CleanupBot II at 22:25, 13 August 2023

2023-08-13T22:25:54Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2020}}
'''Elelasingan''' ({{lang-ta|ஏலேலசிங்கன்}}) ({{circa}} 2nd or 1st century BCE), also known as '''Elelasingan Chettiyar''', '''Elela''' and '''Alara''', was a [[Tamils|Tamil]] merchant who lived in [[Mylapore]], by the shores of the [[Pallava Kingdom]], trading between [[India]] and [[Ceylon]]. He is best known as the contemporary, friend, and disciple of the celebrated [[Tamil people|Tamil]] poet and philosopher [[Valluvar]].{{sfn|Periyanna, 1968|pp=17–19}}

==Biography==
Elelasingan is mentioned as [[Ellalan|Elaela]] and Alara in [[History of Sri Lanka|Ceylon history]], who lived between 144 BCE and 101 BCE.{{sfn| Desikar, 1969|pp=128–130}} However, given the fact that Elelasingan was a contemporary of Valluvar and with the date of Valluvar remaining dubious, it is still under debate whether Elaela of Cylone was the same person as Elelasingan.

Elelasingan belonged to the [[Karaiyar|Karaya]] or [[Paravar|Parava]] community and was a merchant by profession.{{sfn|Manavalan, 2009|p=40}} He was also the chief of the townsmen at Mylapore.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=29}} He was wealthy and is said to have owned vessels and had trade with foreign countries, chiefly [[Ceylon]].{{sfn|Manavalan, 2009|p=40}} He also sold thread to Valluvar, who earned a living by engaging in his occupation as a weaver.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=17}} Over the years, Elelasingan became a close friend and a disciple of Valluvar.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|pp=17–18}}

Elelasingan and his wife had been without a child for years. One day when visiting the local [[Shiva]] temple, they found a baby lying beside a cow. The couple adopted the baby as their own and named it Arlyakananthar.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=18}} It is believed that it was none other than Arlyakananthar who requested Valluvar to "write an ethical treatise for the world's good." Valluvar acceded and eventually authored the [[Kural text]].{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=20}} Elelasingan, along with other friends, advised Valluvar to travel to [[Madurai]] and present his work at the [[Pandya dynasty|Pandiyan King]]'s court.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=20}} When Valluvar did so and returned triumphantly, Elelasingan and others welcomed him and celebrated the happening.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=29}}

According to legend, at the point of Valluvar’s death, Elelasingan expressed his intention to place Valluvar's corpse in a golden coffin and place it in a monumental grave.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=32}} Valluvar, however, politely refused and instead requested Elelasingan to tie his corpse with cords and throw it among the bushes outside the town so that scavenging animals can feed on it.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=32}}{{sfn|Manavalan, 2009|p=43}} Elelasingan obeyed and soon observed that the crows and other animals that fed on his corpse "became beautiful as gold."{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=32}} He soon built a [[Thiruvalluvar Temple, Mylapore|temple]] on the spot where Valluvar's corpse had lain and instituted worship. It is believed that the [[Thiruvalluvar Temple, Mylapore|present temple of Valluvar]] at Mylapore is built on the site of this ancient temple.{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=32}}

==Legacy==
Elelasingan is traditionally remembered for his faithful following of the philosophy of Valluvar. The old Tamil maxim "ஏலேலசிங்கன் பொருள் ஏழுகடல் போனாலும் திரும்பும்" (literally "The goods of Elelasingan make a safe return albeit crossing seven seas") and the [[work songs]] of "Elelo elavali" and "Elelo aylasa", which are traditionally sung by hard laborers of the Tamil land during their toil at work to mitigate their drudgery, remain embedded in the Tamil culture as the sole surviving legacy of Elelasingan.{{sfn|Sundaramoorthi, 2000|p=43}}

==See also==
* [[Valluvar]]
* [[Vasuki (wife of Valluvar)|Vasuki]]
* [[Thiruvalluvar Temple, Mylapore]]

==Citations==
{{reflist|30em}}

==References==
{{ref begin}}
* {{cite book |author= C. Dandapani Desikar |title= திருக்குறள் அழகும் அமைப்பும் [Tirukkural: Beauty and Structure] |year=1969 |publisher=Tamil Valarchi Iyakkagam |location=Chennai|ref={{sfnRef|Desikar, 1969}} }}
* {{cite book |author=A. A. Manavalan |title=Essays and Tributes on Tirukkural (1886–1986 AD) |year=2009 |publisher=International Institute of Tamil Studies |location = Chennai|edition = 1|ref={{sfnRef|Manavalan, 2009}}}}
* {{cite book |author= P. E. Periyanna |title= திருவள்ளுவர் வாழ்க்கை வரலாறு [Life History of Tiruvalluvar] |year=1968 |publisher=Vanathi Pathippagam |location=Chennai|ref={{sfnRef|Periyanna, 1968}} }}
* {{cite book |author=Edward Jewitt Robinson |title=Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings |url=https://archive.org/details/tamilwisdomtradi0000robi|year=2001 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |location = New Delhi|ref={{sfnRef|Robinson, 2001}}}}
* {{cite book |author=I. Sundaramoorthi |title=குறளமுதம் [Kuralamudham] |year= 2000 |publisher= Tamil Valarcchi Iyakkagam |location= Chennai|ref={{sfnRef|Sundaramoorthi, 2000}}}}
{{ref end}}

{{Tirukkural|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:Tirukkural]]
[[Category:People from Tamil Nadu]]

Elelasingan - Revision history

CleanupBot II at 22:25, 13 August 2023