Career
The movement however revived in the 18th century under the guidance of Vijaya Dasa, this time centered on the holy town of Mantralayam in modern Andhra Pradesh and a large area covering the Raichur district in modern Karnataka. The poetry written by these later day saints closely followed the style established by the 15thand 16th-century saints of the Haridasa cadre. Legend has it that Jagannatha Dasa, whose birth name was Srinivasacharya (or Sinappa), was once invited by Vijaya Dasa, a noted Haridasa of the 18th century, to attend a religious ceremony at Manvi.
The ceremony included dining with the devotees of Vijaya Dasa as well.
Srinivasacharya excused himself from attending the ceremony on the pretext of suffering from severe stomach ache. Unfortunately, Srinivasacharya actually fell ill and developed severe stomach pains.
Unable to find relief, Srinivasacharya sought the help of Vijaya Dasa who asked him to meet his disciple Gopala Dasa. Srinivasacharya visited Gopala Dasa and was cured by him.
Repentant for his attitude towards the Haridasas, Srinivasacharya became a disciple of Gopala Dasa and took to the Haridasa fold.
His poems are written with the ankita (pen name, also called mudrika) "Jagannatha Vittala". These details are known from a song written by Jagananatha Dasa expressing his gratitide to Gopala Dasa and Vijaya Dasa. Written in the native Bhamini Shatpadi metre, it contains 32 chapters (sandhis) comprising 988 stanzas.
Later day scholars wrote ten commentaries on this work, including a Sanskrit commentary in 1862 (by Sankarsana Odeyaru), an indication of its superior literary content.
The Tattva Suvvali, containing 1,200 pithy and proverbial poems of which 600 stanzas are available today, was written in the native tripadi metre, in a simple style, and is known to have been a consolation to his young widowed daughter.