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In this episode, we perceive a passionate attempt at persuasion, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 270, penned by Saakalaasanaar. The verse is situated amidst the blooming blue lilies of the ‘Neythal’ or ‘Coastal Landscape’ and etches the scenes of loneliness and lament in this domain.
இருங் கழி மலர்ந்த வள் இதழ் நீலம்,
புலாஅல் மறுகின் சிறுகுடிப் பாக்கத்து
இன மீன் வேட்டுவர், ஞாழலொடு மிலையும்
மெல் அம் புலம்ப! நெகிழ்ந்தன, தோளே;
சேயிறாத் துழந்த நுரை பிதிர்ப் படு திரை
பராஅரைப் புன்னை வாங்கு சினைத் தோயும்
கானல்அம் பெருந் துறை நோக்கி, இவளே,
கொய் சுவற் புரவிக் கை வண் கோமான்
நல் தேர்க் குட்டுவன் கழுமலத்து அன்ன,
அம் மா மேனி தொல் நலம் தொலைய,
துஞ்சாக் கண்ணள் அலமரும்; நீயே,
கடவுள் மரத்த முள் மிடை குடம்பைச்
சேவலொடு புணராச் சிறு கரும் பேடை
இன்னாது உயங்கும் கங்குலும்,
நும் ஊர் உள்ளுவை; நோகோ, யானே.
In this trip to the shore, we get to see familiar sights and also take a short detour to a historic town, as we listen to the confidante say these words to the man, when he arrives to tryst with the lady, by day:
“Those who live in the flesh-reeking streets of the seaside hamlet, those hunters of shoals of fish, adorn themselves with thick-petaled blue lotus flowers, blooming in the vast backwaters, along with the tigerclaw flowers, in your gentle shores, O lord! Her arms have thinned away! Resounding waves filled with spraying foam, muddled by red shrimps, splash against the curving branch of the broad-trunked, laurelwood tree in the orchard-filled huge shore. As she keeps looking in the direction of that shore, the old beauty of her exquisite, dark complexion, akin to the town of ‘Kazhumalam’, ruled by Kuttuvan, who wields fine chariots, a leader renowned for his generosity, having horses with swaying manes, becomes utterly ruined, and she suffers with sleepless eyes. Upon that tree, on which god resides, perched on a nest made of thorns, a small black female bird, unable to unite with its mate, laments ceaselessly in this dark midnight hour. Even at such a time, you are thinking of leaving to your town. Oh! I’m filled with anguish!”
Time to take a dip in those ancient waves! The confidante starts with a description of the man’s shore, talking about how people who live in flesh-reeking streets wear the fragrant flowers of the blue lotus and the tigerclaw on their heads. Then, from the man’s place, she moves on to talk about the lady’s thinning arms, and compares the lady’s beauty to the town of ‘Kazhumalam’, ruled by the famous Chera King Kuttuvan, in the Sangam trademark style of equating beauty with a town. The confidante has mentioned that great beauty only to say it’s now becoming ruined every time the lady keeps looking in the direction of the orchard, where the waves dash against the low-hanging branch of a laurelwood tree, perhaps the spot of the lady’s tryst with the man. The confidante talks about how the lady’s eyes turn sleepless owing to all this. She mentions how without understanding all this, the man was talking about leaving to his town at night, a time when a lonely red-naped ibis would call to its mate ceaselessly and torment the lady further. The confidante concludes by declaring that she knows not what to do!
The truth is the confidante knows perfectly well what is to be done and that’s for the man to give up his temporary trysting and seek the lady’s hand. This is her subtle way of portraying the lady’s precarious situation, while highlighting the lady’s love for the man. Hearing this, no doubt the man would change his ways and do the right thing. A verse which makes me want to ask, ‘Is the confidante just a companion, or a caretaker, mentor and lawyer all rolled into one?’. Lucky is the lady, to have such a friend!
