Who among the following was not a court poet of king Krishnadevaraya?
- (a)Timmana
- (b)Dhurjati
- (c)Mallana
- (d)Siddheshvara
Correct — D, Siddheshvara. The eight Telugu poets remembered as the Ashtadiggajas of Krishnadevaraya's court are Allasani Peddana, Nandi Thimmana, Madayyagari Mallana, Dhurjati, Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu, Pingali Surana, Ramarajabhushanudu, also called Battumurthy, and Tenali Ramakrishna. Timmana, Dhurjati and Mallana in options (a), (b) and (c) are all on that list. Siddheshvara is not, and the question asks for the one who was not a court poet, so he is the answer.
- (a)Timmana — Nandi Thimmana was one of the eight, remembered for the Parijatapaharanamu.
- (b)Dhurjati — Dhurjati was one of the eight, a Saiva poet associated with the Kalahasti temple.
- (c)Mallana — Madayyagari Mallana was one of the eight, author of the Rajasekhara Charitramu.
Krishnadevaraya, who ruled Vijayanagara from 1509 to 1529, presided over the golden age of Telugu literature. Eight poets of his court were later remembered as the Ashtadiggajas, the eight elephants that hold up the quarters of the world. The king himself composed the Telugu epic Amuktamalyada, and Allasani Peddana, the senior figure among the eight, carried the title Andhra Kavita Pitamaha.
This is a list question, and the safest way to hold it is by the eight names rather than by trying to reason about who sounds likely. The examiner has taken three genuine names from the list and inserted one plausible-sounding intruder, so any candidate who knows even five or six of the eight will spot that Siddheshvara does not belong. Negative phrasing is the second thing to watch — the stem asks who was not a court poet, so the three familiar names are the wrong answers here.
- The Ashtadiggajas were Allasani Peddana, Nandi Thimmana, Madayyagari Mallana, Dhurjati, Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu, Pingali Surana, Ramarajabhushanudu and Tenali Ramakrishna.
- Krishnadevaraya reigned from 1509 to 1529 and himself composed the Telugu poem Amuktamalyada.
- Allasani Peddana was known as the Andhra Kavita Pitamaha, the grandsire of Telugu poetry.
- Foreign travellers Domingo Paes and Fernao Nuniz visited Vijayanagara in this period and left accounts of the capital.
- Missing the word 'not' in the stem and choosing one of the three genuine poets.
- Confusing Ramarajabhushanudu, also called Battumurthy, with Bhattoji Dikshita or with other similarly named scholars.
- Assuming Tenali Ramakrishna was only a court jester of folklore; he was one of the eight poets.
Asked as a negative list item — three names from a known set of eight, and one outsider.
Who of the following rulers of medieval India gave permission to the Portuguese to build a fort at Bhatkal?
- (a) Krishnadevaraya
- (b) Narasimha Saluva
- (c) Muhammad Shah III
- (d) Yusuf Adil Shah
Answer(a) Krishnadevaraya
The same ruler in the same examination year, tested on policy rather than patronage. Between the two you get both halves of Krishnadevaraya — the Portuguese dealings on the west coast and the literary court at Hampi.
Which one of the following statements regarding King Krishnadevaraya is NOT correct ?
- (a) He was a great scholar of Telugu and Sanskrit
- (b) Foreign travellers Paes and Nuniz visited his court
- (c) Barbosa praised him for the great justice and equity prevailing in his empire
- (d) He wrote his magnum opus Amuktamalyada in Sanskrit
Answer(d) He wrote his magnum opus Amuktamalyada in Sanskrit
Same negative phrasing, same king. It turns on the language of the Amuktamalyada, which is Telugu and not Sanskrit — a reminder that with Krishnadevaraya the examiner usually tests a small factual detail hidden inside a plausible sentence.
CDS_GK_2022_I_Q542022Which one of the following works was composed by Krishnadevaraya on statecraft in Telugu?
- (a) Amuktamalyada
- (b) Jambavati Kalyanam
- (c) Rayavachakamu
- (d) Satyavadu Parinaya
Answer(a) Amuktamalyada
Same court, asked about the king's own writing instead of his poets'. Learn the Amuktamalyada alongside the eight names and the whole Vijayanagara literary block is covered.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The eight celebrated Telugu poets at Krishnadevaraya's court are collectively known as
- (a)Navaratnas
- (b)Ashtadiggajas
- (c)Ashtapradhan
- (d)Panchatantra
Answer(b) Ashtadiggajas — the eight elephants said to hold up the quarters of the world.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which work on statecraft and devotion was composed in Telugu by Krishnadevaraya himself?
- (a)Manucharitramu
- (b)Amuktamalyada
- (c)Parijatapaharanamu
- (d)Rayavachakamu
Answer(b) Amuktamalyada — the Manucharitramu is Peddana's and the Parijatapaharanamu is Nandi Thimmana's.