Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | Android | iHeartRadio | TuneIn | RSS | More
In this episode, we infer a lady’s trust in her man, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 96, penned by Alloor Nanmullaiyaar. Set in the mountains of ‘Kurunji’, the verse speaks in the voice of the lady to the confidante, responding with anger to her friend’s words of complaint about the man’s delay in seeking the lady’s hand.
“அருவி வேங்கைப் பெரு மலை நாடற்கு
யான் எவன் செய்கோ” என்றி, யான் அது
நகையென உணரேன் ஆயின்,
என் ஆகுவை கொல் நன்னுதல் நீயே?
Dangerous questions seem to deck this verse! The opening words talk about ‘அருவி வேங்கை’, which seems to link ‘an Indian Kino tree and a waterfall’. What this compact expression really means merits some investigation! ‘யான் எவன் செய்கோ’ is the first question which means ‘what can I do?’, a rhetorical question asked in disappointment. Two words of this verse ‘நகையென உணரேன்’ meaning ‘if I were not to treat it as a joke’ speak pages about the bond between two people, which we will explore shortly. Expressing the next question appears ‘என் ஆகுவை கொல்’ meaning ‘what will become of you?’, the implication of which could vary with the tone with which this question is asked. Ending with the words ‘நன்னுதல் நீயே’ meaning ‘you, the one with a beautiful forehead’, the verse welcomes us to explore the hidden nuances herein.
‘What can I do?’ and ‘What will become of you?’ seem laden with many emotions! The context reveals that the man and lady had been leading a love relationship and that the man had been trysting with the lady for a while. Perceiving that the man is not taking steps fast enough to seek the lady’s hand, the confidante speaks her mind to the lady. To the confidante, the lady replies, “The tall mountain country of the lord has a ‘vengai’ tree by the cascades. ‘What am I to do with him?’ you ask me. If I were not to consider that as something said as a joke, do you know what might have become of you, the one with a fine forehead?” With these words, the lady expresses her displeasure at the confidante’s censure of the man’s behaviour.
So many layers in so few lines! The lady starts with a description of the man’s country. As expected, this is a land with soaring mountain peaks, but what finds special mention in this hill country is the presence of a ‘vengai’ tree beside a cascade. Before we get into the significance of this tree, let’s see where the lady goes with her words. She repeats the words of the confidante, as the friend wonders ‘what is one to do with the man?’ Then, the lady pauses and says to her friend, ‘Just imagine if only I had not treated your words as those said for fun, what would have happened to you?’. In essence, the lady is telling her friend, ‘Don’t you dare talk such words about my man!’
In a soup, the confidante finds herself, no doubt! But, is it a soup that the confidante is making the lady cook intentionally? When the confidante wonders ‘what she is to do with the man?’, she is conveying her exasperation at the man’s delay in marrying the lady. To this, the lady responds that she’s going to treat those words of the confidante as those said in jest and concludes saying, ‘if at all you had meant it as the truth, I don’t know what I would have done to you!’ The lady is simply flying in fury at the confidante’s question. At this moment ,the significance of the ‘waterfall vengai’ seems to unravel. Initially, we wondered what was the connection between the waterfall and the ‘vengai’ tree. Now, from the flow of the verse, we understand that the lady wishes to impress on us that the ‘vengai’ tree is dependant on the flow of the cascades for its health and prosperity, and likewise, the lady seems to place a metaphor for her belief that the man would return, akin to the flowing waterfall, and render his graces so as to make her bloom like that lush ‘vengai’ tree! Hearing these words, although the confidante may pretend to be alarmed by the anger of the lady, inwardly she would smile knowing that the lady’s conviction would enable her to bear with the man’s absence. What a potent weapon is that shield of trust, sure to keep the demons of despair at bay!
Share your thoughts...