Religion inKarnataka has played a very important role in shaping modernIndian religions andphilosophy.
The three most important schools ofVedanta Hinduism,Advaita Vedanta,Vishishtadvaita andDvaita, blossomed in Karnataka. The DvaitaMadhvacharya was born in Karnataka. The AdvaitaAdi Shankara choseShringeri in Karnataka to establish the first of his fourmathas. The VishishtadvaitaRamanuja, considered a saint inSri Sampradaya, who fled persecution by theShaivaChola dynasty ofTamil Nadu, spent from 1098 to 1122 in Karnataka. He first lived in Tondanur and then moved toMelukote where theCheluvanarayana Swamy Temple and a well-organised matha were built. He was patronized byHoysalaVishnuvardhana.[2]Udupi, Shringeri,Gokarna and Melukote are well known places ofSanskrit andVedic learning.
In the 12th century, social reforms emerged in northern Karnataka as a protest against the rigidity of the prevailing social and caste system. Leading figures of the movement such asBasava,Akka Mahadevi andAllama Prabhu established theAnubhava Mantapa whereLingayatism was expounded. Nearly 29% population of Karnataka belongs toLingayat sect.
Karnataka played a very important role in shaping present day Indian religion and philosophy.Udupi,Sringeri,Gokarna andMelukote are well known places ofSanskrit learning andVedic learning.Shravanabelagola,Mudabidri,Karkala are famous for Jain history and monuments.
The great saintMadhvacharya (1238-1317 AD), proponent ofdvaita philosophy andRaghavendra Swami were born here.[citation needed]Adi Sankara, proponent ofadvaita found enlightenment inSringeri which became the first of fourmathas he established in India. Fearing persecution from the Tamil CholasRamanujacharya fled Tamil Nadu and came to Karnataka during the rule of theHoysala dynasty and preached his philosophy fromMelukote.[3]In the 12th century AD,Virashaivism spread from northern Karnataka across the Deccan. Many of its founders, such asBasavanna,Akka Mahadevi came from the region.It was here theJain religion got a warm welcome and enjoyed a glorious growth during the medieval period. It is also here where the current dayDzogchen Monastery and the Dhondeling Tibetan Refugee camps are set up and the Tibetans are very well absorbed in theKannadiga culture.
The Empires and Kingdoms that came to rule from Karnataka were prolific builders. TheBadamiChalukyas spawned theVesara style of architecture and experimented with several myriad styles with frequent intermixing ofNagara andDravida concepts. This period is the beginning of Hindu rock cut architecture, both in stand alone andcave temple idioms, numerous examples of which exist inPattadakal,Aihole andBadami - (Badami Cave Temples). Their successors, theRashtrakuta created master piece temples further favoringDravidian concepts. Most of their temples in Karnataka are scattered over northern Karnataka districts.TheGanga Dynasty ofTalakad built many Jaina monuments including the monolithic statue of Gomateshwara atShravanabelagola. TheWestern Chalukyas used theIn-between style, implying a bridge betweenChalukya -Rashtrakuta andHoysala styles, with the best temples of their style located in the central districts ofGadag district(Lakkundi,Dambal,Sudi,Lakshmeshwar,Gadag),Koppal district(Mahadeva Temple (Itagi),Kuknur),Haveri district (Galaganatha,Chaudayyadanapura,Haveri, Harlahalli,Hangal) andDharwad District (Annigeri,Kundgol,Tamboor,Chandramouleshwara Temple Unakal Hubli). It was during the reign of the Hoysalas that the temple architecture reached its epoch and gained recognition as an independent style called (Henry Ferguson, Percy Brown) owing to its many unique features. Later theVijayanagar Empire would incorporate all these various styles and create a unique blend called Vijayanagar style,the best examples of which are in the vast open air theater of monuments atHampi.
