Old Tamil Poetry

Kurunthokai – 249

School of peacocks scream and
white faced monkeys shiver with their young ones
in rain drenched thickly wooded slopes of his hill country.
Looking at those hills – my friend! –
my faded forehead gains colour, you see?

இன மயில் அகவும் மரம் பயில் கானத்து,
நரை முக ஊகம் பார்ப்பொடு பனிப்ப,
படு மழை பொழிந்த சாரல் அவர் நாட்டுக்
குன்றம் நோக்கினென்-தோழி!-
பண்டையற்றோ, கண்டிசின், நுதலே?

He has not come to see her for long. She is afflicted by love sickness in his absence. Pallor spreads on her face. Noticing that her friend asks how will you manage to hold yourself together in his absence? She says, “I’ll look at his hills and that will sustain me through this period of sepration. See how my faded forehead gains colour on seeing his hills.” Peacocks screaming and monkeys shivering indicate that it is the monsoon season and he will be back soon.

இனம் – group
அகவுதல் – scream (sound of a peacock)
பயில் – செறிந்த – thick
கானம் – forest
நரை – white
ஊகம் – monkey
பார்ப்பு- young one
பனித்தல்- shiver
சாரல் – slope
குன்றம் – hill
பண்டை- (as it was) earlier
கண்டிசின் – you see
நுதல் – forehead

Kurunthokai – 401

In his shores glistening crabs scurry into the sea
afraid of frolicking girls whose damp hair
is adorned with braided flower strings
of fragrant creeper flowers and lilies;
my physical revelry with him, rules out 
further harmless fun, even for a day; strange is this!

அடும்பின் ஆய் மலர் விரைஇ, நெய்தல்
நெடுந் தொடை வேய்ந்த நீர் வார் கூந்தல்
ஓரை மகளிர் அஞ்சி, ஈர் ஞெண்டு
கடலில் பரிக்கும் துறைவனொடு, ஒரு நாள்,
நக்கு விளையாடலும் கடிந்தன்று,
ஐதே கம்ம, மெய் தோய் நட்பே!

She’s been to the beach and made out with him. As her mother notices the change in her, she is locked up at home and further meeting with him is ruled out. She says, “It is surprising that a day’s physical brings about changes in me and rules out chances of even being around with him.” Since she has bathed in the sea her hair is damp and she’s wearing fresh flowers. These make her mother suspicious.

அடும்பு – creeper
ஆய் – beautiful
விரை – fragrant
நெய்தல் – lily
தொடை – braid
ஓரை – frolic
ஈர் – wet
ஞெண்டு – crab
பரி – run
துறை- shore
நகு(தல்) – laugh
கடிதல் – rebuke
ஐது – surprising / strange
மெய் – physical
தோய் – embrace

Kurunthokai – 4

Kurunthokai – 120

Like a pauper yearning for pleasure,
you wish for the unattainable, my heart!
My girl’s sweet, you realize;
that she’s hard to get, you don’t.

இல்லோன் இன்பம் காமுற்றாஅங்கு,
அரிது வேட்டனையால்-நெஞ்சே!-காதலி
நல்லள் ஆகுதல் அறிந்தாங்கு
அரியள் ஆகுதல் அறியாதோயே.

He’s returning after yet another secret rendezvous with her. He feels the pain of separation badly. He chides his heart to not wish for what is not attainable. He says “Like a pauper yearning for pleasure you yearn for her. You know that she is a pleasant girl. What you don’t know is that she is hard to get.”

இல்லோன் – இல்லாதவன் – pauper
காமுறுதல் – காமம் உறுதல் – desire / wish / yearn
வேட்ட ல் – desire
அரிது – rare / difficult / unattainable
நல்லள் – good / pleasant girl
அரியள் – hard to get girl

Kurunthokai – 73

Her friend says (to make him suffer by not showing up at the nightly rendezvous):

You crave for your lover’s chest;
don’t worry my friend!
Like hostile Kosars*
who raided Nannan’s country
by felling the barrier of mango trees,
a little ruthless scheming too is needed.

*A clan of warriors antagonistic to Chieftain Nannan

தோழி கூற்று:

மகிழ்நன் மார்பே வெய்யையால் நீ;
அழியல் வாழி-தோழி!-நன்னன்
நறு மா கொன்று ஞாட்பிற் போக்கிய
ஒன்றுமொழிக் கோசர் போல,
வன்கட் சூழ்ச்சியும் வேண்டுமால் சிறிதே.

She has promised to meet him in day time. Then changes it to night time. Her friend asks her to not show up during the night time too. Reason? “If you meet him whenever he calls, he will take you for granted. So if you desire to own his broad chest, you need a little ruthless scheming. Like the Kosar warriors who overran Nannan’s country by felling a barrier of mango trees, you have to break his complacency and make him suffer. Only then will he value you better and plan accordingly”

The poem itself talks of her friend asking her to scheme ruthlessly. The ‘no show’ part of it is in the introduction to the poem given by earlier commentaries, derived from palm leaf manuscripts.

Kurunthokai – 84

Her governess says after she has eloped:

When I tried to hug her again, she said “I’m sweaty”;
now I realise the reason why she,
fresher than lily flowers
and smelling of venkai** and kaantal**
in Āy’s* cloudy hills, was irked.

செவிலித்தாய் கூற்று:

பெயர்த்தனென் முயங்க, ”யான் வியர்த்தனென்” என்றனள்;
இனி அறிந்தேன், அது துனி ஆகுதலே-
கழல்தொடி ஆஅய் மழை தவழ் பொதியில்
வேங்கையும் காந்தளும் நாறி,
ஆம்பல் மலரினும் தான் தண்ணியளே.

*Āy – One of the seven benevolent chieftains in Sangam poetry.
** Venkai – yellow flower of Indian Kino (Venkai) tree
*** Kaantal – Flame lily flower

She has eloped with her lover. Her Governess laments and looks back at any hints that she had missed. “Yesterday when I tried to hug her repeatedly she said she was sweaty and pushed me off. I didn’t know the reason then why she who was fresh and fragrant, put me off. Now I realise the reason. She who valued the hug of her lover didn’t felt averse to me”

The word used for ‘fresh’ is தண்மை which literally means ‘cool’. In the temperate climate of Tamilnadu, being cool is pleasant. However in English translation, ‘ she was cool’ might be misread as being aloof. Hence I used fresh. King Āy is described as Arm band wearing Āy. I skipped that to maintain the brevity of the poem as in original.

Some Sangam poems are so cryptic that I depend on the commentaries to decipher them. In this poem there is no direct mention of Governess (செவிலித்தாய்) or daughter. The 11th century commentary for Kurunthokai has not been found. These are interpretations by commentary writers in 20th century. They were rigorous researchers and compared previous commentaries and cross verified before making these notes. The poem is classified under ‘Paalai Thinai’ (Arid landscape) associated with long journey across dry land. But What if it isn’t a Governess’ lament but a man grieving over lover’s tiff? The poem takes a different meaning. It is interesting to think so, though the purists would club me in the head.