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In this episode, we relish the visual imagery in painting the mind, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Natrinai 106, written by Thondaimaan Ilanthiraiyan, a poet-king who ruled with ‘Kanchi’ as his capital. Set in the ‘Neythal’ landscape of coastal regions, the verse speaks in the voice of the man to his charioteer, recollecting a past event and subtly urging him to hurry towards the lady’s village by the sea.
அறிதலும் அறிதியோ-பாக!-பெருங்கடல்
எறி திரை கொழீஇய எக்கர் வெறி கொள,
ஆடு வரி அலவன் ஓடுவயின் ஆற்றாது,
அசைஇ, உள் ஒழிந்த வசை தீர் குறுமகட்கு
உயவினென் சென்று, யான், உள் நோய் உரைப்ப,
மறுமொழி பெயர்த்தல் ஆற்றாள், நறு மலர்
ஞாழல் அம் சினைத் தாழ்இணர் கொழுதி,
முறி திமிர்ந்து உதிர்த்த கையள்,
அறிவு அஞர் உறுவி ஆய் மட நிலையே?
The poem opens with a friendly question, ‘அறிதலும் அறிதியோ?’ meaning ‘Tell me, do you know or don’t you?’ Familiar words from the coastal dictionary fall on our ears, such as ‘திரை’ meaning ‘waves’, ‘எக்கர்’ meaning ‘sand dunes’ and ‘அலவன்’ meaning ‘crab’. There’s talk of some ‘inner disease’ in ‘உள் நோய்’. Let’s investigate the symptoms and causes shortly. ‘மறுமொழி’, a beautiful word for ‘response’ makes its appearance, accentuating the conversational tone of this verse. The ‘fragrant flowers’ of the ‘ஞாழல்’ or ‘Senna Sophera’ beckons our attention with its ‘நறு மலர்’. Finally, that curious custom in Sangam language of building a noun from the subject’s action is illustrated with ‘உதிர்த்த கையள்’ meaning ‘she who scattered with her hands’. Wonder what she’s scattering and how that defines her!
Moving on into the meaning of the verse, we learn that the man has parted from his lady on a mission to gather wealth. When his task is complete, his thoughts turn towards the lady and he turns towards his charioteer and tells him, “I wonder if you know this, O charioteer! The waves thrown by the vast sea bring along fragrant, white sands and gather them in mounds. Chasing behind speckled crabs and tired out from that futile game, that impeccable, young girl was resting on those sands. With sadness, I went to her and spoke of this inner illness of wanting to seek wealth. She sat there speechless, unable to respond to my words. From a low-lying branch of a ‘gnazal’ tree, filled with fragrant flowers, she snatched a cluster, crushed the buds in her hand and threw them on the sand. Such was her pained and confused state then, her distress destroying her ability to understand and accept!” With these words, the man recollects his lady’s pain then and thereby, urges his charioteer to hasten the journey in her direction.
This is indeed, a song by the sea! We glimpse at the vast ocean, roaring waves and sand dunes on the beach. Peering closely, we find crabs, with lined patterns on their shells, running about briskly. The lady being a young girl takes this as an invitation for play and starts chasing about these little creatures. Perhaps, she wants to play catch! Unfortunately, the crabs aren’t cooperating and they run away, possibly to hide in their holes. This brings to my mind images of crabs scurrying in the sand on my early morning walks by the sea! Many a time, when I look a little ahead, I see crabs cramming their heads into the holes as if a hidden hand is pushing those ‘jack-in-a-boxes’ back in a hurry. Returning back to that ancient scene, our lady, running around behind these crabs, that are not being sportive at all, gives up and sits on those fragrant sands, resting her tired legs. At this moment, the man decides to go to her and tell her of his intention to part away. In a curious manner, he refers to the act of his wanting to seek wealth as an ‘inner disease’. One can only bow in admiration at the lack of importance to material things, so as to portray the seeking of wealth, not as an achievement but as an affliction!
After the man shares his intention of going along with that inner affliction, the lady sits there, without a word. Then, she extends her hand and grasps a cluster, from a low branch of a ‘gnazhal’ tree, crushes the flowers and scatters the petals on the sand. And, what a vivid reply! That single image of crushed flowers falling from the lady’s hand, conveys with the effect of a thousand words, the distress tearing her heart apart, at the news of the man’s parting! By detailing this incident to the charioteer, the man indirectly urges him to hurry to that young, innocent girl. One glimpse of the dejected stance of a hand lying on the sand, with crushed petals all around seems to etch the pain of another into our own minds. A testimony to the power of images that seem to instantly reverberate in our inner worlds!
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