<P> There was an emphasis on the adoption of Sanskritic models while retaining elements of local literary traditions, a style that prevailed in Kannada literature throughout the classical period . Kavirajamarga, written during this period, is a treatise on the Kannada speaking people, their poetry and their language . A portion of the writing qualifies as a practical grammar . It describes defective and corrective examples (the "do's and don't's") of versification and native composition styles recognised by earlier poets (puratana kavis). These composition meters are the bedande, the chattana and the gadyakatha--compositions written in various interspersed metres . In some contexts, the term puravcharyar, which may refer to previous grammarians or rhetoricians, have also been mentioned . Some historians attribute Kavirajamarga to the Rashtrakuta king Amoghavarsha I, but others believe that the book may have been inspired by the king and co-authored or authored in full by Srivijaya, a Kannada language theorist and court poet . </P> <P> The earliest existing prose piece in old Kannada is Vaddaradhane ("Worship of Elders", 9th century) by Shivakotiacharya . It contains 19 lengthy stories, some in the form of fables and parables, such as "The Sage and the Monkey". Inspired by the earlier Sanskrit writing Brihatkatha Kosha, it is about Jain tenets and describes issues of rebirth, karma, the plight of humans on earth, and social issues of the time such as education, trade and commerce, magic, superstition, and the condition of women in society . </P> <P> The works of Jain writers Adikavi Pampa, Sri Ponna and Ranna, collectively called the "three gems of Kannada literature", heralded the age of classical Kannada in the 10th century . Pampa, who wrote Adipurana in 941, is regarded as one of the greatest Kannada writers . Written in champu style, Adipurana narrates the life history of the first Jain Thirtankar, Rishabhadeva . In this spiritual saga, Rishabhadeva's soul moves through a series of births before attaining emancipation in a quest for the liberation of his soul from the cycle of life and death . Pampa's other classic, Vikramarjuna Vijaya (or Pampa Bharata, 941), is loosely based on the Hindu epic the Mahabharata . </P> <P> Sri Ponna, patronised by King Krishna III, wrote Santipurana (950), a biography of the 16th Jain Tirthankar Shantinatha . He earned the title Ubhaya Kavichakravathi ("supreme poet in two languages") for his command of both Kannada and Sanskrit . Although Sri Ponna borrowed significantly from Kalidasa's earlier works, his Santipurana is considered an important Jain purana . </P>

Who were known as the gems of kannada literature
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