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Painting, c. 1820 – c. 1825, portrays Shiva intervening to prevent Kannappa from sacrificing his eye.

In South Indian traditions, Kannappa is a devotee of the Hindu god Shiva.^[1] His story is closely connected with the Srikalahasteeswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh. He is a saint in the Tamil Shaiva tradition.

Originally a hunter, Kannappa began offering devotion to a Shiva Lingam, to which he offered his own eyes. Before he could sacrifice both eyes, Shiva appeared and stopped him.^[2]^[3]

Life and legend

Kannappa was born in present-day Andhra Pradesh as Thinna^[1]^[4] into a hunter family from the Chenchu^[5] His birthplace is often associated with Uduppura near Sri Kalahasti.^[6]^[7]

Kannappa's devotion to Shiva began when he discovered the vayu linga (embodiment of air) while hunting in the forest. Unaware of traditional rituals, he offered the aniconic representation of Shiva whatever he could, including water from his mouth and meat from his hunts. These acts, while unconventional, were accepted by Shiva due to the hunter's sincerity and pure heart.^[8]^[9] Kannappa once noticed that the lingam was bleeding from one of its eyes. Without hesitation, Kannappa plucked out one of his own eyes and placed it on the lingam to stop the bleeding. When the other eye of the lingam began to bleed, Kannappa prepared to offer his remaining eye. To ensure he could correctly place his eye, he marked the spot with his foot. Moved by this act of devotion, Shiva appeared and stopped him, restoring his sight and granting him liberation.^[10] The vayu linga is worshipped at the Srikalahasteeswara temple in Andhra Pradesh.

Commemoration

Statue of Kannappa at Tanjore Museum, Thanjavur

The story of Kannappa's devotion is recounted in several literary works, including the Kalahastisvara Satakamu by Dhurjati (16th century),^[11] the Basava Puranam (13th century) in Telugu, and the Ragalegalu by Harihara (12th century) in Kannada.^[12]

In Tamil Shaivism, Kannappa is venerated for his devotion, and his story is documented in the Periya Puranam, a 12th-century Tamil hagiography of the 63 Nayanars,^[13] in which he is also described as a reincarnation of Arjuna from the Mahabharata.^{[citation needed]} Kannappa is portrayed, along with other devotees, in the thousand-pillar corridor of the Meenakshi temple in Madurai.^[14]

The scene of Kannappa's sacrifice is portrayed in Shaiva temple pillar reliefs of early Vijayanagara.^[15]

Depictions in film


Year	Title	Language	Character played by	Notes
1938	Kannappa Nayanar	Tamil	V. N. Sundaram	^[16]
1954	Bedara Kannappa	Kannada	Dr. Rajkumar
1954	Kalahasti Mahatyam	Telugu	Dr. Rajkumar
1955	Shiv Bhakta	Hindi	Shahu Modak
1976	Bhakta Kannappa	Telugu	Krishnam Raju
1988	Shiva Mecchida Kannappa	Kannada	Shiva Rajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar (younger version)
2025	Kannappa	Telugu	Vishnu Manchu	^[17]

References

^ ^a ^b M. Rama Rao (1970). Mohd. Abdul Waheed Khan (ed.). Select Andhra Temples. p. 16. Tinna or Kaņņappa, a great devotee of this god, occupies a prominent place in the galaxy of Saiva devotees and his name is familiarly known all over south India.
^ Michell, George (2013). Southern India: A Guide to Monuments Sites & Museums. Roli Books Private Limited. ISBN 978-81-7436-903-1.
^ E, Desingu Setty (1990). The Veduvar of South India: Society and Religion. Inter-India Publications. ISBN 81-2100-237-0.
^ Dehejia, Vidya. Slaves of the Lord: The Path of the Tamil Saints. Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, 1988. ISBN: 9788121503071.
^ M. Rama Rao (1970). Mohd. Abdul Waheed Khan (ed.). Select Andhra Temples. p. 29. There was, in Pottapinādu; a village named Vadumūru, inhabited by a number of Chenchus. Its chief was Natha-nàtha. He begot by his wife, Tande, a son, named Tinna. Tinna grew into a fine youth, skilled in archery and interested in hunting.
^ Sekkizhar, Periya Puranam, Tamil Text Society, ISBN: 978-8192880789.
^ Nilakanta Sastri, The Colas, University of Madras, 1935.
^ Peterson, Indira V. Design and Rhetoric in a Sanskrit Court Epic: The Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi. State University of New York Press, 2003. ISBN: 978-0791457386.
^ Zvelebil, Kamil. Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature. BRILL, 1992. ISBN: 978-9004093652.
^ Sekkizhar, Periya Puranam, Tamil Text Society, ISBN: 978-8192880789.
^ Heifetz, Hank; Narayana Rao, Velcheru (1987). For the Lord of the animals ; poems from the Telugu: the Kāḷahastīśvara śatakamu of Dhūrjaṭi. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 9780520056695.
^ Ben-Herut, Gil (2018). Śiva's saints: the origins of devotion in Kannada according to Harihara's Ragaḷegaḷu. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 128. ISBN 978-0190878849.
^ Vidya Dehejia, Slaves of the Lord: The Path of the Tamil Saints, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, 1988, ISBN: 9788121503071.
^ S., Rajagopal & Praiya, R. (2023). THOUSAND PILLAR MANDAPA IN MEENAKSHI SUNDARESWARAR TEMPLE, MADURAI, TAMILNADU - A STUDY. XCVI. 66-72.
^ Dallapiccola, Anna L.; Verghese, Anila (1998). Sculpture at Vijayanagara: iconography and style. New Delhi: Manohar Publishers & Distributors for American Institute of Indian Studies. p. 76. ISBN 9788173042324.
^ FilmiClub. "Kannappa Nayanar (1938)". FilmiClub. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
^ Ramachandran, Naman (23 November 2023). "'Lord of the Rings' Vision Revealed by Vishnu Manchu for 'Kannappa,' Featuring Prabhas, Mohanlal and Shiva Rajkumar (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 23 November 2023.