Puranaanooru 399 – A wish fulfilled

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அடு மகள் முகந்த அளவா வெண்ணெல்
தொடி மாண் உலக்கைப் பரூஉக் குற்று அரிசி
காடி வெள் உலைக் கொளீஇ, நீழல்
ஓங்கு சினை மாவின் தீம் கனி நறும் புளி,
மோட்டு இரு வராஅல் கோட்டு மீன் கொழுங் குறை,
செறுவின் வள்ளை, சிறு கொடிப் பாகல்,
பாதிரி ஊழ் முகை அவிழ் விடுத்தன்ன
மெய் களைந்து, இனனொடு விரைஇ,
மூழ்ப்பப் பெய்த முழு அவிழ்ப் புழுக்கல்,
அழிகளின் படுநர் களி அட வைகின்,
பழஞ்சோறு அயிலும் முழங்கு நீர்ப் படப்பைக்
காவிரிக் கிழவன், மாயா நல் இசைக்
கிள்ளிவளவன் உள்ளி, அவற் படர்தும்;
செல்லேன் செல்லேன், பிறர் முகம் நோக்கேன்;

நெடுங் கழைத் தூண்டில் விடு மீன் நொடுத்து,
கிணைமகள் அட்ட பாவல் புளிங்கூழ்
பொழுது மறுத்து உண்ணும் உண்டியேன், அழிவு கொண்டு,
ஒரு சிறை இருந்தேன்; ‘என்னே! இனியே,
அறவர் அறவன், மறவர் மறவன்,
மள்ளர் மள்ளன், தொல்லோர் மருகன்,
இசையின் கொண்டான், நசை அமுது உண்க’ என,
மீப் படர்ந்து இறந்து, வன் கோல் மண்ணி,
வள் பரிந்து கிடந்த என் தெண்கண் மாக் கிணை
விசிப்புறுத்து அமைந்த புதுக் காழ்ப் போர்வை,
அலகின் மாலை ஆர்ப்ப வட்டித்து,
கடியும் உணவு என்னக் கடவுட்கும் தொடேன்,
‘கடுந் தேர் அள்ளற்கு அசாவா நோன் சுவல்
பகடே அத்தை யான் வேண்டி வந்தது’ என,
ஒன்று யான் பெட்டாஅளவை, அன்றே
ஆன்று விட்டனன் அத்தை, விசும்பின்
மீன் பூத்தன்ன உருவப் பல் நிரை
ஊர்தியொடு நல்கியோனே; சீர் கொள
இழுமென இழிதரும் அருவி,
வான் தோய் உயர் சிமைத் தோன்றிக் கோவே.

A long song containing a celebration of not one patron as usual but two. The poet’s words can be translated as follows:

“Measureless white paddy is gathered by a maiden who cooks, and using a huge pestle with a rope, it is made into pounded rice, and cooked in a white steaming pot. Fragrant, sour mixture, made from sweet fruits of mangoes on tall branches, fleshy meat of black murrel fish and horned fish, ‘vallai’ greens growing in the fields, bitter gourd hanging from small vines are the different foods had along with the fully cooked rice in a closed pot, made after removing the husk from paddy, akin to the blooming of a trumpet flower, by farmers working in the fields. Having had their fill of toddy in the evening, at dawn, they eat fermented old rice. Such is the land filled with fertile fields and roaring streams of the Kaveri, ruled by the leader Killivalavan, with unfading, fine fame. Intending to win his graces, I journey towards him; I don’t wish to see the faces of others and seek from them!

Catching fish with a long bamboo rod, and selling that, the female drummer cooked a sour tamarind gruel. Eating this at odd times, I remained filled with suffering on one side. To me, they said, ‘Why do you remain so? The righteous to the righteous, the courageous to the courageous, the valiant to the valiant, the scion of an ancient tribe, has learnt of your fame. Go and relish the ambrosia you desire’. Reflecting on this, I went and mended my drumming stick, and then took my clear-eyed huge kinai drum, whose strap had broken, and tied it with a new, sturdy strap. Making those garland-like straps quiver, I beat on my drum, and without offering food or prayers to the god in my drum, I went thither. Even before I could petition saying, ‘All I seek is a strong bull that can pull a cart with speed even in the mud seamlessly’, right that moment, he rendered unto me, numerous cattle, akin to blooming stars in the sky, along with the cart too- That great lord of Thondri, from whose sky-soaring peaks, cascades come down, roaring with music!”

Let’s delve into the details. The poet starts with a long list of all the food that is savoured by farmers of the Chozha country. He begins by talking about how a cook gathers so much paddy, without even bothering to measure it, and then pounds this on a pestle and cooks it in a pot. Leaving this rice to cook, the poet then goes on to talk about a sour foodstuff made from sweet mango fruits. I was immediately reminded of the sweet and sour ‘mango chutney’, an Indian delicacy, the memory of which is making my mouth water right now! Moving on, the poet talks about different types of fish, then greens in the fields and bitter gourd, a vegetable with incredible benefits for diabetics. As we can see, these farmers seem to have a well-balanced diet full of protein, vegetables and grains. The poet returns to the paddy he had spoken about earlier and tells us how the husk is removed, making it look like a trumpet flower in the process and then this is fully cooked. The hardworking farmers relax with toddy in the evening and then have this old, fermented rice in the morning, said to have many health benefits. Such is the land of the Chozha king Killivalavan, where the River Kaveri graces with her prosperity, connects the poet. He says he had decided that he will only seek the graces of this king and not think of any other. 

With such a vow, he had been for a long time, and poverty struck him, says the poet, describing how this was a time he ate at odd times, whatever the female drummer, his wife, brought home by selling the fish that she caught with a long bamboo rod. It shows the enterprise of this woman, doesn’t it? She waits not for her husband as was the custom then to bring all that rice and rich food and manages to keep the family going. The story of many an unsung woman across the centuries and across the miles!

Returning, we find the poet eating the tamarind gruel she has made and feeling sorrowful about his state. When we ask him why doesn’t he go to the Chozha king and attain all he wants, he doesn’t answer us! But instead, he talks about how others came to him and scolded him for remaining there. They told him that a great leader, renowned for his courage, justice, talent and ancestry had heard about this poet’s fame and was desirous of meeting him. So, these people ask him to go there and get whatever he wants. So, the poet thinks about it and then decides that’s the right course of action. Probably he reasons that he is not seeking this leader on his own and pleading to him, but the leader himself wishes to see the poet. So, he mends his broken drumming stick and the straps on his Kinai drum, and without even waiting to offer food or prayers, which would delay his journey, he heads to the leader’s place. There, even before he could complete his request and ask the leader, ‘All I want is a bull that can pull my cart through mud with ease’, the leader provides him with a cart and cattle, countless like the stars in the sky. Such was the generosity of ruler of Thondri hills, where cascades descend with a melodious uproar, concludes the poet.

In that request this poet puts forth to the leader, we can infer the reason he has not gone directly to the one and only Chozha King Killivalavan. Possibly he was incapacitated by losing a bull on his journey to the court of this king. The poet’s name also indicates that he could be a differently-abled person, who requires a cart and oxen to take long journeys. This would explain why he could not immediately reach the gates of that generous Chozha king, but is able to visit this leader, who probably lives close to where the poet was. Also, even to this leader the poet meets, all the poet wants to ask for, is a bull, which is an unusual request among all the ones we have seen this far. A verse that lets us ponder upon and infer so many intricate details about the lives of our ancient ancestors!