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In this episode, we listen to the beat of a passionate heart, as echoed by Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 129, penned by Koperunchozhan, a poet-king. The verse is situated in the hills of ‘Kurinji’ and speaks in the voice of the man to his friend, explaining the reason for the recent changes in him.
எலுவ! சிறாஅர் ஏமுறு நண்ப!
புலவர் தோழ! கேளாய் அத்தை;
மாக் கடல் நடுவண் எண் நாள் பக்கத்துப்
பசு வெண் திங்கள் தோன்றியாங்குக்
கதுப்பு அயல் விளங்கும் சிறுநுதல்
புதுக் கோள் யானையின் பிணித்தற்றால் எம்மே.
‘Tied by strong ropes’ is the lasting image in this one. The opening words begin in a different vein in ‘எலுவ! சிறாஅர் ஏமுறு நண்ப’ meaning ‘My dearest friend, one who brings joy to children’. Sounds like someone who’s fun to be with! After salutations, the focus falls on ‘மாக் கடல்’ meaning ‘dark ocean’ and ‘எண் நாள் பக்கத்துப் பசு வெண் திங்கள்’ which specifically talks about ‘the fresh white moon on its eighth day’. From elements of land, the verse turns to ‘கதுப்பு’ referring to ‘thick tresses’ and ‘சிறுநுதல்’ or ‘fine little forehead’. Next, it’s the turn of a new captive elephant to appear in ‘புதுக் கோள் யானை’. Ending with the words ‘பிணித்தற்றால் எம்மே’ meaning ‘bound by it, I am’, the verse piques our interest.
In so tiny a verse, such vast things as the ocean and the elephant – What significance do these elements hold? The context reveals that the man had met the lady and fallen in love with her. Fortunately for him, the lady too seemed to reciprocate his feelings. Due to the flurry of emotions, the man seems a little disturbed in the eyes of his friend and this friend questions the man about it. To him, the man says, “O companion! You are a friend whom children delight in and you are an associate of philosophers too. Listen to this! Appearing like the eighth-day young, white moon amidst the dark seas, that little forehead near thick tresses has tied me with the ropes around a newly captured elephant!” With these words, the man explains to his puzzled friend that his heart has been captured by a young girl he met recently.
Layers of similes are stitched seamlessly in this tapestry of love’s first stirrings. The first thing that wows us is the way the man addresses his friend by calling him, someone who is a delight to young children and also one, who is at ease in the company of philosopher-poets. In short, a charming character, who is seen as a friend to both young and old, and who can be a fun companion as well as a wise counsellor. After pouring these praises on his friend, the man asks him to listen carefully. He then talks about the young moon on its eighth day, as it appears in the middle of the dark ocean. This eighth day seems to have religious significance in many cultures for it is the half way point from a new moon to a full moon or vice versa. On the eighth day, the crescent is half of that milky sphere in our night sky, the muse of poets over eons many. Returning, we get the experience of an ‘aha’ moment ,when we learn that the man has been talking about the crescent moon and the dark seas only to sketch the similar appearance of the lady’s glowing forehead amidst her black tresses. And then, the man tells us like how a newly captured elephant would be bound, he finds himself tied by that fine forehead of the lady.
Why does the man specifically talk about a newly captured elephant and not just any old elephant? As days pass by after captivity, the elephants slowly become used to their mahouts and accept their state, and perhaps, these pachyderms are then given their freedom. But, just imagine, a newly caught elephant – it is still wild and will struggle to break free. It is no wonder that the capturers use the strongest of ropes to bind the giant. And, it’s the strength of those ropes that the man stresses in the bond of attachment he feels with the lady. Be it in the description of the seas and the moon, or the elephant and the ropes, the verse etches the effect of the lady and the emotions she evokes in the man with elegant equals from elements of land and nature!
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