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In this episode, we relish the jubilation of hearing a much-awaited news, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 83, penned by Vennpoothanaar. Set in the hills of ‘Kurinji’, the verse speaks in the voice of the confidante, celebrating the foster-mother’s words and conveying a significant message to the lady.
அரும் பெறல் அமிழ்தம் ஆர்பதம் ஆகப்
பெரும் பெயர் உலகம் பெறீஇயரோ, அன்னை-
தம் இல் தமது உண்டன்ன சினைதொறும்
தீம் பழம் தூங்கும் பலவின்
ஓங்கு மலை நாடனை, ”வரும்” என்றோளே!
‘Jumping for joy’ is the mood of this verse! The opening words ‘அரும் பெறல் அமிழ்தம்’ talk about ‘the elixir of life, that’s hard to attain’, making us wonder what that might be! In a rhythmic beat with the word ‘அமிழ்தம்’ for ‘ambrosia’, appears ‘ஆர்பதம்’, which is the ‘food one eats’, one’s everyday meal. Following this delicious food, the verse turns to ‘பெரும் பெயர் உலகம்’ referring to ‘a renowned world’. A meaningful thought lies hidden in ‘தம் இல் தமது உண்டன்ன’ meaning ‘eating one’s own in one’s home’, about which we will explore shortly. Something as delicious as that ambrosia mentioned can be seen in ‘தீம் பழம் தூங்கும் பலவின்’ meaning ‘sweet fruits of the jackfruit tree’! Ending with the words ‘வரும் என்றோளே’ meaning ‘she said he would arrive’, the verse invokes our curiosity.
Elixirs of life and fruits of the earth seem to serve a delicious feast in this one! The context reveals that the man and lady had been leading a love relationship when the man parted away to gather wealth. The lady passed many days in anxiety, waiting for news about the man. One day, the confidante rushes and says to the lady, “Let that unattainable ambrosia be her food! Let an illustrious world be her gift! Akin to the taste of eating out of one’s hard-earned labour in one’s own home, hang on all the branches, sweet jackfruits in the man’s high peaks. Let her attain the precious, for mother has said that he would be arriving soon!” With these words, the confidante is praising the foster-mother for bringing the happy news that the man would be there in the lady’s place soon, with the intent of seeking the lady’s hand in marriage.
All the foster-mother says is a single word meaning ‘he will come’ and how does the confidante infer so much? Listening to her words closely may help us understand how! The confidante starts by showering verbal riches on someone, first with the hard-to-obtain elixir of life as the food they eat everyday. What is the use of good food if there’s no place to relish it? Understanding this, the confidante next wishes on this someone, a celebrated world entire. The essence of these expressions is that the confidante is wishing a long life and plentiful riches to that someone. Soon, we learn that this someone is the lady’s foster-mother, who also happens to be the confidante’s mother. This foster-mother plays a significant role in the lady’s life, as we have witnessed in many Sangam poems!
Returning to the verse, we find the confidante now talking about an abstract feeling, that of eating one’s own food in one’s own home. What she means is that the food has come out of one’s hard-earned labour and eating that food in the comfort and joy of one’s home is the sweetest of feelings! We know the confidante means it to be the sweetest of feelings because she says this feeling is like the sweet fruits, hanging on all the branches of the jackfruit tree in the man’s country. After describing the delights of the man’s country, the confidante concludes that mother has said that the man would arrive. Perhaps, whenever the foster-mother even mentions the man, it means that all is well and that the lady’s kith and kin are happy with the man’s relationship with the lady, indicating that all that remains is the formalities the man must complete to win his lady. And, when this mother says he is on the way, it means the family has received news that he’s heading there to marry the lady. No wonder the confidante is ecstatic with happiness, relieved that the lady will once again smile, and soon, delight in the sweetness of a life with the man of her dreams!
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