Though the Vaishnava courtly writings in Kannada began with the Hoysala poet Rudrabhatta and the devotional song genre was initiated by Naraharitirtha , the Vaishnava movement began to exert a strong influence on Kannada literature only from the 15th century on . The Vaishnava writers consisted of two groups who seemed to have no interaction with each other : the Brahmin commentators who typically wrote under the patronage of royalty , and the Bhakti ( devotion ) writers ( also known as haridasas ) who played no role in courtly matters . The Bhakti writers took the message of God to the people in the form of melodious songs composed using folk genres such as the kirthane ( a musical composition with refrain , based on tune and rhythm ) , the suladi ( a composition based on rhythm ) and the ugabhoga ( a composition based on melody ) . Kumara Vyasa and Timmanna Kavi were well @-@ known among the Brahmin commentators , while Purandara Dasa and Kanaka Dasa were the most notable of the Bhakti writers . The philosophy of Madhvacharya , which originated in the Kannada @-@ speaking region in the 13th century , spread beyond its borders over the next two centuries . The itinerant haridasas , best described as mystic saint @-@ poets , spread the philosophy of Madhvacharya in simple Kannada , winning mass appeal by preaching devotion to God and extolling the virtues of jnana ( enlightenment ) , bhakti ( devotion ) and vairagya ( detachment ) .