Kurunthogai 145 – Unending nights of a village

July 30, 2021

In this episode, we perceive the indignation in a lady about how the world around receives her sorrow, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kurunthogai 145, penned by Kollan Azhisiyaar. Set in the coastal regions of ‘Neythal’, the verse speaks in the voice of the lady to her confidante, one night, when the man is away, seeking wealth to win her hand.

உறை பதி அன்று, இத் துறை கெழு சிறுகுடி-
கானல்அம் சேர்ப்பன் கொடுமை எற்றி,
ஆனாத் துயரமொடு வருந்தி, பானாள்
துஞ்சாது உறைநரொடு உசாவாத்
துயில் கண் மாக்களொடு நெட்டிரா உடைத்தே.

‘Long and lonely nights’ is the one-liner of this verse! In the opening words ‘உறை பதி அன்று’ meaning ‘not a suitable place to live’, there’s a judgement being made about own’s town. The phrases ‘துறை கெழு சிறுகுடி’ meaning ‘a village situated near the shores’ and ‘கானல்அம் சேர்ப்பன்’ meaning ‘lord of the seas’ situate the verse firmly in the coastal regions of ancient Tamilakam, which had the distinction of being surrounded by seas on three sides. The words ‘ஆனாத் துயரமொடு வருந்தி’ establish the state of mind of the lady for it means ‘worrying with unceasing sorrow’. A sharp contrast can be seen between the two phrases ‘துஞ்சாது உறைநர்’ meaning ‘those who are unable to sleep’ and ‘துயில் கண் மாக்கள்’ meaning ‘people with sleeping eyes’. Ending with the words ‘நெட்டிரா உடைத்தே’ meaning ‘long nights, it has’, the verse welcomes us to explore more.

Sleep is the single predominant thought in this one! The context reveals that the man and lady were leading a love relationship when the man parted with the lady to gather wealth for their wedding. The lady missed his presence and was anxious for his return. One night, she turns to her confidante and says, “This seaside hamlet is not the right place for us to reside. Thinking about the misery inflicted by the lord of the shores, suffering with unceasing sorrow, are those who sleep not at midnight. But, this village does not seem to care about them, for all its people are sleeping away. A village that has long nights, indeed!” With these words, the lady is conveying her ire that the world around seemed not to care about her suffering.

Why does the lady come to this conclusion and what significance does that hold? The lady starts with a simple declaration that where they were, was not the right place for them. Then, she talks about the cruelty of the lord of the shores. It makes me want to ask, ‘Dear lady, hasn’t he gone just for the sake of seeking your hand in marriage? Why do you call him cruel?’ But, those in pain focus not on logic, only the throbbing emotion within, I suppose. Then she declares, here I am, unable to catch a single wink of sleep while all the people of this town are happily dozing off, with an unbelieving shake of her head, and ends with the words that nights seemed to be particularly long-drawn in their uncaring village.

The lady is exhibiting those feelings of anyone in the midst of a sadness that affects just them. It appears as if the whole world is happy and without a worry whereas the only person suffering in all of humanity is the very person feeling those emotions. That’s a typical victim thinking that our minds force us into, at many times. This is one way of looking at this verse. The other way is to wonder if the lady is talking about the lack of care in her confidante by projecting it on the town. Could she be saying to her confidante, here I am full of suffering and you are happily sleeping, not caring about me? Even if she was indirectly scolding her friend, we must appreciate her for not hurting her friend’s feelings with a direct accusation but by placing that reaction on the town. In any case, the expression of grief and possibly, some actions taken by the confidante, will hopefully shorten the lady’s long nights in their village!

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