Tiruvalluva Maalai

Tiruvalluva Maalai (Tamil: திருவள்ளுவ மாலை), literally 'Garland of Valluvar', is an anthology of ancient Tamil paeans containing fifty-five verses each written by different poets praising the ancient work of the Kural and its author Valluvar. With the poets' time spanning across centuries starting from around 1st century CE, the collection is believed to have reached its present form by 11th century CE. With the historical details of the ancient philosopher and his work remaining obscure, much of the legend on the Kural and Valluvar as they are known today are chiefly from this work.[1] The collection also reveals the name of the author of the Kural text as 'Valluvar' for the first time, as Valluvar himself composed the Kural text centuries earlier without indicating his name anywhere in his work.[2] Reminiscing this, E. S. Ariel, a French scholar of the 19th century, famously said of the Tirukkural thus: Ce livre sans nom, par un autre sans nom ("The book without a name by an author without a name").[3]

Date

As with the date of the Tirukkural and its author itself, the exact date of the composition of the verses of the Tiruvalluva Maalai remains unclear. All the contributors of the Tiruvalluva Maalai pre-date the period of the earliest commentators of the Kural text such as Manakkudavar.[4] Historically, the time of the contributors spans several centuries starting from around 1st century CE. According to S. N. Kandasamy, the work must have been composed not later than 7th and 8th centuries CE.[5][4] The verses must have been compiled into its present form by around 11th century CE.

Traditional account

Legend has it that, after writing the Kural text, Valluvar left for Madurai on the advice of his friends to "triumph over the college of the doctors" at the Madurai College.[6] On the way to Madurai, at Idaykarlyi, he met Avvaiyar I and Idaikkadar and revealed the purpose of his journey and they joined him, too, in his journey to the College of Madurai.[6] Upon reaching the Madurai College, Valluvar submitted his text, calling it Muppāl,[7] before Lord Somasundara, in the hearing of the Pandiyan king and his ministers, chiefs, and scholars.[6] This alarmed the assembly of professors.[6] Legend has it that forty-nine professors "sat as kings of the sweet tongue" on the bench of poets, known as Sanga palagai, by the tank covered with the golden lotus at the Madurai temple.[8] The scholars there were adept at finding errors in the most skillful compositions.[8] This is well known by the account of Nakkirar II, one of the later scholar of the Madurai College lineage who even dared to say to Lord Shiva, "Though you show us your frontal eye, a fault is a fault", on his appearing to favor an amateur poet named Dharumi.[8] The assembly of scholars said to have doubted Valluvar's erudition and said to him that the bench on which they sat will make room for the best treatise in high Tamil, which shall be taken as a sign of acceptance of his work.[8][9] When Valluvar laid his book thereupon, the seat immediately contracted itself to the size of the work throwing all the professors into the lotus pond.[8][9] Scrambling out of the water, the forty-nine scholars pronounced a stanza each in praise of Valluvar and his work.[8] Idaikkadar and Avvaiyar, who accompanied Valluvar in the journey, couldn't remain silent and gave their opinion in the form of poetry. With four more verses adding to the corpus, including that by divine elements such as the voices of the Oracle, Naamagal (Goddess Saraswathi), and Iraiyanar (Lord Shiva), the collection came to be known as the Tiruvalluva Maalai or "the garland to Valluvar".[10]

The work

Tiruvalluva Maalai is a collection of verses said to have been composed by gods, goddesses and poets of different times, all belonging to the legendary Tamil Sangam at Madurai.[1][11] A total of 55 poets have composed their encomia in 55 verse in the collection, all written several centuries after the composition of the Kural text.[12] With the exception of Avvaiyar and Idaikkadar, both of whom composed their verses in Kural venpa metre (couplet form), all the 53 poets have written their composition in the Venpa (quatrain) form.[13]

The Tiruvalluva Maalai refers to the Kural text mostly as Muppāl, a name preferred by Valluvar himself. The name appears in 15 different places, including verses 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19, 30, 31, 39, 44, 46, 49, and 53, indicating the title of the work.[14]

Following is a sample verse in quatrain from the collection, written by poet Kapilar (c. 1st century CE):[15][16]

Original: தினையளவு போதாச் சிறுபுல்நீர் நீண்ட பனையளவு காடும் படித்தால் — மனையளகு வள்ளைக்கு உறங்கும் வளநாட! வள்ளுவனார் வெள்ளைக் குறட்பா வரி. (Verse 5)	Meaning: As the tiny dew upon the blade of a grass reflects The whole of a tall palm tree nearby, So the pithy Kural couplets of Valluvar reflect The wholesome thoughts of humanity.

