Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | Android | iHeartRadio | Email | TuneIn | RSS | More
In this episode, we perceive the suffering in a king’s heart, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Puranaanooru 74, penned by the Chera King Kanaikkaal Irumporai. The verse is situated in the category of ‘Pothuviyal Thinai’ or ‘miscellaneous matters’ and talks about honour in the birth and life of rulers.
குழவி இறப்பினும், ஊன்தடி பிறப்பினும்,
‘ஆள் அன்று’ என்று வாளின் தப்பார்;
தொடர்ப் படு ஞமலியின் இடர்ப்படுத்து இரீஇய
கேள் அல் கேளிர் வேளாண் சிறு பதம்,
மதுகை இன்றி, வயிற்றுத் தீத் தணிய,
தாம் இரந்து உண்ணும் அளவை
ஈன்மரோ, இவ் உலகத்தானே?
A short song that is high on emotion! We continue in the series of songs sung not by poets but by kings, talking about a particular moment in their life. In this case, it’s the Chera King Irumporai, known for his strength and valour in battle. This famous king happens to be taken a prisoner by his Chozha contemporary and his feelings as he languishes there, is vividly captured in this poem. The king’s words can be translated as follows:
“Even if a foetus is born dead or is born as a mere mass of flesh, they will not be spared a death by the sword, considering them as ‘not a person’. Akin to a chained dog, I have been imprisoned and made to suffer by these people, who have no friendship towards me. And yet, I am in such a state lacking strength that I beg to them for a small measure of water to quench the fire in my stomach. How could my parents have given birth to such a person upon this world?”
Let’s listen closely to the layers of emotion in this verse. The king starts by telling us how when a child is stillborn or born with defects in a royal household, that child will not be simply discarded thinking that they cannot be called as ‘people’. Even those beings will be given a warrior’s death by sword before burying them, the king informs us. From that mention of their tradition, the king moves to his state just then. Unable to bear the thirst and burning, he seems to have pleaded for water to those prison guards, whom he describes as those who have no friendship towards him. And being who they are, they seem to have brought it to him after much delay. After drinking that water to appease his physical discomfort, the king now finds himself in mental discomfort. His mind now torments him for being in such a state of pleading to the enemy for food. His mind goes to the moment of his birth and wonders how his parents could have brought such a being into the world!
A verse that is drenched in shame and self-pity! The king seems to consider himself lower than the stillborn or the just-born gob of flesh. A time when so much importance was placed on a king’s honour and role in life. If at all the king could have seen himself as yet another being on this earth, struggling to exist, he may not have been so hard on himself. Perhaps we can choose to walk the opposite path, and unlike this king, find our way to self-compassion and a more peaceful life!
Share your thoughts...