Kaalingar (c. 12th century CE), also known as Kalingarayar, was a Tamil scholar and commentator known for his commentary on the Thirukkural.Template:Sfn He was among the canon of Ten Medieval Commentators of the Kural text highly esteemed by scholars.Template:Sfn He was also among the five ancient commentators whose commentaries had been preserved and made available to the Modern era, the others being Manakkudavar, Pari Perumal, Paridhi, and Parimelalhagar.
Early life
Kaalingar was born in Kaalingarayar tribe around the end of 12th century CE and was a farmer, soldier, and a physician.Template:Sfn His commentary to the Kural chapter on fortification (Chapter 75) and other war-related chapters are rife with information about battlefield, which hints his military background. It is also believed that he might have migrated from the Kalinga country and hence known by the name.Template:Sfn He is believed to have lived around the 12th century CE.Template:Sfn Kaalingar had great respect for Valluvar and referred to him as "Lord Valluvar" in his work.Template:Sfn He is believed to have published his commentary around 1225 CE.Template:Sfn
Similar to the commentaries by Paridhiyar, Pariperumal, and Mallar, Kaalingar's commentary is believed to have been originated in the Kongu Region.Template:Sfn
Religion
Kaalingar is believed to have been a follower of Jainism.Template:Sfn This is evident by his explanations given to Kural couplets 377 and 580.Template:Sfn
Commentary on the Kural text
Kaalingar's commentary on the Kural text is believed to have been considered the greatest commentary before the appearance of Parimelalhagar’s work.Template:Sfn He quotes several older works in his commentary, which serves as a proof to his erudition.Template:Sfn Kaalingar's commentary is known for its grammatically pure writing and usage of High Tamil vocabulary that appealed to the reader.Template:Sfn The commentary is devoid of complex phraseology or intricate meanings.Template:Sfn He provides the lexical meaning of terms wherever necessary.Template:Sfn Unlike Manakkudavar and Pari Perumal, Kaalingar has followed the Tiruvalluva Maalai for subdividing the Kural books of Aram, Porul, and Inbam.Template:Sfn At the end of each chapter, he introduces and connects the theme of the chapter that follows.Template:Sfn However, he refrains from describing the meaning of the title of chapters.Template:Sfn
In his commentary, Kaalingar, like the other Medieval commentators, makes several changes to the chapter arrangements and the order of Kural couplets within each chapter.Template:Sfn He gives the justification for his arrangement of the Kural chapters at the end of each chapter.Template:Sfn For example, in Book III of the Kural (the Book of Love), Kaalingar's arrangement varies in three places.Template:Sfn He makes several comparisons between various Kural couplets in numerous places throughout his work.Template:Sfn He gives an altogether new meaning and explanation for couplets 510, 517, 593, 614, and 1050.Template:Sfn His commentary is similar to Paridhi's in couplets 161, 163, 167, and 1313.Template:Sfn In Book III, his commentary resembles Pariperumal's in a couple of places.Template:Sfn He also quotes from other classics such as the Naladiyar, Purananuru, Jivaka Chinthamani, and Tolkappiyam.Template:Sfn
In several places, Kaalingar's commentary appears like a teacher's elaborative reply to his or her student's questions.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn R. Mohan and Nellai N. Sokkalingam attribute this to the era in which Kaalingar's commentary appeared in the Tamil literary tradition.Template:Sfn According to them, when commentaries first began to appear in the Tamil literary world, they appeared predominantly in the contemporary spoken dialect, often resembling the conversations between a preceptor and a disciple since most of the commentators who wrote the earliest commentaries, including Kaalingar, were scholars who taught students on those subjects.Template:Sfn
One of the characteristic features of Kaalingar's commentary is an abstract of the forthcoming chapter found in every chapter usually at the end of the chapter, after the final verse. Parimelalhagar adopts this method in his commentary and writes the abstract of the respective chapter at the beginning of each chapter.Template:Sfn Kaalingar also explains difficult terms used by Valluvar by giving their meanings wherever necessary.Template:Sfn In all, he lists the meaning of 241 terms used by Valluvar, including 54 in Book I, 175 in Book II, and 12 in Book III. This way, he explains 166 couplets, including 36 in Book I, 118 in Book II, and 12 in Book III.Template:Sfn
The titles of Chapters 110, 111, 118, and 127, all in Book III, appear with slight variations in Kaalingar's commentary from that of Parimelalhagar's.Template:Sfn Couplets 1198 and 1210, both in Book III, are kept in different chapters within the book in Kaalingar's commentary.Template:Sfn
Variations in ordering of the Kural verses
The following table depicts the variations among the early commentators' ordering of, for example, the first ten verses of the Tirukkural. Note that the ordering of the verses and chapters as set by Parimelalhagar, which had been followed unanimously for centuries ever since, has now been accepted as the standard structure of the Kural text.
