Yerrapragada
Errana or Errapregada (Telugu: ఎర్రాప్రగడ) was a Telugu poet in the court of King Prolaya Vema Reddy (1325–1353), the founder of the Reddy dynasty (1325–1424) of Kondaveedu which successfully resisted the Delhi sultanate invasion of peninsular India and who ruled the region spanning what would emerge as the Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, and Kurnool districts of the modern state of Andhra Pradesh. Errana was also known as Yellapregada or Errapregada. He was honored with the title Prabandha Parameshwara ("Supreme Lord of Prabandha") and Shambudasusu.[1]
Birth and Ancestors
Errana was born in Gudlur village in Pakanadu (presently Prakasam district) and lived in Chadalawada, Guntur district. He belonged to the Shrivatsa gotram and Apastambha sutram of the Brahmin caste. His father was Surana and mother was Potamma. His grandfather was Errapotana whose name was given to him and his grandmother was Perama. His great-grandparents were Bolana and Polama and his great-great-grandfather was Bhimana. His family religion was Aradhya Shaivism. His teacher was Srisankaraswamy, an orthodox Shaiva. Although Errana was a devotee of Lord Shiva and his family practiced the Shaivite tradition, he also worshipped Lord Vishnu.
Contributions
The Sanskrit Mahabharata was translated into Telugu over a period of several centuries (from the 11th to 14th centuries CE). Errana was one of the kavitrayam ("Trinity of Poets") who rendered the Mahabharatam from Sanskrit into Telugu. The other two poets were Nannaya and Tikkana of the Andhra Mahabharatam ("Andhra Mahabharat"). Tikkana translated the remaining books starting from the 4th, leaving the third book titled the Aranya Parvamu ("Book of the Forest") half-finished, for Errana to complete. Tikkana did not touch this part because it was considered to be inauspicious to translate this book, which was left half-finished by Nannaya. Errana started the remaining half of the Aranya Parvamu with the style of Nannaya and ended it with the style of Tikkana as a bridge between the parts translated by Nannaya and Tikkana. Just like Nannaya and Tikkana, he used half Sanskrit and half Telugu in his Telugu translation of the Sanskrit Mahabharat. He translated the Harivamsamu and Ramayanamu from Sanskrit, dedicating both works to the founder of the Reddy Dynasty, King Prolaya Vemareddy.
Nrisimhapuranamu was his own independent work. Errana received his inspiration for the Nrisimhapuranam from his grandfather Errapotana. According to tradition, one day when Errana was meditating, his grandfather appeared and advised him to write the Narisimhapuranamu. This work was based on the Brahmandapuranamu and the Vishnupuranamu.
According to the Vishnupuranamu, King Hiranyakasyapa was the powerful sovereign of Bharatavarsha (the mythological country that encompassed the entire Indian subcontinent) and was a contemporary of King Indra, the sovereign of Ilavritavarsha, also known as Swarga, which was located in the North of India. The subjects of Bharatavarsha were described as Manavas ("descendants of Manu"; "humans"). The subjects of King Indra were described as Devatas. King Hiranyakasyapa fought a war with King Indra and, having emerged victorious, occupied Ilavritavarsha. Under the rule of King Hiranyakasyapa, most of the Devatas either "converted to" or disguised themselves as Manavas for the fear of King Hiranyakasyapa. Another contemporary of King Hiranyakasyapa was Lord Vishnu, who ruled the land beyond Ilavritavarsha in the Kṣīra Sāgara (the "Sea of Milk").