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In this episode, we perceive the contentment in a lady, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 193, penned by Arisil Kizhaar. Set in the forests of ‘Mullai’, the verse speaks in the voice of the lady to the confidante, in response to the confidante’s comment, when she visited the lady in her marital home.
மட்டம் பெய்த மணிக் கலத்தன்ன
இட்டு வாய்ச் சுனைய பகுவாய்த் தேரை,
தட்டைப் பறையின், கறங்கும் நாடன்
தொல்லைத் திங்கள் நெடு வெண்ணிலவின்
மணந்தனன்மன் எம் தோளே;
இன்றும், முல்லை முகை நாறும்மே.
‘Even today…’ would be the poetic prompt in this one! The opening words ‘மட்டம் பெய்த மணிக் கலம்’ meaning ‘a sapphire-hued vessel in which toddy has been poured’ illustrates the ancient way of liquor storage and serving. In ‘இட்டு வாய்ச் சுனை’, we glance at a ‘narrow mouthed forest pool’. In contrast to the pool’s narrow mouth is ‘பகுவாய்த் தேரை’ or ‘the wide-mouthed toad’ that lives there. In contemporary Tamil, the word ‘தொல்லை’ means trouble, but in this verse, it means ‘the past’ as it appears in ‘தொல்லைத் திங்கள்’. Ending with the words ‘இன்றும் முல்லை முகை நாறும்மே’ meaning ‘even today, it has the scent of wild jasmine buds’, the verse intrigues our interest.
Toddy and toads seem to hold a hidden significance here. The context reveals that the man and lady were recently married. The lady’s confidante visits her friend in her new home. Seeing the lady, the confidante appreciates her for bearing well with the man’s separation before their marriage. To the confidante, the lady replies, “Akin to a blue vessel filled with toddy is the narrow-mouthed pool, from where wide-mouthed toads croak, with a sound akin to the ‘thattai’ rattle. Such scenes are seen in the man’s country. One day in the past, when the night was glowing with a waxing moon, he embraced my shoulder. Even today, it wafts with the fragrance of wild jasmine buds.” With these words, the lady tells the confidante the man was the sole reason for her sustaining the separation then and for her satisfaction now.
Sounds like words of bliss! Let’s explore the nuances. The lady starts by talking about a narrow-mouthed forest pool. To bring it vividly before the eyes of the listener, she compares it to a sapphire-coloured vessel holding sweet toddy within. Then, moving towards the forest pool, the lady points to the loud sounds emanating and tells us that this arises from the wide mouths of toads living there. Just like how she brought a sight alive, now, she brings a sound alive, in talking about how this is exactly like a rattle device, which is used by unmarried maiden to chase away parrots from their parents’ millet fields. Mentioning those sights and sounds to describe the man’s country, the lady continues by recollecting a night in the past, when the man happened to embrace her shoulders and she concludes by adding, that her shoulders smell of wild jasmine flowers to this day.
What could be the connection between the man’s embrace and the fragrance of wild jasmine? Apparently there is, as wild jasmine buds were worn as garlands by men then. It makes me smile to think how jasmines, the epitome of South Indian femininity today, was a masculine element in that ancient past. Returning, when the lady says that she can smell the jasmines even today, she means the man’s touch and scent is etched in her mind. With that, she implies the man’s love expressed thus long ago made her bear with the separation. The lady is in fact brushing off a compliment rendered to her by her friend and diverting it to her man. Perhaps, such modesty was expected of women then. Even today, in many eastern cultures, compliments are refused, unlike the West, where these are welcomed and relished. And, this Sangam lady is probably demonstrating an early instance of this cultural norm.
Leaving aside cultural nuances, if we reflect on the layers of this verse, its multi-sensory dimensions would reveal itself. Be it in the taste of the toddy, sight of a forest pool, the sound of toad’s croak, the touch of the man’s embrace and the scent of his wild jasmines, it’s a treat for the senses, one after the other. Like the toads happily croaking when surrounded by the moisture of the pool, the lady too seemed to be delighting in the love of her man and the bliss of her new home. Time to part with the lady and the confidante in their joyful reunion and ponder on how you would complete this prompt for recollecting the persisting power of a pleasant, past moment – ‘Even today…’!
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