The beginning of Kannada poetry is intertwined with the art of translation and rewriting. Pampa articulates the challenges inherent in this poetic pursuit, stating, “Kate Piridadodam Kateya Maigidaliyade Samastabharata manapoorvavagi pelda kabbigarilla” (“The story of the Mahabharata is huge; no poet has been able to retell this story concisely without harming its basic structure”). His perspective underscores the difficulty of preserving the structural integrity while transposing a narrative into another language.
Whether a lengthy tale should be condensed or a concise one expanded, is not just a deliberate process, but one imbued with significance. For the poetic tradition to endure and accommodate new layers of meaning, the size of poems must undergo alteration. The deliberate elimination of unnecessary and irrelevant elements, when condensing a larger narrative, or the addition of fresh perspectives and meanings when expanding a shorter one, becomes integral to this evolutionary process.
This intentional transformation is not confined to the realm of written poetry alone; it echoes through the oral tradition, where stories continuously contract or expand based on the storytellers’ discernment. In the folk context, the adaptability of stories is contingent upon the audience, who infuse their creativity to enhance the narrative’s presentation. Kannada poets were attentive to the Sanskrit Abhijat Kavya (classical Sanskrit poetry).
In ancient times, poetry went be.
