Natrinai 376 – Message for the man

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முறஞ்செவி யானைத் தடக் கையின் தடைஇ
இறைஞ்சிய குரல பைந் தாட் செந் தினை,
வரையோன் வண்மை போல, பல உடன்
கிளையோடு உண்ணும் வளைவாய்ப் பாசினம்!
குல்லை, குளவி, கூதளம், குவளை,
இல்லமொடு மிடைந்த ஈர்ந் தண் கண்ணியன்,
சுற்று அமை வில்லன், செயலைத் தோன்றும்
நல் தார் மார்பன், காண்குறின், சிறிய
நன்கு அவற்கு அறிய உரைமின்; பிற்றை
அணங்கும் அணங்கும் போலும்? அணங்கி,
வறும் புனம் காவல் விடாமை
அறிந்தனிர்அல்லிரோ, அறன் இல் யாயே?

Opening with ‘முறஞ்செவி யானை’ meaning ‘an elephant with ears that look like a winnow’, the verse highlights the extraordinary talent of Sangam poets in connecting disparate things, that too with sparse words. From the ears of the elephant, the verse journeys to its curved trunk in ‘தடக் கை’. When an animal is being talked about, shortly thereafter, a plant will be mentioned and this can be seen in ‘பைந் தாட் செந் தினை’ meaning ‘fresh stalks of red millets’. ‘வரையோன்’ is the term endowed on ‘a patron’, who renders charity to his suppliants. The recipient of these words is addressed as ‘வளைவாய்ப் பாசினம்’ meaning ‘green parrots with curved mouths’. A bouquet of flowers greets us in ‘குல்லை, குளவி, கூதளம், குவளை, இல்லம்’ referring to the ‘wild basil’, ‘tree jasmine’, ‘three-lobed nightshade’, ‘white water-lily’ and ‘clearing nut tree’s flower’ respectively. Just as we are melting in the heady fragrance of this floral storm, our eyes delight in the sight of a ‘செயலை’, commonly called as the ‘Ashoka tree’. The verse ends with ‘அறன் இல் யாயே’ meaning ‘mother who lacks justice’ and intrigues our curiosity!

The man and lady had been leading a love relationship and the man had been trysting with the lady for a while. One day, seeing him arrive by the lady’s house, pretending not to notice him, the confidante speaks to a parrot saying, “O green parrot with a curved beak! Akin to the winnow-eared elephant’s huge, curved trunk, fresh stalks of the red millets are bent. Seeing the millet field like the charity of a benevolent patron, you feed with your many kith and kin. If you get to see the man who wears a moist and cool head-garland, woven with basil, jasmine, nightshade, lily and flower of the ‘illam’; the one who holds a well-tied bow; the one who will appear by the ‘seyalai’ tree with a fine garland on his chest; please share this little message to make him understand. Shortly hereafter, it looks as if god is about to cause distress to her! Now, causing much distress, our unjust mother has barred her from guarding the dried millet fields. You know this well, don’t you?” With these words, the confidante conveys to the listening man that the lady has been confined to the house and indirectly presses on the need to seek the lady’s hand in marriage.

Now, for the nuances! The confidante opens with a series of intricately stitched similes in her address to the parrot. At first, she talks about how the ears of an elephant look like a winnowing tray that is used to separate the chaff from grains. Then, she turns her attention to the curved trunk of this elephant and places it in parallel to the curved stalks of red millets. These are curved because they are full-grown and bending under the weight of their cobs. She finishes this series with yet another comparison between the field of millets, and a benevolent patron, who never says ‘no’ to his suppliants. The beauty of this simile can be sensed when you imagine how there would always be a crowd of seekers around that patron and so too, these flock of parrots crowd around the millet field to feed to their full! 

After completing this multi-layered salute, the confidante then turns to describe the man. When describing a woman, we have seen how the appearance of her eyes, forehead, tresses and skin is called in. But, when describing a man, it’s the objects he holds or wears that comes to the fore. The confidante describes him as one wearing a multitude of flowers as his head-garland. Unlike the case today, flowers are not just for women, we come to know, from this statement. The man, in addition to wearing the head-garland, woven with five different mountain flowers, also seems to be wearing a garland on his chest and carries a sturdy, well-tied bow. If the parrot is still in confusion, the confidante explains that the man can be found near the ‘seyalai’ tree. Let us meander for a moment to know a little more about this tree. The ‘seyalai’ tree is said to the tree popularly known as the ‘Ashoka tree’. This made me wonder which Ashoka tree! For, over time, the species of ‘Saraca Indica’, the actual ‘Ashoka’ tree, and ‘Polyalthia longifolia’, which is now identified as the ‘Indian mast tree’ or ‘False Ashoka’, have been frequently mistaken for the other, because of their close resemblance. So, how can you differentiate the two? The answer lies in the colour of the flowers – ‘Ashoka tree’ gives out red flowers, whereas the flowers of the ‘False Ashoka’ are pale green. The ‘Seyalai’ tree mentioned in Sangam literature is said to have red, fire-like flowers and thus, we can conclude that it is indeed the ‘Ashoka tree’!

Returning to the verse, we find the confidante telling the parrots that after locating the man, they must pass on a message to him and this message is that there is a possibility of the Velan’s ritual being performed so as to appease god. This would add further distress to the lady, who is already suffering unable to see the man, because she has been confined to the house, owing to mother’s unfair actions. By conveying these words, the confidante hopes to impress upon the man how imperative it is to seek the lady’s hand and alleviate her suffering. The poem reveals to us the inextricable bond felt by the ancients with the life around them, when we see how they seek a parrot’s support in their intimate journey of love!