The God Concept in the Purananuru

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The Portrait of the King in the Purananuru

Courtesy: shutterstock.com There is no disputing the fact that the Purananuru firmly places the king or the chieftain as the central and dominant figure of the classical age. Almost every poem is a paean to his nobility, bravery or generosity. Whether it is fighting a battle or rewarding an indigent poet or defending his capital …

Kapilar upbraids Irunkovel

Purananuru: 202 Picture courtesy: voices.nationalgeographic.com After Irunkovel rejects Kapilar’s offer and humiliates him, the poet reminds him of the fate of another king who was culpable of similar arrogance) In the hot forest where vetchi grows, the hunters give chase to a wild bull which, not finding refuge anywhere, climbs up the mountain range unearthing …

Piranmalai

Picture courtesy: The Hindu April 4, 2013 Located in Singampunari taluk, Sivagangai District, Tamil Nadu, the bare and lingam-shaped hill  rising to a height of 2000 feet presents a forbidding sight to anyone wanting to climb it. Said to be the last of the Eastern Ghats, it does not have the jungle cover which it was reputed to …

He is generous and brave

Picture courtesy: news.nationalgeographic.com Avvaiyar praises Adhiyaman Anji Purananuru:103. At its one end the *padhalai hangs, at its other, a small drum with a hole. Balancing both on a frame through the desert, bangles tinkling, you ask, O dancer, “Is there no one to cheer up my head weighed down with hunger?” If you seek him, …

Avvaiyar and Adhiyaman: The Bard and Her Patron

 Poems from Purananuru94. Avvaiyar praising Adhiyaman Like the huge elephantlying down in the bathing streamto let the small boys of the villagescrub its white tusks,you are sweet to us, my lord.Like the same elephantrunning amuck,terrifying are you to your enemies. 95. Avvaiyar praising Adhiyaman’s arms These arms, festooned with feathers and flowers,their joints shaped with skill,glisten in ghee.They …

Kapilar’s panegyric of Cheral Athan

 Purananuru (8) The kings of the world worship him. Seeking the pleasure of adventure, ignoring common counsel, he is driven by his belief that his kingdom is small. Undaunted, generous, he is served by tough troops who fight without subterfuge.   O sun, how can you hold a candle to Cheral Athan for you appear …

Kapilar bidding farewell to Parambu Hills

    Purananuru: 113 Liquor flowed freely from the opened jar. With the slaughter of a he-goat there was a feast of rice and mutton. The gift one desired, the prosperous hills offered. In such ways you befriended me earlier. Blessed hills, after Pari died, I am paralyzed with grief and bid farewell to you with …

Isn’t there rain?

   Kapilar: Purananuru: 107 "Pari," "Pari" --So go the varied praises of poets with fertile tongues. There is not only Pari but also rain to sustain this world.  The friendship between the poet Kapilar and the ruler of Parambu Hills, Pari, is well-known and legendary. Kapilar has sung the praises of Pari and his Hills …