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In this episode, we appreciate the deep awareness of inner life, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Natrinai 105, written by Mudathirumaaran. The verse is set in the ‘Paalai’ landscape or the drylands and speaks in the voice of the man to his heart, motivating it to move forward as it languishes stuck in the anguishing journey.
முளி கொடி வலந்த முள் அரை இலவத்து
ஒளிர் சினை அதிர வீசி, விளிபட
வெவ் வளி வழங்கும் வேய் பயில் மருங்கில்,
கடு நடை யானை கன்றொடு வருந்த,
நெடு நீர் அற்ற நிழல் இல் ஆங்கண்
அருஞ் சுரக் கவலைய என்னாய்; நெடுஞ் சேண்
பட்டனை, வாழிய-நெஞ்சே!-குட்டுவன்
குட வரைச் சுனைய மா இதழ்க் குவளை
வண்டு படு வான் போது கமழும்
அம் சில் ஓதி அரும் படர் உறவே.
Hearing the cackling of withered leaves from beneath our feet, we enter the verse with the words ‘முளி கொடி’ meaning ‘dry creepers’, in close proximity to the ‘இலவம்’ or ‘silk-cotton tree’. With ‘வெவ் வளி’, we gasp as hot winds brush against our face. A curious adjective appears in connection with an elephant, ‘கடு நடை யானை’ meaning ‘elephant with a fast stride’ and with a few words, the image of an elephant, walking with quick steps in spite of all that bulk, flashes before our eyes. The scorching sun hits the skin with force for it is a ‘நெடு நீர் அற்ற நிழல் இல் ஆங்கண்’ meaning, ‘a place without water or shade’. As if to offer consolation for these dreary surroundings, appears the ‘குவளை’ or ‘blue water-lily’! Inhaling the fragrance of this flower, let’s step into the centre of the verse.
The man and woman have been in a married relationship when the time arrives for the man to part in search of wealth. He leaves behind his lady and sets out on his path. One day, in the middle of the journey, the man turns to his heart and says, “On the thorn-coated, silk-cotton tree, dry creepers tighten around. Making the branches of this tree tremble and even shattering it, blow hot winds from the bamboo-filled forest. A place where the fast-footed elephant suffers with its calf, bereft of water or shade. Thinking of such a harsh path ahead, do not worry, O heart! You have come a long way and may you live long! In the springs of the western mountain slopes in the Chera King Kuttuvan’s domain, there blooms the dark-petaled, bee-swarming, huge flower of the water-lily. Leaving my lady with beautiful tresses, wafting with the fragrance of that waterlily and making her pine, we have travelled this far!” With these words, the man is recognising the distress in his heart at the thought of his lady left behind and yet he seems to be motivating it to move ahead with the mission they had set out on.
A duality seems to run through the course of the verse. It’s found at first in the description of the natural world, where we see a path, with heat and thorns pricking us, as we glimpse at the silk-cotton tree. Any reference on the tree you read, you cannot miss the phrase ‘spiny trunk’ and the Sangam poets seem to match it word for word with their ‘முள் அரை’ meaning ‘thorny base’! In the drylands, it’s bamboo that seems to grow abundantly, bereft of leaves and soaring high and through this dry bamboo forest, hot winds are blowing and there we see an elephant, striding fast, as if stepping on hot coals, along with its calf and trying to find somewhere with shade and moisture, which seems so hard to come by there. Now, contrast this with the description of the Chera King Kuttuvan’s domain in the western mountains. On searching further, I learnt that this region refers to the current ‘Kolli hills’ in the ‘Namakkal’ district of Tamilnadu. The poem says that in this luscious mountain region, filled with waterfalls and springs, blooms the blue water-lily, with its dark petals, symbolising beauty and swarming with bees, symbolising health. Why is there talk of this fertile and rich blue lily? Only to say that the lady’s tresses have the same rich fragrance as the waterlily blooming in Kuttuvan’s country! Two natural worlds flash before us. One dry, bereft of a drop of water and another, filled with mountain springs and fragrant flowers!
Another duality is depicted in the suffering of the pining lady and that of the duty-bound man. The man says to his heart, not considering the sorrow my lady will be in, you have brought me all this way to the middle of nowhere and now, you seem to be thinking of turning back! He admonishes it for making him leave her when they started out and at the same time, he stresses that his heart should not be thinking of returning after having started this journey. Yes, the path is difficult and the pain of parting tugs at the heart and yet you must not be thinking of that, the man says to his heart!
The core, I want to zoom into, in this verse, is the attention the man gives to those thorn-pricks in his heart. Many a time, we do not pay any regard to the little whispers from our hearts. We push it aside, turn the other way and go on with what we have been doing. We think it goes away if we pay it no attention. But it does have a way of coming back with a vengeance at times we don’t expect. Here, our ancestors seem to be highlighting the importance of paying attention to that discomfort that arises within. Even though we have set out on some path, sometimes something within pulls us back. We need not indulge it. At the same time, we should not ignore it too! Like the man does, perhaps the wise way is to acknowledge the pain that wants to turn back and then gently, move on with conviction, on the path of one’s destiny!
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