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{{Use Indian English|date=August 2020}}<br />
'''Kapilar''' or '''Kabilar''' ([[Tamil language|Tamil]]: கபிலர்) was the most prolific [[Tamil language|Tamil]] poet of the [[Sangam period]] (c. 3rd century BCE to 3rd century CE). He alone contributed some 206 poems, or a little less than 10% of the entire Sangam-era classical corpus by 473 ancient poets.{{sfn|Selby, 2011|pp=85–89}} Held in high regard by other poets of the Sangam era, as well as the post-Sangam era, he is variously dated to have lived between c. 50–125 CE,{{sfn| Kowmareeshwari|2010}} or 140–200 CE.{{sfn|Selby, 2011|pp=85–89}}<br />
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He was a contemporary of [[Karikala Chola]], [[Irunkōvēl]] and [[Vēl Pāri]]. He was the close friend, confidant and alleged [[favorite]] of Vēl Pāri, one of the Vēlir kings.<ref name="Studies in Tamil Literature and History, pages 55-59">''Studies in Tamil Literature and History by Ramachandra Dikshitar'', pages 55-59</ref> He was the author of [[Inna Narpathu]], a didactic work of the [[Sangam literature]]. Verse 5 of the [[Tiruvalluva Maalai]] is also attributed to him.{{sfn|Vedanayagam, 2017|pp=44–45}}<br />
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==Early life==<br />
Kapilar was born in Thiruvadhavur in the [[Pandyan Kingdom]].{{sfn| Kowmareeshwari|2010}} Initially a poet at the [[Pandyan Kingdom|Pandyan court]], he left [[Madurai]] at an early age to travel across various kingdoms. Kapilar heard about the generosity and virtue of [[Vēl Pāri]], a powerful Vēlir King who ruled over Parambunādu and paid him a visit. He became a friend and confidant of Pāri and stayed with him until the latter's death, serving as the chief poet and minister at the Pāri's court.{{sfn| Gopalan |1957|pp=46–47}} Kowmareeshwari suggests he was born about mid 1st-century CE,{{sfn| Kowmareeshwari|2010}} while Martha Ann Shelby states he most likely was born about 140 CE.{{sfn|Selby, 2011|pp=85–89}}<br />
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Kapilar has sung on King [[Selva Kadungovaliyadhan]], which appears as the seventh group of verses in the [[Pathitrupathu]]. The king honoured Kapilar with 100,000 gold coins and a country under his control.{{sfn| Gopalan |1957|pp=46–47}} Kapilar remained close with other contemporary poets such as [[Avvaiyar I]] and [[Paranar]].{{sfn| Gopalan |1957|pp=46–47}}<br />
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==Siege of Parambu==<br />
The three crowned [[Tamil people|Tamil]] kings [[Cheras]], [[Cholas]] and [[Pandyas]] expanded their kingdoms ruthlessly and turned their attention towards independent Vēlir Kings thus turning them into subordinates or eliminating them to annexe their kingdoms. They laid siege to the heavily fortified country of Parambu, but Vēl Pāri refused to give in and the war dragged for years. [[Kabilar]] approached the kings and asked them to turn back describing his patron Pari as an unconquerable warrior (excerpt from [[Purananuru]]: song 109):<br />
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{{Cquote|<center>''You may think Pāri's mountain is easy to conquer. Even though the three of you with your gigantic royal drums lay siege to it..Like the sky is his mountain. Like the stars in the sky are its springs. Even though your elephants are tied to every tree, your chariots spread through every field, you will not take it by fighting. He will not surrender it by the sword. But here: I know how you can win it. If you play little lutes, their strings of rubbed twine, have your dancing women come behind with thick, fragrant hair, and go to him dancing and singing, he will give you his mountain and his whole land.<ref name="Poets of the Tamil Anthologies: Ancient Poems of Love and War, page 164">''Poets of the Tamil Anthologies: Ancient Poems of Love and War, page 164''</ref>''</center>}}<br />
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After a long war, Vēl Pāri was killed by treachery.<ref name="Great women of India, page 309">''Great women of India, page 309''</ref> [[Purananuru]], song (112) of Pāri's daughters on his death:<br />
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{{Cquote|<center>''That day in that white moonlight, we had our father, and no one could take the hill. This day in this white moonlight, kings with drums beating victory, have taken over our hill, and we have no father.<ref name="Poems of love and war: from the eight anthologies and the ten long poems of classical Tamil, page 145">''Poems of love and war: from the eight anthologies and the ten long poems of classical Tamil, page 145''</ref>''</center>}}<br />
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==Aftermath and death==<br />
[[File:Kabilar rock.JPG|thumb|[[Kabilar rock]] on the [[Ponnaiyar River]] near [[Tirukoilur]], [[Viluppuram district]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]].]]<br />
