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In this episode, we sense the joy in a home, where a child is born, as echoed by Sangam Literary work, Natrinai 370, penned by Uraiyoor Kathuvaai Saathanaar. Set in the agricultural regions of ‘Marutham’, the verse speaks in the voice of the man to his companion, the singer-messenger, reminiscing a past moment, in a bid to soften the lady’s anger.
வாராய், பாண! நகுகம்-நேரிழை
கடும்புடைக் கடுஞ் சூல் நம் குடிக்கு உதவி,
நெய்யோடு இமைக்கும் ஐயவித் திரள் காழ்
விளங்கு நகர் விளங்கக் கிடந்தோட் குறுகி,
‘புதல்வன் ஈன்றெனப் பெயர் பெயர்த்து, அவ் வரித்
திதலை அல்குல் முது பெண்டு ஆகி,
துஞ்சுதியோ, மெல் அம் சில் ஓதி?’ என,
பல் மாண் அகட்டில் குவளை ஒற்றி,
உள்ளினென் உறையும் எற் கண்டு, மெல்ல,
முகை நாண் முறுவல் தோற்றி,
தகை மலர் உண்கண் கை புதைத்ததுவே.
The verse opens with ‘வாராய், பாண! நகுகம்’ meaning ‘come here, O singer, let’s laugh’, presenting a teaser for mirthful moments to follow. Yet again, we see the custom of treating the lady and the jewels she wears as one, in the address ‘நேரிழை’ or ‘woman wearing well-crafted jewels’. ‘கடும்புடைக் கடுஞ் சூல்’ holds within the social custom of ‘relatives surrounding a lady, when in her first pregnancy’. When exploring the word ‘கடுஞ் சூல்’, I came across a 1991 Malayalam movie named ‘Kadinjool Kalyanam’, with the word used in the same meaning as in this ancient verse. This made me marvel at the age-old bond between the present-day states of Kerala and Tamilnadu. In Natrinai 40, we saw the custom of how a lady who has given birth was bathed in ground mustard oil and here too, we find mention of ‘நெய்யோடு இமைக்கும் ஐயவித் திரள் காழ்’ meaning ‘oil of the mustard’s many seeds’. ‘விளங்கு நகர் விளங்க’ shouts out the joy in that home for it means ‘brightening the bright mansion’. The phrase ‘புதல்வன் ஈன்றெனப் பெயர் பெயர்த்து’, which means, ‘with the name changing after giving birth to a son’, is significant for it portrays how that ancient society viewed the stages in a woman’s life. Three different flowers smile at us in ‘குவளை’ meaning ‘white-lily’, ‘முகை’ meaning ‘jasmine’ and ‘தகை மலர்’ referring to ‘a blue lily’. Ending with ‘உண்கண் கை புதைத்ததுவே’ meaning ‘burying her kohl-streaked eyes in her hands’, the verse sketches that charming image of a lady covering her face with her hands, to hide her shyness!
The man and lady had been leading a married life, when the man took to keeping the company of courtesans. The lady is angered by this action of the man and when the man sends the singer as his messenger, the lady relents not. When he decides that it is time for him to go and plead to the lady himself, the man finds that her ire still has not diminished. So, he decides to approach her anger in another way. He turns to the singer and says, “Please come here, O bard! Let us laugh about that past event, during the time of my bejewelled lady’s first pregnancy, when she was surrounded by kith and kin. Having rendered a great aid to the family line, as she was lying there, bring joy to our mansion, fragrant with mustard seeds mixed with oil, I neared her and said, ‘As you have given birth to a son, your name has changed, beautiful lines spread on your spotted loins and you have matured into a woman. Are you sleeping, my delicate lady with beautiful tresses?’ And then, on that cherished stomach of hers, I pressed water lilies gently. When she saw me standing there, lost in thought, slowly, akin to jasmine buds blooming, she smiled, and then buried her exquisite, flower-like, kohl-streaked eyes in her hand!” With these words, the man reflects on those pleasant moments of the past, and subtly places it in contrast to the ire of the lady then.
Time to delve into the details! The man seems to summon the singer near him as if he was going to tell him a joke. Then, he sets off on a memory trip to the time when his lady was carrying her first child and mentions that as a time when she was surrounded by relatives many. It’s possible that women bore children when very young then and their immaturity was probably offset by the presence of wise and experienced members of the family. Although the poem mentions that the lady was surrounded by relatives, we understand that the events are happening in the man’s house, unlike the present, where there is a custom in many Tamil homes to send the lady to her mother’s house during her pregnancy. The importance of a pregnant woman being surrounded by her relatives is felt now too, only the location has shifted to the house of the lady’s parents in current day. Returning to the verse, we find the man celebrating this event as something that the lady does to strengthen his family line. Describing how their whole mansion was wafting with the scent of mustard seed oil, the man highlights the custom of applying this oil on a woman, who has given birth. When exploring about the benefits of this seed oil, I learnt that it is anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and sleep-inducing. And there you have, within that tiny seed, all the pills needed, sans side-effects!
The man continues by saying how the lady has brought brightness to that mansion in giving birth to a son and he reflects on how she is no longer to be called ‘a little girl’ or ‘a young girl’, as she steps into a new stage of womanhood. He then gently takes some fragrant white lilies and presses it on her stomach and stands there, gazing upon the lady’s face. The lady opens her eyes and then breaks into a smile, akin to jasmines blooming. She then takes her hands and covers her blue-lily-like, kohl-streaked eyes. The man ends with this fascinating image of a lady’s lovely fingers covering her smiling face! Remember how the man and the singer were going to laugh about this? The man achieves this by contrasting this past event with the way the lady is fighting and sulking with him in their present. The man hopes that the lady, who has been listening to his words, would have melted at his descriptions of her glory and beauty, and would forgive him for his errant ways. The poem illustrates an effective technique of anger management, wherein the light from a past moment of bonding guides one out of the dark storm of the present’s burning fury!
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