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In this episode, we perceive the urgency in a request, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Puranaanooru 139, penned about the Velir King Naanjil Valluvan by the poet Maruthan Ilanaakanaar. Set in the category of ‘Paadaan Thinai’, the verse sketches those accompanying this poet and their demand to the king.
சுவல் அழுந்தப் பல காய
சில் ஓதிப் பல் இளைஞருமே,
அடி வருந்த நெடிது ஏறிய
கொடி மருங்குல் விறலியருமே,
வாழ்தல் வேண்டிப்
பொய் கூறேன்; மெய் கூறுவல்;
ஓடாப் பூட்கை உரவோர் மருக!
உயர் சிமைய உழாஅ நாஞ்சில் பொருந!
மாயா உள்ளமொடு பரிசில் துன்னி,
கனி பதம் பார்க்கும் காலை அன்றே;
ஈதல் ஆனான், வேந்தே; வேந்தற்குச்
சாதல் அஞ்சாய், நீயே; ஆயிடை,
இரு நிலம் மிளிர்ந்திசினாஅங்கு, ஒரு நாள்,
அருஞ் சமம் வருகுவதுஆயின்,
வருந்தலும் உண்டு, என் பைதல் அம் கடும்பே.
Another song of supplication by this poet to this king of a smaller domain. The poet’s words can be translated as follows:
“With wounds caused by straps pressing against their shoulders, are these short-haired youth. With them are dancing maiden with waists akin to vines and aching feet, after their climb of your tall hill. For the sake of these lives, I shall not lie but speak only the truth, O scion of brave ancestors who never shirked the battlefield, O lord of the high country of Naanjil that cannot be used to plough!
This is not the time for me to wait patiently with a hoping heart, desiring for the gifts you would render; The king whom you support showers his generosity on you, and for this king, you would never fear to give even your life; And so, splitting the land into two, one day, if a terrible battle were to come upon us, then my woe-filled kin are sure to suffer!”
Time to take a closer look. The poet details the state of the people who have come with him, seeking this king’s favour. They are young men with short hair, possibly attendants and they are seen carrying heavy musical instruments. The weight of the instrument and the distance journeyed can be vividly sensed in the scars made by the leather straps on their shoulders. Next, the poet turns to talk about the singing-dancing women called ‘Viraliyar’, who are said to have waists as thin as vines, and who are now exhausted after the long climb to this king’s country. Now, the poet declares that even though the happy lives of all these people depend on his words, he’s not going to lie but speak the truth and nothing but the truth. He then addresses the king with two epithets – one as the heir of ancestors who have never run away from the battlefield. Must be high praise in those times, for we repeatedly see this reference in many a Puranaanooru poem. The other address is that the king is the lord of Naanjil, which cannot be used to plough. While this line looks confusing, the meaning can be inferred from the knowledge that the word ‘Naanjil’, which is the name of this king’s town, was also how a plough was referred to, in Sangam times. Only to differentiate the two, the poet uses this marker.
Then, the poet outlines why it is imperative that he ask the king for his gifts immediately with no delay whatsoever. He details how the Chera King, a great friend of this Naanjil Valluvan, would never refuse him anything and King Naanjil too would give his very life for this Chera king. Such is the bond between the two, and if tomorrow, a deadly war were to erupt, then King Naanjil would be gone and there would not be a single person to slay the suffering of all his kith and kin, the poet concludes.
Isn’t it curious how this poet is saying to this king, ‘You are going to leave to the battlefield anytime your superior king summons you. Who knows what may happen then? So, better give me my goods right now!’? While it looks harsh and unfeeling when seen from this angle, the poet is perhaps revealing that no other king can allay the suffering of his kin and save these lives other than this Naanjil Valluvan, and also, the historical fact about the support and bond shared between the Chera king and this ruler of a small country. A verse that seems to tells us that sometimes we shouldn’t wait and delay but seize the moment and ask what we need then and there!
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