Kapilar become the guardian of Pāri's two daughters, Angavai and Sangavai, after Pari's death and the three of them left Parambu country. Kapilar unsuccessfully approached different Vēlir kings to find grooms. He would be let down each time as the other Vēlir kings would fear retribution from the three crowned kingdoms. The most notable of these encounters is when he sings to [[Irunkōvēl]] and the latter would insult Kabilar. He would finally leave the two princesses in the care of "Andhanars". Later, poet [[Avvaiyar]] takes care of them and marries them off successfully into the family of another Vēlir king [[Malaiyamaan Kaari]].<br />
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The death of his friend Pāri affected Kapilar and he later took his own life by ''[[vadakirrutal]]'', one of the [[Tamil people|Tamil]] ways of committing suicide. He sat facing north and starved himself to death in [[Kabilar Kundru]].<ref>''The Four Hundred Songs of War and Wisdom: An Anthology of Poems from Classical Tamil, the Purananuru, Translations from the Asian classics By George L. Hart, Hank Heifetz''</ref><br />
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==Works and contribution==<br />
Kabilar made huge contributions to [[Tamil literature]] of [[Sangam literature|Sangam]] era. ''Kurincippattu'' is a poetic work in the [[Ten Idylls]] series of the [[Eighteen Greater Texts]] anthology in [[Tamil literature]] containing 261 lines of poems in the ''Achiriyappa'' meter written by Kabilar. An ancient note states that Kapilar wrote this to explain the beauty of Tamil poetry to a north Indian king names Brhadatta.{{sfn| Gopalan |1957|pp=46–47}} Kurincippattu describes the ''kurinchi'' [[Sangam landscape|landscape]] of the mountainous terrain and mentions almost 100 different plant names. Kabilar also contributed to [[Puṟanāṉūṟu]] in the [[Eight Anthologies]] series of sangam literature. Kapilar used unique metaphors that show the interior landscape using the objects seen in the 'Kurinchi' landscape. 'Veral veli' written by Kapilar is considered as one of the master pieces.{{cn|date=February 2020}}<br />
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===Views on Valluvar and the Kural===<br />
Kapilar is believed to have accompanied [[Valluvar]] in his journey to the [[Tamil Sangam|Madurai College of scholars]] to present the latter’s work, the [[Tirukkural]]. Verse 5 of the [[Tiruvalluva Maalai]] is attributed to Kapilar. He opines about [[Valluvar]] and the [[Kural text]] thus:{{sfn|Robinson, 2001|p=22}}<br />
{{cquote|Valluvar’s ''Cural'' is short in words, but extensive in sense, even as in a drop of water on the blade of the millet might be seen reflected the image of the tall palmyra-tree. <small>[Emphasis in original]</small>}}<br />
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==See also==<br />
{{Portal|Tamils|India|Literature|Poetry}}<br />
* [[Tiruvalluva Maalai]]<br />
* [[List of Sangam poets]]<br />
* [[Sangam literature]]<br />
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==Citations==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
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==References==<br />
{{ref begin}}<br />
*{{cite book | last = Gopalan | first = P. V. | title = புலவர் அகராதி [Dictionary of Poets] | publisher = M. Duraisami Mudaliyar and Company | edition = 1 | date = 1957 | location = Chennai | pages = 46–47 | language = ta |ref={{sfnRef| Gopalan, 1957}}}}<br />
*{{cite book | last = Kowmareeshwari (Ed.) | first = S. | title = Pathinen Keezhkanakku Noolgal | publisher = Saradha Pathippagam | series = Sanga Ilakkiyam | volume = 5 | edition = 1 | date = August 2012 | location = Chennai | pages = viii | language = ta | ref={{sfnRef|Kowmareeshwari, 2010}}}}<br />
* {{cite book | editor-last=Selby | editor-first=Martha Ann | title=Tamil Love Poetry | publisher=Columbia University Press | publication-place=New York Chichester, West Sussex | year=2011 | isbn=978-0-231-52158-1 | doi=10.7312/selb15064 | pages= 85–89 |ref={{sfnRef|Selby, 2011}} }}<br />
* {{cite book | last = Vedanayagam | first = Rama| title =Tiruvalluva Maalai: Moolamum Eliya Urai Vilakkamum | publisher = Manimekalai Prasuram | edition = 1 | date = 2017 | location = Chennai | pages =44–45 | language = ta |ref={{sfnRef|Vedanayagam, 2017}} }}<br />
* {{cite book |author=Edward Jewitt Robinson |title=Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings |year=2001 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |location = New Delhi|ref={{sfnRef|Robinson, 2001}}}}<br />
{{ref end}}<br />
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{{Tirukkural}}<br />
{{Tamil language}}<br />
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[[Category:Tamil philosophy]]<br />
[[Category:Ancient Indian philosophers]]<br />
[[Category:Tamil poets]]<br />
[[Category:Scholars from Tamil Nadu]]<br />
[[Category:Sangam poets]]<br />
[[Category:Tiruvalluva Maalai contributors]]</div>imported>Marcocapelle