin communities who follow the Dvaita philosophy are the Deshastha Brahmins, Shivalli Brahmins, Koteshwara Brahmins, Badaganadu Brahmins, Aravelu Brahmins, Kannada Kamme, Uluchukamme Brahmins, Aravathuvokkalu Brahmins. In Tamil Nadu, the Brahmin communities who follow Madhvacharya's philosophy are Deshasthas, Aruvanththuvakkalu, Badaganadus, Aruvela Brahmins, Pennaththurar Brahmins, Prathamasaki Brahmins, Badaga Brahmins. In Bihar, the Gayawal Brahmins are followers of Dvaita philosophy. In Goa, there are Gaud Saraswat Brahmins who are followers of Dvaita philosophy. Salcete is a stronghold of Madhwa Saraswats there and are staunch devotees of Vishnu.In Karnataka, coastal Maharashtra and Goa there is a sect. among Daivadnya Brahmins who follow Madhvacharya's Dvaita philosophy.
In Kerala, there are Embranthiris who follow Dvaita Vedanta of Madhvacharya. There are also other sections of Brahmins who follow Madhva Sampradaya especially in the Central Kerala region.
Society and culture
Language
The majority of Madhwas speak Kannada, one of the major languages of the mainly southern Dravidian languages group. The Madhwa Brahmins speak a variety of Kannada that borders on a literary dialect. Even in the non-Kannada states Madhwas speak Kannada in their homes but with outsiders they speak the native language of that state. The Marathi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil speaking Madhva Brahmins are Deshastha Madhva Brahmins, who are spread in Maharashtra and throughout South India. The Tulu speaking Madhva brahmins are Shivalli Madhva Brahmins. They are present in the coastal districts of Udupi, Dakshina Kannada of present day Karnataka state, Kasargod and other parts of Kerala state. The Konkani speaking Madhva Brahmins are Gaud Saraswat Madhva Brahmins, who are spread throughout the Coastal Karnataka, Goa and Kerala. The Bihari, Magahi and Hindi speaking Madhva Brahmins are Gayawal Brahmins, who are spread throughout the Gaya and Benares.The Shivalli Madhvas and Deshastha Madhvas are more sought after for priestly services by other communities. The Gaud Saraswat Madhvas are a religiously self-contained community. There are numerous cultural difference between these three subdivisions.
Diet
Madhwa Brahmins are pure vegetarian and their staple cereals are rice and wheat.Udupi cuisine is a synonymous name to Madhwa cuisine.It is a major vegetarian cuisine of Karnataka, which includes a combination of cereals, pulses, vegetables and spices.Typical Madhwa cuisine consists of Saaru, Huli, Gojju and Anna. Gojju is generally a beloved dish to entire Madhwa community.
In sweets, Hayagreeva is a very common sweet dish made in most Madhwa Brahmin homes, made using Bengal gram with jaggery and coconut.
Social and political issues
In 2017, Government of Karnataka took stand against superstition and planned to Ban all evil practices including Black Magic by introducing The Karnataka Prevention and Eradication of Inhuman Evil Practices and Black Magic Bill, 2017 in assembly.After much debate, practices like 'Mudradharane' by Madhwa Brahmins have been exempted. As per this practice, 'Mudras' usually made of gold or copper are heated on the coal fire and stamped on the body.Notable people
- Dewan Purnaiah - the Dewan of Mysore Kingdom under three rulers Hyder Ali, Tipu Sultan and Wadiyar. He is also founder of Yelandur estate
- Kanchi Krishnaswamy Rao - Diwan of Travancore from 1898–1904.
- P. N. Krishnamurti - Dewan of Mysore state and 5th Jagirdar of Yelandur estate.
- Kumara Vyasa - an influential and classical, early 15th century poet in the Kannada language. His pen name is a tribute to his magnum opus, a rendering of the Mahabharata in Kannada.
- Conjeevaram Hayavadana Rao - an Indian historian, museologist, anthropologist, economist and polyglot. He was a member of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Indian Historical Records Commission and a fellow of the Royal Society of Economics.
- Bhimsen Joshi - an Indian singer from Karnataka in the Hindustani classical tradition and Bharat Ratna and Padma Shri awardee.
- T. R. Ramachandran - a Tamil actor and comedian who acted in lead and supportive roles from 1940s to the 1960s.
- Krishna Kumari - a leading Telugu actress of the 1960s and 1980s.
- Kashinath Hathwara - an Indian actor and filmmaker who primarily worked in Kannada films.
- Aluru Venkata Rao - an Indian revolutionary, historian, writer and journalist.
- Palladam Sanjiva Rao - an Indian flautist and carnatic musician.
- V. K. R. Varadaraja Rao - - an Indian economist, politician and educator.
- U. R. Ananthamurthy - a contemporary writer and critic in the Kannada language;Winner of Jnanpith Award and Padma Bhushan.
- Shikaripura Ranganatha Rao - an Indian archaeologist who led teams credited with the discovery of a number of Harappan sites including the port city Lothal and Bet Dwarka in Gujarat.
- Veene Sheshanna - an exponent of the Veena, an Indian string instrument, which he played in the classical Carnatic music style. He was a concert musician at the court of the princely state of Mysore.
- Sakha Rama Rao - an Indian musician credited with having re-introduced the south Indian chitravina to the concert scene.
- Purandara Dasa - a Haridasa, who is widely referred to as the Pitamaha of Carnatic Music.
- Navaratna Rama Rao - an Indian writer and scholar from Karnataka.
- Vyasatirtha - a Dvaita saint and Rajaguru of Krishnadevaraya.
- Vadiraja Tirtha - a Dvaita philosopher, poet and mystic. He was pontiff of Sodhe mutt.
- Satyadharma Tirtha - a scholar, saint and mystic of Dvaita order of Vedanta; 28th pontiff of Uttaradi Matha