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In this episode, we listen to a lonely man’s yearning, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Natrinai 346, penned by Eyinanthai Magan Ilankeeranaar. Set in the drylands of ‘Paalai’, the verse speaks in the voice of the man to his heart, reflecting on his desolate situation, after having parted away from his lady.
குண கடல் முகந்து, குடக்கு ஏர்பு இருளி,
தண் கார் தலைஇய நிலம் தணி காலை,
அரசு பகை நுவலும் அரு முனை இயவின்,
அழிந்த வேலி அம் குடிச் சீறூர்
ஆள் இல் மன்றத்து, அல்கு வளி ஆட்ட,
தாள் வலி ஆகிய வன்கண் இருக்கை,
இன்று, நக்கனைமன் போலா- என்றும்
நிறையுறு மதியின் இலங்கும் பொறையன்
பெருந் தண் கொல்லிச் சிறு பசுங் குளவிக்
கடி பதம் கமழும் கூந்தல்
மட மா அரிவை தட மென் தோளே?
The verse opens with ‘குண கடல் முகந்து, குடக்கு ஏர்பு இருளி’ meaning ‘dipping in the eastern seas and darkening when rising to the west’. This captures the journey of a cloud in ancient Tamil land. If we were to represent the same with current-day names, we would say, the clouds have gathered moisture from the Bay of Bengal and are moving towards the Western Ghats. From this, we gather that this is the perspective of a person, who lives to the east of the Western Ghats, which is most of the current-day state of Tamil nadu. The phrase ‘நிலம் தணி காலை’ describes ‘a time when the land cools down’, no doubt courtesy of these clouds we just saw. ‘A king’s enmity’ is visualised in the expression ‘அரசு பகை’ and the consequences of this enmity is seen in ‘அழிந்த வேலி அம் குடிச் சீறூர்’ meaning ‘a beautiful village with destroyed fences’. Yet again, we meet with ‘பொறையன்’, a Chera King, who ruled over Thondi, and was known to be victorious in battle and generous of heart. The famous Kolli hills in the domain of this king greets us in our Sangam travels in the words ‘பெருந் தண் கொல்லி’ meaning ‘the great and cool Kolli hills’. ‘சிறு பசுங் குளவி’ meaning ‘the little, fresh flowers of the jasmine’ delight our senses. Ending with ‘தட மென் தோளே’ meaning ‘the curved and gentle shoulders’, the verse expresses a deep longing!
The man and lady had been leading a happy, married life when the man had to leave the lady on a mission to gather wealth. One day, in the midst of his travels, the man turns to his heart and says, “Gathering from the eastern seas, climbing to the west and darkening, those cool clouds have poured rains and the land’s raging heat has thus abated. Expressing a king’s enmity, stands the deserted centre of this beautiful little hamlet, which has been ruined as it stood in the path of the king’s army. As a strong wind sways by, with a courageous heart, I stay in this suffering-filled resting place today. But, you seem to be delighting foolishly about something, O heart! In the great and cool Kolli hills of Poraiyan, who forever shines with the glow of a full moon, blooms a fresh wild jasmine. You seem to be dreaming of embracing the curved and delicate shoulders of my lady, whose tresses waft with that wild jasmine’s fragrance!” With these words, the man acknowledges the ache within him to be with his beloved.
Now, for the nuances! With a geography lesson, the man opens his statement. He talks about how the clouds have had their fill in the eastern seas and are travelling west. Blocked by those majestic western mountains, the clouds shed their rain on the land beneath, dissipating the ire of summer’s heat therein. From geography, he turns to politics and talks about a king’s enmity and being in the path of a king’s army. We then understand he is talking about the hamlet he’s passing through. Pitiable indeed are those villages that stood in the path of a battling king’s army. No matter how beautiful or lush, they were shown no mercy and were left in ruins. This very truth is expressed in the words of the man who says that town’s fences were ruined and there was no one living there. When people scatter away in fear of imminent danger, they have to leave behind the buildings they raised with care and one such damaged building in the town’s centre is where the man finds himself just then. At that moment, a forceful wind blows and tries to shake the man from his resolve to walk on in his mission!
After bringing alive his outer world just then, the man now turns his attention within. He turns to his heart and remarks that it seems to be relishing something. We learn that this something is the thought of embracing his lady’s delicate arms. He further characterises this lady as having tresses, wafting with the fragrance of wild jasmines that blooms in the Kolli hills of King Poraiyan, who himself is said to glow always with the radiance of a full moon. Returning to the essence of the verse, note how the man seems to speak to his heart as if it were a separate entity! In other Natrinai poems, when the man was at home, we have seen him speaking to his heart, as it was nudging him to go in search of wealth. Now, when he is on the mission, his heart seems to be nudging him with the memory of the lady’s beauty. A contradiction that acutely captures the fickleness of a human mind that seems to forever yearn for that which is not at hand!
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