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In this episode, we perceive stunning similes regarding life and death, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Puranaanooru 27, penned about the Chozha king Nalankilli by the poet Uraiyoor Muthukannan Saathanaar. Set in the category of ‘Pothiviyial Thinai’ or ‘miscellaneous matters’, the verse renders words of advice to this Chozha king.
சேற்று வளர் தாமரை பயந்த, ஒண் கேழ்,
நூற்று இதழ் அலரின் நிரை கண்டன்ன,
வேற்றுமை இல்லா விழுத் திணைப் பிறந்து,
வீற்றிருந்தோரை எண்ணும்காலை,
உரையும் பாட்டும் உடையோர் சிலரே;
மரை இலை போல மாய்ந்திசினோர் பலரே;
‘புலவர் பாடும் புகழுடையோர் விசும்பின்
வலவன் ஏவா வான ஊர்தி
எய்துப என்ப, தம் செய் வினை முடித்து’ எனக்
கேட்பல்; எந்தை! சேட்சென்னி! நலங்கிள்ளி!
தேய்தல் உண்மையும், பெருகல் உண்மையும்,
மாய்தல் உண்மையும், பிறத்தல் உண்மையும்,
அறியாதோரையும் அறியக் காட்டி,
திங்கள் புத்தேள் திரிதரும் உலகத்து,
வல்லார் ஆயினும், வல்லுநர்ஆயினும்,
வருந்தி வந்தோர் மருங்கு நோக்கி,
அருள, வல்லை ஆகுமதி; அருள் இலர்
கொடாஅமை வல்லர் ஆகுக;
கெடாஅத துப்பின் நின் பகை எதிர்ந்தோரே.
After all those previous poems celebrating a Pandya king, the monarch who takes centerstage now is Chozhan NalanKilli, who happens to be the favourite patron of this poet Muthukannan Saathanaar. The poet’s words can be translated as follows:
“On the lotus that sprouts from the mud, akin to the hundreds of petals, glowing with a radiant hue arranged in ordered rows, there are many who have had a noble birth, and went on to live a royal life and reigned over subjects, without ups and down. When you consider that, of all those rulers, only a few are sung about and celebrated; Whereas those who have faded away like the leaves of that lotus are many indeed;
I have heard it said that ‘those who have the fame of being sung by poets, would climb on a driverless aerial chariot and take to the skies, once their work in this life is complete’. O father-like ruler! Setchenni! Nalankilli! The truth of fading, growing, dying and being born again, is showcased to those who know not, by the celestial moon that roams upon this earth. Here, whether they are capable or not, when they come with suffering and look up to you, be graceful and generous, O king! Let your foes, who stand against you with the fierce strength of enmity, be those without that grace or generosity!”
Time to delve into the nuances of this verse! The poet starts by bringing before our eyes, a luscious lotus flower. He mentions this flower as having hundreds of petals, which is his way of saying the flower is so densely packed. All these petals are glowing so luminously too. After imprinting that radiant image in our minds, the poet places that in parallel to the lives of kings who are born in great families and who go on to have a steady reign. He means to say countless are such kings, and then he zooms on to a select few among these kings who are sung about by poets. Then, to talk about the rest who perish away without name or fame, the poet again winds back to the lotus plant, and this time, points to its featureless and fading leaves. I don’t know about this poet but to me, the leaf of a lotus plant is even more fascinating than the flower in its message of living a life of detachment and objectivity. But that’s another story!
Returning to the verse, the poet continues by saying those who are sung about are said to part away on an unmanned aerial vehicle and take to the skies. Kudos to the poet’s imagination in conjuring vehicles that will ply the sky and that too without a human to ride them, a reality in today’s technology. Here, the poet simply means that such is the glory of those celebrated kings, that even their afterlife is said to be so eternal and magical. The poet brings in the phases of the moon to talk about how there’s fading away and then growing back again as well as dying completely and being born again, a subtle way of talking about the events of any person’s life on earth. And then, the poet shows the king the way to attain that immortal fame by asking him to be gracious and generous to those who come seeking to him, regardless of their talents or skills, and at the same time, casts a wish upon the king’s enemies to fade away without that fame because of the lack of that grace and generosity to seekers!
A refreshing verse that brings in gentle images of flowers and leaves as well as the waxing and waning moon to talk about the variability of what life could have in store. From another angle, it also portrays the truth that beyond the conquests, what matters in the end, is the compassion within!
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