Kavirāja Mādhava Kandalī

Indian poet

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June 30, 2026

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Kaviraja Madhava Kandali was a prominent Indian poet from the 14th century, known for his significant contributions to Assamese literature. He is credited with creating the earliest translation of the Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana, into the Assamese language. Kandali also authored a narrative work titled Devajit, which focused on the god Krishna. His work emerged during the influential bhakti movement, a period that fostered a surge in literary creation in the region.1

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South Asian arts
Assamese
…first great Assamese poet was Kavirāja Mādhava Kandalī (14th century), who translated the Sanskrit Rāmāyaṇa and wrote Devajit, a narrative on the god Krishna. In Assamese, too, the bhakti movement brought with it a great literary upsurge; the most famous Assamese poet of the period was the saint-poet Śaṅkaradeva (1449–1568),…
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…first great Assamese poet was Kavirāja Mādhava Kandalī (14th century), who translated the Sanskrit Rāmāyaṇa and wrote Devajit, a narrative on the god Krishna. In Assamese, too, the bhakti movement brought with it a great literary upsurge; the most famous Assamese poet of the period was the saint-poet Śaṅkaradeva (1449–1568),…
Read More