Kurunthogai 200 – Flowers in a forest stream

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பெய்த குன்றத்துப் பூ நாறு தண் கலுழ்
மீமிசைத் தாஅய், வீஇ சுமந்து வந்து
இழிதரும் புனலும்; வாரார்-தோழி!-
மறந்தோர் மன்ற; மறவாம் நாமே-
கால மாரி மாலை மா மலை
இன் இசை உருமினம் முரலும்
முன் வரல் ஏமம் செய்து அகன்றோரே.

‘It is the real rains’ claims this verse! The opening line ‘பெய்த குன்றத்துப் பூ நாறு’ meaning ‘having the scent of flowers in the mountains where rains poured’ showcase the consequence of the recent showers. In ‘வீஇ சுமந்து வந்து’, we see the picturesque sight of a stream ‘bearing fallen flowers’. ‘வாரார்’ meaning ‘he comes not’ proclaims the central theme here. A deep inference can be seen in ‘மறந்தோர் மன்ற மறவாம் நாமே’ meaning ‘He has forgotten but we can’t’. Hinting about the types of rain in the Tamil country appears the word ‘கால மாரி’ which means ‘timely rains’. Learnt that there’s another diagonally opposite word, ‘வம்ப மாரி’, meaning ‘untimely rains’, about which we shall explore shortly. The phrase ‘இன் இசை உருமினம்’ meaning ‘roaring with a sweet music’ talks about thunder during the rains. Ending with the words ‘முன் வரல் ஏமம் செய்து அகன்றோரே’ meaning ‘he parted away after promising to come before that’, the verse beckons us to listen with empathy.

Every word of this verse seems drenched in moisture! The context reveals that the man and lady were leading a married life when the man parted away to gather wealth. As he leaves, the man promises to return before the rains. Seeing the changes in the weather, the lady languishes and to console her, the confidante tells her that these were not the real rains. To the confidante, the lady says, “Wafting with the scent of flowers in the peak where rains poured, the cool, muddy water comes down as a cascade, bearing fallen flowers spread all over its surface. And, he still does not arrive, my friend. He has forgotten indeed, but I can’t! Just as he parted away, he had promised to come the evening before the seasonal rain resounded from the huge mountain with the sweet music of roaring thunder!” With these words, the lady refuses to accept the confidante’s words of consolation and expresses her anguish at the delay in the man’s return.

Why did the confidante’s words fall flat? Let’s investigate by reversing to the context and also listening closely to the lady’s words. Signs that the rains have started appear before the lady and the confidante. Seeing the lady shudder in worry, the confidante tries to console her saying, this is not the seasonal downpour but random summer rains that will pass away. When she hears these words, the lady points to the gushing muddy stream outside, zooming on to the many flowers hurrying along and mentions how these rushing waters are fragrant with the scent of flowers, not growing in their forests, but those rare flowers of the mountains, because that’s where the rains have poured. This is a logical refusal to accept her friend’s reassuring words. You say it’s just summer rains, tell me, will a passing shower cause such changes in the forest stream, the lady asks intelligently.

Following this, the lady mentions that the man has still not returned and concludes that he has indeed forgotten about her but she says dejectedly that she is unable to do the same. When we ask the lady, why is it time to worry now, she responds by recollecting the man’s words. Before he left on his journey, he seems to have turned to his lady and said, ‘Don’t worry, I will be back the evening before the seasonal rains start pouring in the mountains and before the sky starts roaring with the music of thunder’. He said that, didn’t he, but it’s raining in the mountains and no sign of him, as he promised, laments the lady. Hope the confidante will rise to the occasion and come up with the words of comfort the lady needs. 

Let’s turn to the curious way time is marked in the minds of this Sangam couple. Today, when anyone close to us leaves on a trip, we ask them ‘when will you be back’, and they would respond and that response would most probably be a combination of day, month and year, just a number. However two thousand years ago, it was rains and flowers that marked the passing of time. Isn’t that a fuller, richer way of living, in full awareness of the world around rather than shrinking our existence into numbers, as we seem to continue in many realms of today’s life, be it the likes on a social media post, the annual turnover of a business person, the GDP of a nation and so on. What say we say, ‘no’ to more and more numbers to fully embrace the glowing embers of life’s fleeting moments?