Template:Sangam literature Template:Italic Ciṟupāṇāṟṟuppaṭai (Template:Langx, lit. "guide for bards with the small lute") is an ancient Tamil poem, likely the last composed in the Pattuppattu anthology of the Sangam literature.Template:Sfn It contains 296 lines in the akaval meter.Template:SfnTemplate:Refn It is one of five arruppatai genre poems and was a guide to other bards seeking a patron for their art. The main hero honored in the poem is Nalliyakkotan, but the poem reverentially mentions an additional seven minor chieftains and three kings. The poem is dated to sometime between the late 3rd century CE and 5th century CE by Kamil Zvelebil – a Tamil literature scholar.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn
The Ciṟupāṇāṟṟuppaṭai poem, also referred to as Sirupanattrupadai,Template:Sfn is named after sirupanar – a class of minstrels who sang their bards while playing a small yal (yazh, lute).Template:Sfn The poem's subject is a band of bards and their womenfolk who meet the author, and he guides them in the form of this poem.Template:Sfn The guidance mentions a series of cities and villages the troupe must pass through on their journey to the Nalliyakkotan's palace. In this list are included Maturai – the capital of Pandyas, Uranthai – the capital of Cholas, and Vanci – the capital of Cheras.Template:Sfn Other coastal and inland towns are also mentioned, including Eyilpattinam and Velur.Template:Sfn
Content
The relatively short poem is a condensed guide and source of information about society and culture of several ancient kingdoms and different rulers.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The poem's vivid description of a bard's poverty before he found a patron is "rather powerful", states Zvelebil:Template:Sfn
Similarly striking is the poet's detailed painting of a woman's body with words in lines 14–40, with antati phrases some of which are also found in earlier Sangam poems.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn
This poem uses "the sun being orbited by planets" as an analogy in the lines below displaying the heliocentric understanding of the planetary system by Tamil people circa. 3rd century CE. Template:Quote
The poem mentions a treatise on food named after Bhima, one of the Pandava brothers in the epic Mahabharata.Template:Sfn The description that follows includes both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food.Template:Sfn Brahmin villages are mentioned, as is the worship of Murugan.Template:Sfn The Sirupanattrupadai deploys a garland of similes, a Tamil poetic technique called malaiyuvamai.Template:Sfn The poem is an important guide to ancient music traditions among Tamil people, states Venkata Subramanyam.[1]
See also
Notes
- ↑ Rational and Social Foundations of Music and Dance of Early Tamils First to Fourth C.. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress({Template:Year).
References
Bibliography
- Pattupattu - Ten Tamil Idylls (Tamil Verses with Englilsh Translation){{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Tamil University (1985 print)(1946)
- Pattuppattu with a commentary by Naccinarkkiniyar{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. UV Swaminathaiyer Library(1950)
- Tamil poetry through the ages, 2. Pattuppattu: Ten idylls{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Institute of Asian Studies(2000)
- Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Asian Educational Services(2001)
- Mudaliyar, Singaravelu A., Apithana Cintamani, An encyclopaedia of Tamil Literature, (1931) - Reprinted by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi (1983)
- Tamil Literature{{#if:Pillai|, Pillai}. Asian Educational Services(1994). ISBN 81-206-0955-7
- The archaeology of seafaring in ancient South Asia{{#if:Ray|, Ray}. Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge(2003). ISBN 9780521011099
- Selby, Martha Ann (2011) Tamil Love Poetry: The Five Hundred Short Poems of the Aiṅkuṟunūṟu, an Early Third-Century Anthology. Columbia University Press, Template:ISBN
- Tamil Love Poetry and Poetics{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. BRILL Academic(1995). ISBN 90-04-10042-3
- Manuscript, Print and Memory: Relics of the Cankam in Tamilnadu{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Walter de Gruyter(2014). ISBN 978-3-11-035276-4
- The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. BRILL(1973). ISBN 90-04-03591-5
- Tamil Literature{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag(1974). ISBN 978-3-447-01582-0
- Companion studies to the history of Tamil literature{{#if:Zvelebil|, Zvelebil}. BRILL(1992). ISBN 90-04-09365-6