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In this episode, we perceive the fierce attack of pining in winter, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 104, penned by Kaavanmullai Poothanaar. Set in the drylands of ‘Paalai’, the verse speaks in the voice of the lady to her confidante, expressing how difficult it is for her, to bear with the man’s parting.
அம்ம வாழி, தோழி! காதலர்,
நூல் அறு முத்தின் தண் சிதர் உறைப்ப,
தாளித் தண் பவர் நாள் ஆ மேயும்
பனி படு நாளே, பிரிந்தனர்;
பிரியும் நாளும் பல ஆகுபவே!
‘Moist and cold’ is the texture of this verse! Beginning with the most repeated phrase in Sangam Lit ‘அம்ம வாழி, தோழி’ meaning ‘Listen, my friend, blessings to you’, the verse reveals the graceful manner of requesting a friend’s attention. In the words ‘நூல் அறு முத்தின்’ meaning ‘pearls on a broken string’, we see a favoured metaphor in the mind of many an author. ‘தாளித் தண் பவர்’ meaning ‘cool vines of the morning glory’ mentions one of the ten sacred flowers in Kerala, which is even now known as ‘Thiruthali’, the same word used in this ancient verse, yet again symbolising the bridges between the southern states of Kerala and Tamilnadu. The season of separation can be sensed in ‘பனி படு நாளே, பிரிந்தனர்’ meaning ‘he parted away on a cold day’. Ending with the words ‘பிரியும் நாளும் பல ஆகுபவே’ meaning ‘many are the days of being separated’, the verse rings with the angst of a lady.
Pearls on a string and a cold morning seem to hold within a poetic story of parting! The context reveals that the man and lady had been leading a married life when the man parted away on a mission. After many days had gone by, the confidante found the lady in a languished state and tried to console her. To her friend, the lady says, “Listen, my friend, may you live long! Cool dewdrops, akin to pearls on a broken string, spread on the moist ‘thaali’ vines, which is grazed upon by a cow on a late winter day. That is when my lover parted away. The days of separation have since been many indeed!”. With these words, the lady conveys that the season makes it impossible for her to bear with the man’s continued absence.
What are the nuances hiding in this verse? The lady offers a blessing upon her friend and requests that she listen to her. Then, turning her focus on the dewdrops dotting a ‘morning glory’ vine, she places these in parallel to pearls that spread on a broken string. From the plant, the lady turns her attention to a cow feeding on it and mentions that such scenes are unfolding on a winter’s day. She reveals the reason why she’s talking about this incident when she mentions the winter day as the one the man parted, and adds that since that parting, many days had passed away!
Whether many days had truly passed away or it appears so to the lovelorn lady is a debatable question. In any case, these ancients strongly believed that those in love were not meant to be separated in the cold season and that’s why this lady feels the pain of parting even more sharply. In the reference to cows grazing on vines on that cold winter day, there is a yearning in the lady’s voice that even cattle are finding what they seek, whereas she is doomed to remain away from her man. What a safe world these Sangam people have lived in, for their only worry seems to be bearing with parting! No wonder it’s the safety and security of their lives made them turn inward and pay the matters of the heart all the precise attention it requires!
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