| Kural verse beginning | Couplet ordering | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manakkudavar's | Pari Perumal's | Paridhi's | Kaalingar's | Parimelalhagar's | |
| Kural 1: அகர முதல எழுத்தெல்லாம் | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Kural 2: கற்றதனால் ஆய பயன் | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Kural 3: மலர்மிசை ஏகினான் மாணடி | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Kural 4: வேண்டுதல் வேண்டாமை இலான் | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 4 |
| Kural 5: இருள்சேர் இருவினையும் சேரா | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| Kural 6: பொறிவாயில் ஐந்தவித்தான் | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| Kural 7: தனக்கு உவமை இல்லாதான் | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 7 |
| Kural 8: அற ஆழி அந்தணன் | 5 | 5 | 10 | 9 | 8 |
| Kural 9: கோளில் பொறியில் குணமிலவே | 10 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 9 |
| Kural 10: பிறவிப் பெருங்கடல் நீந்துவர் | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 |
It is found that there are as many as 171 variations found in the ordering of the Kural couplets by Kaalingar with respect to the commentary by Manakkudavar.Template:Citation needed
Publication
The palm-leaf manuscript containing Kaalingar's commentary was first published independently by both Thiruvenkatavan University and T. P. Palaniyappa Pillai in 1945.Template:Sfn Pillai obtained a copy of the manuscript then found at Annamalai University library.Template:Sfn
See also
Citations
References
- திருவள்ளுவ மாலை மூலமும் எளிய உரை விளக்கமும் [Tiruvalluvamaalai: Moolamum Eliya Urai Vilakkamum]{{#if:Vedhanayagam|, Vedhanayagam}. Manimekalai Prasuram(2017)
- Thirukkural: Aratthuppaal{{#if:Natarajan|, Natarajan}. Uma Padhippagam(December 2008)
- திருக்குறள் ஆய்வுக் கோவை [Tirukkural Research Compendium]{{#if:Chellammal|, Chellammal}. Manivasagar Noolagam(2015)
- உரை மரபுகள் [Conventions of Commentaries]{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Meiyappan Padhippagam(2011)
- Tiruvalluvar: The Kural{{#if:Sundaram|, Sundaram}. Penguin Books(1990). ISBN 978-01-44000-09-8
- உலகப்பொதுமறையும் காலிங்கரும் [The Universal Scripture and Kaalingar]{{#if:Loganathan|, Loganathan}. Gandhi Pathippagam(2005)
- உரையாசிரியர்கள் [Commentators]{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Manivasagar Padhippagam(2018)
- Kongu region's role in development of Tamil. The Hindu(23 June 2010). Retrieved 23 January 2025.
Further reading
- M. Arunachalam (2005). Tamil Ilakkiya Varalaru, Padhinaindhaam Nootraandu [History of Tamil Literature, 15th century].
- D. M. Vellaivaaranam (1983). Tirukkural Uraikotthu. Thiruppananthal Shri Kasimadam Publications.
- The Tamil Plutarch, containing a summary account of the lives of poets and poetesses of Southern India and Ceylon{{#if:Casie Chetty|, Casie Chetty}. Ripley & Strong(1859)