Natrinai 34 – God’s ignorance

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In this episode, we relish the dance of the divine in Sangam literary work, Natrinai 34, written by Piramasaari. It’s set in the lush mountain landscape of ‘Kurinji’ and expressed in the words of the lady’s confidante to God Muruga, conveying a truth to all mortals concerned. 

கடவுட் கற்சுனை அடை இறந்து அவிழ்ந்த
பறியாக் குவளை மலரொடு காந்தள்
குருதி ஒண் பூ உரு கெழக் கட்டி,
பெரு வரை அடுக்கம் பொற்பச் சூர்மகள்
அருவி இன் இயத்து ஆடும் நாடன்
மார்பு தர வந்த படர் மலி அரு நோய்
நின் அணங்கு அன்மை அறிந்தும், அண்ணாந்து,
கார் நறுங் கடம்பின் கண்ணி சூடி,
வேலன் வேண்ட, வெறி மனை வந்தோய்!
கடவுள் ஆயினும் ஆக,
மடவை மன்ற, வாழிய முருகே!

The minute I was done reading this poem, I knew this was going to be one elaborate treat. In the layers of the verse, you have Gods appearing constantly as in the very beginning with ‘கடவுட் கற்சுனை’ meaning ‘mountain springs of the Gods’, then there was ‘சூர்மகள்’, a reference to a Goddess and finally finishing with ‘வாழிய முருகே!’ meaning ‘May you live long, God Muruga!’ So, what’s special about this? We have heard many, many delicious religious hymns, you may say. But, the thing about this poem is that even as it speaks of God and religious practices, there is something deeper, which we will soon peel like the skin of a fruit and savour. Not just gods, there’s an abundance of flowers in this poem, for we have the ‘குவளை’ or the water-lily, the ‘காந்தள்’ or the flame-lily and the ‘கடம்பு’, the Kadamba flowers from the burflower tree. A verse which glows like a garland offered to the Gods, awash in the sweetest of scents! 

Receiving the welcome of these fragrant garlands, let’s step into this temple of a poem listening to godmen who have been here before, to gather the meaning of this verse. The lady’s mother seeing her daughter afflicted, requests a priest to invoke God Muruga to cure her illness. Observing the possessed dance of the priest, the lady’s confidante says these words to God Muruga, while the man is in earshot. She says, “O Muruga, in the sacred mountain springs, where Gods reside, peering out and waving the leaves aside, bloom the untouched Kuvalai flowers. Alternating these white Kuvalai flowers with blood-red Kaanthal flowers, tightly-set garlands are woven. The mountain goddess adorns herself with these garlands that splash the entire mountain range with brightness and she dances to the rhythmic music of the cascades. From a such a divine mountain country, hails our lord. This affliction is nothing but the malady that arose because our lady misses the embrace of her lord. O Muruga, you know her affliction is not of your making. And yet, you heed the call of this dancing priest, wearing a Kadamba flower garland around his head. He evokes you to take possession of him, and you too seem to flow through his body and make him dance fervently. Seeing this, I can only say that you may be a God but you are filled with ignorance. May you live long!” In one shot, the lady’s confidante explains how the mother and the priest are mistaken and at the same time, she sends out a hidden message to the man, listening nearby, asking him to cure this illness of the lady by marrying her. 

Let’s try to step into the depth of divinity expressed in this verse, layer by layer. First, we observe two kinds of dances depicted in this poem. One is that of the mountain goddess, who waltzes to the dance of the waterfalls. In describing the man’s mountain country, the delicious sounds of the falling cascades are seen as the music to the dance of a Goddess. The other dance is that of the ‘Velan’, the priest who worships God Muruga, a possessed dance, known as ‘சாமி ஆடுதல்’, a practice that can be seen in many temple festivals even today. From this, we gather that the art form of dance is seen as the exuberant expression of the divine. Next, we move on to savour the sight and scent of the flowers portrayed. Imagine before your eyes, a water lily that is so pristine that it’s left untouched by human hands. Then, there is the flame lily, red and shining with the blood of life. Taking these contrasting flowers and alternating one with the other, a garland is woven. A fragrant garland that’s fit for a goddess! Turning our attention to another garland, we take in the Kadamba flower garland worn around the head of the priest. Why does the priest wear the Kadamba flower garland? Surely to invoke his God Muruga and yet again, we see how garlands are like invitations to Gods to enter one’s heart.

Moving on to the Gods themselves, the references of God in a mountain spring and the dance of the Goddess to evoke images of the mountains reflects the deeply spiritual practice of seeing God in nature. Finally, the confidence with which the confidante says that the afflictions visible in her friend are not God’s doing but her own mind’s doing, makes me want to bow to her. The thing I wish to take away from this rich, meaning-laden verse is that the true temple is one’s own mind and the devotion we shower to Gods with fragrant garlands and festive celebrations, we should render unto our own minds too, for our salvation!