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In this episode, we relish the meeting point of nature and culture in a mountain country, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Natrinai 282, penned by Nalloor Siru Meythaaviyaar. Set in the hilly regions of ‘Kurinji’, the verse speaks in the voice of the confidante to the lady, passing on a hidden message to the man, listening nearby.
தோடு அமை செறிப்பின் இலங்கு வளை ஞெகிழ,
கோடு ஏந்து அல்குல் அவ் வரி வாட,
நல் நுதல் சாய, படர் மலி அரு நோய்
காதலன் தந்தமை அறியாது, உணர்த்த,
அணங்குறு கழங்கின் முது வாய் வேலன்
கிளவியின் தணியின், நன்றுமன்-சாரல்
அகில் சுடு கானவன் உவல் சுடு கமழ் புகை,
ஆடு மழை மங்குலின், மறைக்கும்
நாடு கெழு வெற்பனொடு அமைந்த, நம் தொடர்பே?
Opening with ‘தோடு அமை செறிப்பின் இலங்கு வளை ஞெகிழ’ meaning ‘as those well-stacked, shining bangles slip’, the verse tells us that pining is afoot. As expected we see ‘நல் நுதல் சாய’ meaning ‘ruin of that fine forehead’. Love is then characterised as an affliction in ‘படர் மலி அரு நோய்’ meaning ‘the rare disease that causes deep suffering’. ‘முது வாய் வேலன்’ or ‘a wise priest Velan’ makes an appearance in these words. The phrase ‘அகில் சுடு கானவன்’ meaning ‘a mountain dweller who burns agarwood’ intertwines man and nature inextricably. The verse ends with a question about ‘the relationship with the lord of the mountains’ in ‘நாடு கெழு வெற்பனொடு அமைந்த, நம் தொடர்பே?’ Time to trek through this mountain land!
The man and lady had been leading a love relationship and the man seemed intent only on trysting with the lady. The lady suffers in pining when the man leaves her and returns home. Noticing the changes in the lady, the lady’s parents confine her to the house. One day, when the man arrives by the lady’s house, pretending not to notice him, but making sure he’s in earshot, the confidante turns to the lady and says, “Making luminous bangles stacked in well-fitting and neat formations slip away, causing beautiful lines on those raised loins to fade away, ruining the beauty of that fine forehead, this suffering-filled, rare disease of love has appeared in you. Not knowing that this was given by your lover, to understand it, the wise priest Velan has been summoned with his powerful prediction seeds. If your disease will subside hearing the words of this priest, that is good, indeed! But, what is to become of your relationship with the lord of the mountains, in whose domain, mountain folk burn ‘akil’ wood with dried-up leaves and that fragrant smoke rises akin to swaying rain clouds and hides those very mountains?” With these words, the confidante is revealing how the lady has been confined to the house and that the man must seek the lady’s hand in marriage without further delay.
Let’s walk into the thick forest cover of these words to understand more! The confidante first vividly describes the symptoms of pining in the lady. The lady’s bangles are slipping away, creases on her waist are fading away and the glow of her forehead is lost. So many changes in the lady and the lady’s parents are bound to notice that. They do, the confidante clarifies, saying they notice the changes but do not realise these are the gifts of love bestowed upon the lady by the man. Parents, being parents, worry about the health of their child and call the doctor of those times – the wise priest ‘Velan’. This priest divines the reason for the malaise using molucca seeds. The confidante after saying this, adds that if the priest were to come and the disease would diminish with his words, it would indeed be a good thing. At this moment, we can expect the listening man to raise his hand to his mouth and stare shocked at these words. The reason for this, was that culture forbade a man’s love to be wrongly attributed to God’s curse. It was not fitting for the lady’s chastity and the man’s reputation for such a thing to unfold. So, the confidante’s words are in effect, a cultural shock therapy to the man!
Then, the confidante describes the man’s land as a place where mountain folk burn ‘agarwood’ with dried-up leaves and the fragrant smoke that rises up looks like rain clouds in the skies and hides the man’s mountains. Now, a moment to discuss what ‘akil’ or ‘agarwood’ is! This is a tree, indigenous to India, and found extensively in the North-Eastern regions. Its wood has been used in incenses and perfumes for thousands of years. The interesting element about this tree is that as it forms, there’s nothing special in it and it has no fragrance. But, after it is infected by a parasitic mold, the wood fights the infection and as result of this fight, causes its heartwood to turn fragrant and resinous and in turn, transforms into something valuable. In this tree’s lifecycle, shines a metaphor for life struggles and the sublimation of spirit in that process. Speaking of metaphors, the confidante uses the scene of fragrant smoke from the burning of this wood that clouds the mountains as an equivalent of how the man’s preoccupation with trysting has clouded his mind and seems to hide his sense of duty in seeking the lady’s hand. A master class in the art of subtle and elegant persuasion!
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