Contributors

Contributors of the Tiruvalluva Maalai include three divine poets and 52 Sangam poets.

Commentaries

There are several commentaries to the Tiruvalluva Maalai, interpreting the meaning of the verses, written over the centuries. The first commentary on the work was written in the 19th century by Tirutthanigai Saravanaperumal Aiyar.[17]

Citations

Mohan Lal, 1992, p. 4333.
Anonymous, n.d.
Pope, 1886, p. i (Introduction).
Kandasamy, 2020, p. 16.
Kandasamy, 2003, p. 99.
Robinson, 2001, p. 20.
Pillai, 1972, p. 3.
Robinson, 2001, p. 21.
Manavalan, 2009, p. 41.
Robinson, 2001, p. 27.
Kamil Zvelebil, 1975, p. 129.
Velusamy and Faraday, 2017, pp. 54–55.
Iraikuruvanar, 2009, pp. 65–67.
Pillai, 1972, pp. 3, 9.
Kowmareeshwari, 2012, p. viii.
Vedhanayagam, 2017, pp. 7–8.
Desikar, 1969, p. 118.

References

Edward Jewitt Robinson (2001). Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services.
A. A. Manavalan (2009). Essays and Tributes on Tirukkural (1886–1986 AD) (1 ed.). Chennai: International Institute of Tamil Studies.
Mohan Lal (1992). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Sasay to Zorgot. Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 978-81-260-1221-3.
"Tirukkural". Acharya. Archived from the original on 9 October 2007. Retrieved 8 October 2007.
Pope, G. U. (1886). The Sacred Kurral of Tiruvalluva Nayanar. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services.
Kamil Zvelebil (1975). Tamil Literature. Handbook of Oriental Studies. BRILL. ISBN 90-04-04190-7.
N. Velusamy; Moses Michael Faraday, eds. (February 2017). Why Should Thirukkural Be Declared the National Book of India? (in Tamil and English) (First ed.). Chennai: Unique Media Integrators. ISBN 978-93-85471-70-4.
S. N. Kandasamy (2003). தமிழிலக்கியச் செல்வம் [Tamil Literary Resource]. Chidambaram: Meiyappan Padhippagam.
S. N. Kandasamy (2020). திருக்குறள்: ஆய்வுத் தெளிவுரை (பெருட்பால், பகுதி 1) [Tirukkural: Research commentary: Book of Porul, Part 1]. Chennai: Manivasagar Padhippagam.
M. Shanmukham Pillai (1972). திருக்குறள் அமைப்பும் முறையும் [The structure and method of Tirukkural] (1 ed.). Chennai: University of Madras.
Iraikuruvanar (2009). திருக்குறளின் தனிச்சிறப்புகள் [Unique features of the Tirukkural] (in Tamil) (1 ed.). Chennai: Iraiyagam.
Kowmareeshwari, S., ed. (August 2012). Pathinen Keezhkanakku Noolgal. Sanga Ilakkiyam (in Tamil). 5 (1 ed.). Chennai: Saradha Pathippagam.
Vedhanayagam, Rama (2017). திருவள்ளுவ மாலை மூலமும் எளிய உரை விளக்கமும் [Tiruvalluvamaalai: Source with simple commentary] (in Tamil) (1 ed.). Chennai: Manimekalai Prasuram.
Desikar, S. Dhandapani (1969). திருக்குறள் அழகும் அமைப்பும் [Tirukkural: Beauty and Structure] (in Tamil). Chennai: Tamil Valarcchi Iyakkam. p. 118.