Chandassu — Kannada Prosody and Metres

Overview

Chandassu (ಛಂದಸ್ಸು) is the study of prosody and metres in Kannada poetry. It forms the structural foundation of classical Kannada literature, governing rhythm, syllable arrangement, and poetic form. For KAR TET Language I, understanding chandassu helps candidates appreciate Kannada literary heritage and answer questions on poetic structure, metre identification, and the classification of syllables.

This topic typically appears in the comprehension section when an unseen poem is given, or in direct questions about Kannada grammar and literary devices. Mastery of chandassu requires knowing the difference between laghu and guru syllables, the major metre types (vrutta, jati, matra), and the names of common Kannada metres like kanda, shatpadi, and ragale. While not heavily weighted, even 2-3 questions on this topic can make a difference in competitive scoring.

Students should focus on the classification system, syllable-counting rules, and being able to identify common metres from given verse examples.

Key Concepts

• **Akshara (ಅಕ್ಷರ)**: The basic syllabic unit in chandassu. Every Kannada syllable is classified as either laghu (short) or guru (long) based on vowel length and consonant clusters.

• **Laghu (ಲಘು)**: A short syllable containing a short vowel (a, i, u, e, o) not followed by a conjunct consonant. Laghu is marked as "ल" or represented by the symbol "|" and has one matra (beat).