12 Facts About Amoghavarsha

Amoghavarsha wrote the Kavirajamarga, the earliest extant literary work in Kannada, and Prashnottara Ratnamalika, a religious work in Sanskrit.

Amoghavarsha is said to have built the imperial capital city to "match that of Lord Indra".

Amoghavarsha seems to have entertained the highest admiration for the language, literature and culture of the Kannada people as testified to in the text Kavirajamarga.

Amoghavarsha I was born in 800 CE in Sribhavan on the banks of the river Narmada during the return journey of his father, Emperor Govinda III, from his successful campaigns in northern India.

Amoghavarsha gave in marriage his daughter, Chandrabbalabbe, to the Western Ganga King Butuga I, and another daughter, Revakanimmadi, to prince Ereganga.

Amoghavarsha I killed Vishnuvardhana V in 846 but continued a friendly relationship with the next Eastern Chalukya ruler Gunaga Vijayaditya III, and suppressed the recalcitrant Alupas of South Canara under prince Vimaladitya in 870.

Likewise, Amoghavarsha I maintained friendly interactions with the Pallava who were busy keeping the Pandyas at bay.

Amoghavarsha's reign lasted until 877 CE after which he had voluntarily retired from his imperial throne.

Amoghavarsha I preferred to remain friendly with all his neighbours and feudatories and avoided taking an aggressive posture against them.

Amoghavarsha deeply cared for his subjects and once when a calamity threatened to harm them, he offered his finger as a sacrifice to the goddess Mahalakshmi at Kolhapur.

Proof for this comes from the writing, Mahapurana by Gunabhadra in which the author states "blissful for the world is the existence of Jinasenacharya, by bowing to whom Amoghavarsha Nrupathunga considered himself to be purified".

Amoghavarsha's own writing Kavirajamarga is a landmark literary work in the Kannada language and became a guide book for future poets and scholars for centuries to come.