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In this episode, we listen to a note of yearning, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 372, penned by Paranar. The verse is situated amidst the soaring peaks of the ‘Kurinji’ or ‘Mountain Landscape’ and etches the angst within using the chisel of unique similes.
அருந் தெறல் மரபின் கடவுள் காப்ப,
பெருந் தேன் தூங்கும் நாடு காண் நனந்தலை,
அணங்குடை வரைப்பின், பாழி ஆங்கண்,
வேள் முது மாக்கள் வியல் நகர்க் கரந்த
அருங் கல வெறுக்கையின் அரியோள் பண்பு நினைந்து,
வருந்தினம்மாதோ எனினும், அஃது ஒல்லாய்,
இரும் பணைத் தொடுத்த பலர் ஆடு ஊசல்,
ஊர்ந்து இழி கயிற்றின், செல வர வருந்தி,
நெடு நெறிக் குதிரைக் கூர் வேல் அஞ்சி
கடு முனை அலைத்த கொடு வில் ஆடவர்
ஆடு கொள் பூசலின் பாடு சிறந்து எறியும்,
பெருந் துடி வள்பின் வீங்குபு நெகிழா,
மேய் மணி இழந்த பாம்பின், நீ நனி
தேம்பினை வாழி, என் நெஞ்சே! வேந்தர்
கோண் தணி எயிலின் காப்புச் சிறந்து,
ஈண்டு அருங்குரையள், நம் அணங்கியோளே.
In this trip to the highlands, we take a few historic detours, as we listen to the man say these words to his heart, at a time when he returns disappointed, unable to meet with the lady on a planned tryst:
“Protected by gods, as per the indestructible tradition, is the country of Paazhi, where huge honeycombs hang down, in those widespread mountain spaces, filled with divine spirits. Akin to the precious wealth, guarded in a wide mansion of Paazhi, by the ancient Velirs, is that precious maiden. As I tell you I’m filled with sorrow, yearning for her sweet nature, not stopping there, akin to the rope of the swing tied to tall branch, upon which many play, you traverse back and forth, filled with angst. Akin to a snake that has lost its gem of life, which twists and turns, akin to how the strap tightens and loosens upon a huge drum, which is played with much uproar, when warriors wielding curving bows, led by the sharp-speared Anji, who rules over the mountains of Kuthirai with long and winding paths, torment their enemies, you are whimpering in pain, O heart, long may you live! Akin to well-guarded forts that block the fury of enemy kings, she’s hard to attain, the one who has possessed me with her beauty!”
Time to listen to the man’s heartbeat echoing from those mountain ranges! The man starts by describing a place called ‘Paazhi’ in a mountain country, filled with honeycombs. Here, the Velirs are known to have hoarded huge amounts of wealth in a mansion and placed that under a fierce guard, the man says, and connects that to the precious nature of his beloved. He talks about how even as he feels sad for not being able to see her, that heart of his goes one step further, and like a swing, keeps oscillating in the lady’s direction, returning empty and bereft of joy. Then he further sketches his heart’s state, with a stack of smilies, first talking about a snake that has lost its life gem. This is one of those Sangam beliefs that snakes hold gems within and spit out the same. Returning to the core, the man tells us the snake which has lost its gem is writhing like the strap around a huge drum, which is beat with force, when the warriors of Anji trouble their enemies in the battlefield, and just like that snake in angst, the heart seemed to be wallowing in grief, the man says because it has not seen the lady. He concludes by declaring that indeed his divine-spirit-like beloved is akin to the sturdy wall that keeps away enemy kings intent on a siege, so hard to attain she is. The highlight of this verse is that upon the unlikely canvas of a heartbreak, we see the bold strokes of history!
