Old Tamil Poetry

Kurunthokai – 157

‘Cock-a-doodle-do’ crows the rooster;
at which my naive heart trembles –
for it heralds rapier like dawn
that rends cuddled lovers apart.

‘குக்கூ” என்றது கோழி; அதன் எதிர்
துட்கென்றன்று என் தூய நெஞ்சம்-
தோள் தோய் காதலர்ப் பிரிக்கும்
வாள் போல் வைகறை வந்தன்றால் எனவே.

This is a popular Kurunthokai poem. The rooster has crowed. Hearing that her heart skips a beat and she is afraid. Because the arrival of dawn means separation from her lover who is in tight embrace with her. The outstanding phrase here is ‘வாள் போல் வைகறை’ – sword like dawn. Dawn has no mercy and is going to sever the lovers apart, like a sword does.

The Tamil poem says ‘cuckoo crows the rooster’. I have used the more common English version ‘cock-a-doodle-do’ instead of ‘cuckoo’.

துட்கு – fear
தூய – pure / naive
தோள் தோய் – hugging shoulders
வாள் – sword
வைகறை – dawn