Islam, which had an early presence in the west coast of India as early as the 10th century gained a foothold in Karnataka with the arrival of theBahmani Sultanate andAdil Shahi dynasty, which ruled parts of Karnataka.[4]
Islam arrived in Karnataka and Kerala in the 7th century with Arab merchants trading in spices. Muslims introduced coffee, and the paper industry to the local economy.[5][6] Following the 12th century, various Islamic armies established sultanates in this area such as theBahamani sultanate of Bidar (1347–1510) and theAdilshahi dynasty of the Bijapur Sultanate (1490–1686). This land came under Mughal rule in the 17th century under Aurangzeb's rule. With the disintegration of Mughal rule, Hyder Ali and his sonTippu Sultan established their rule over the Mysore area. They violently resisted British rule in the area, but without adequate cooperation from other kingdoms, were defeated. Though killed by the British in 1799,Tippu Sultan was one of the only Indian leaders to defeat the British in battle,[7] which made him as an iconic leader among the people in the modern era. In addition, the Nizams of Hyderabad ruled over large parts of Northeastern Karnataka. This land only became part of Karnataka after the passing of the 1956States Reorganisation Act.
Muslims form approximately 12.91% of the population of Karnataka.[8] While Muslims can be found in all districts of Karnataka, Muslims have a stronger presence in:[9]
1. Northern Karnataka (especially in the area formerly ruled by the Princely State of Hyderabad) such as Gulbarga, Bidar, Bijapur, Raichur and Dharwad.
2. The districts bordering Kerala.
3. The cities of Bangalore, Mysore and Mangalore.[10]
Incoastal Karnataka in particular, Muslims form 24% of the population, the double of their overall share in the state, belonging to theBeary community which is known to be involved in trade and business, having particularly profited from the mass immigration to the Gulf from the '70s onward, owning diverse malls, hospitals, construction and educational institutions in the region.[11]
On the other hand, the proportion of Muslims is lower in central Karnataka.[9] The main spoken language of Muslims in interior Karnataka is a dialect calleddakhini, often considered to be dialect ofUrdu.Pinjara muslims haveKannada as their mother tongue. At the south western coastal region i.e Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kodagu there is concentration of muslims who speakbeary bashe(mix ofmalayalam andtulu),Kodava takk and Malayalam spoken byMappila Muslims. Other muslim groups likeNawayath are also found in the region. There are a large number of Muslim run educational institutions in Karnataka. Muslims also have modestly higher levels of progress in terms of education and wealth in Karnataka (as in the rest of South India) than in states of North India, as they have more opportunities than their North Indian counterparts.[12]
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Christianity reached Karnataka during the 16th century with the arrival of thePortuguese andSt. Francis Xavier in 1545.[13] The majority of Christians are found on the western coast of Karnataka, extending fromKarwar toMangalore.
Mangalore has the largest population of Roman Catholics as compared to other parts of Karnataka.[citation needed] They are mostly descended fromGoan Catholics and Orthodox Christians who immigrated from Goa in the 17th and 18th centuries. There are also someProtestants found in Karnataka. Many of them are of local origin. Protestants are the result of British missionaries' work during the British empire in India. However the British conversion was voluntary and not compulsory as Portuguese was in most cases. Due to this the Protestants are fewer in number as compared to the Catholics. Bangalore has a large number of Catholics as well as Protestant people.
St. Mary's Basilica is the onlybasilica in Karnataka and the oldest church in Bangalore.St. Aloysius Chapel,St. Joseph's Seminary andMilagres Church are century old churches in Mangalore with unique architecture and paintings.[14]
Jainism had a stronghold in Karnataka in the early medieval period atShravanabelagola as its most important centre.[15] The firstTirthankara,Rishabha, is said to have spent his final days in Karnataka. Both Jain philosophy and literature have contributed immensely to the religious and cultural landscape of Karnataka. Jain influence on literature and philosophy is particularly evident.[16]Shravanabelgola,Moodabidri, andKarkala are famous for Jain history and monuments.
Buddhism was once popular in Karnataka during the first millennium in places such as Gulbarga and Banavasi. A chance discovery of edicts and severalMauryan relics at Sannati in theKalaburagi district in 1986 has proven that the Krishna river basin was once home to bothMahayana andTheravada Buddhism.[17] In recent times, Buddhism thrives here and calls Dzogchen monastery and the Dhondeling Tibetan refugee camps as home.
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