Bhaktamal | Annamacharya
Real Name - Annamayya Pada Kavitha Pitaamahudu
Other Names - Tallapaka Annamacharya
Worshiped Deity - Lord Venkateswara
Guru - Adivan Sathakopa Yatheendra
Born - 9 May 1408
Place of Birth - Tallapaka village, present-day Andhra Pradesh
Died - 4th April 1503
Marital Status - Married
Father - Narayana Suri
Mother - Lakkamamba
Wife - Akkamma
Language - Telugu, Sanskrit
Famous - Spiritual Saint, Poet
Tallapaka Annamacharya, known as Annamayya, was a 15th-century Telugu saint, poet, and composer devoted to Lord Venkateswara of Tirumala. He is renowned primarily for composing thousands of devotional songs (*sankirtanas*) dedicated to Venkateswara.
Annamacharya’s contribution
Annamacharya is widely regarded as one of the earliest and greatest composers of Telugu devotional music. Annamayya composed 32,000 sankirtanas in Telugu and Sanskrit. Today, approximately 14,000 of them survive, preserved on copper plates in the Sankirtana Bhandaram (treasury) of the Tirumala temple. Read about
MS Subhalakshmi.
His compositions cover:
- Devotion and surrender to Venkateswara
- Spiritual philosophy
- Love and devotion expressed through madhura bhakti
- Social and ethical themes
- Descriptions of Tirumala and the glory of Lord Venkateswara
Some of the famous works include Brahmam Okate, by Jo Achyutananda, Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnu Katha, and Adigo Alladigo Srihari Vasamu.
Legacy of Annamacharya
Annamacharya's descendants preserved his compositions, many of which were rediscovered centuries later. The
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) has played a major role in researching, publishing, and popularizing his works. If you'd like, I can also give you Annamacharya's life story, his 10 most famous keerthanas with meanings, or his contribution to Carnatic music. Read about
Vishnu Sahasranam.