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Silappatikaram
''Cilappatikāram'' ( ta, சிலப்பதிகாரம் ml, ചിലപ്പതികാരം,IPA: ʧiləppət̪ikɑːrəm, ''lit.'' "the Tale of an Anklet"), also referred to as ''Silappathikaram'' or ''Silappatikaram'', is the earliest Tamil epic. It is a poem of 5,730 lines in almost entirely ''akaval'' (''aciriyam'') meter. The epic is a tragic love story of an ordinary couple, Kannaki and her husband Kovalan. The ''Silappathikaram'' has more ancient roots in the Tamil bardic tradition, as Kannaki and other characters of the story are mentioned or alluded to in the Sangam literature such as in the ''Naṟṟiṇai'' and later texts such as the ''Kovalam Katai''. It is attributed to a prince-turned-monk Iḷaṅkõ Aṭikaḷ, and was probably composed in the 5th or 6th century CE. The ''Silappatikaram'' is set in a flourishing seaport city of the early Chola kingdom. Kannaki and Kovalan are a newly married couple, in love, and living in bliss. Over time, Kova ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kovalan
Kovalan ( ta, கோவலன்) is a central character in Ilango Adigal's ''Silappatikaram,'' one of the ancient Tamil epics. Family Father : Machattuvan Wife : Kannagi Lover : Madhavi Daughter : Manimekalai (Mother: Madhavi) Narrative Puharkkandam Kovalan, the son of a wealthy merchant, Machattuvan, married Kannagi, the daughter of another merchant, Manayakan. At the time of his marriage, he was sixteen years old. They lived together happily in the city of Kaveripattinam, until Kovalan met the courtesan Madhavi and fell in love with her. In his infatuation, he completely forgot his wife and spent his time and parental wealth with Madhavi. During the annual festival in the honour of Indra, there was a misunderstanding between Kovalan and Madhavi. As a result, the penniless Kovalan returned to Kannagi, who welcomed him whole-heartedly. Realising his mistake, he decided to start a new life by migrating to Madurai with Kannagi. Accompanied by a Buddhist nun, they starte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kannagi (Tamil Mythology)
Kannagi ( ta, கண்ணகி) sometimes spelled Kannaki, is a legendary Tamil woman who forms the central character of the Tamil epic ''Cilappatikaram''. Kannagi is described as the chaste woman who stays with her husband despite his unfaithfulness, their attempt to rebuild their marriage after her husband had lost everything but repented, how her husband is falsely framed then punished without the due checks and processes of justice. Kannagi proves and protests the injustice, then curses the king and city of Madurai leading to the death of the unjust Pandyan King of Madurai, who had wrongfully put her husband Kovalan to death. The society that had made her suffer, suffers in retribution as the city Madurai is burnt to the ground because of her curse. In the Chera (Kerala) and Tamil tradition, Kannagi has been deified as the symbol – sometimes as goddess – of chastity, with sculptures or reliefs in Hindu temples iconographically reminding the visitor of her breaking h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cheran Chenkutuvan
Cheran Chenkuttuvan ( ml, ചേരൻ ചെങ്കുട്ടുവൻ ; ta, சேரன் செங்குட்டுவன்) (''c.'' 2nd century CE), literally 'the Alluring Kuttuvan Chera', identified with Katal Pirakottiya Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan,K.G. Sesha Aiyar, ''Chera Kings of the Sangam Period'', London, 1937. 21-23. was the most celebrated Chera dynasty ruler of the early land of Kerala in early historic South India. The Kuttuvan is eulogized by Paranar in the fifth decad of '' Patitrupattu'' of the '' Ettutokai'' anthology (early Tamil texts).Zvelebil, Kamil. ''The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India''. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1973. 52–53. The Kuttuvan successfully intervened in a succession dispute in the Chola country and established his relative on the Chola throne. The Kadambas ― helped by the Yavanas (perhaps Greek or Roman mariners) ― attacked the kuttuvan by sea, but the Chera ruler destroyed their fleet. He is said to have defea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cenkuttuvan
Cheran Chenkuttuvan ( ml, ചേരൻ ചെങ്കുട്ടുവൻ ; ta, சேரன் செங்குட்டுவன்) (''c.'' 2nd century CE), literally 'the Alluring Kuttuvan Chera', identified with Katal Pirakottiya Vel Kezhu Kuttuvan,K.G. Sesha Aiyar, ''Chera Kings of the Sangam Period'', London, 1937. 21-23. was the most celebrated Chera dynasty ruler of the early land of Kerala in early historic South India. The Kuttuvan is eulogized by Paranar in the fifth decad of '' Patitrupattu'' of the '' Ettutokai'' anthology (early Tamil texts).Zvelebil, Kamil. ''The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India''. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1973. 52–53. The Kuttuvan successfully intervened in a succession dispute in the Chola country and established his relative on the Chola throne. The Kadambas ― helped by the Yavanas (perhaps Greek or Roman mariners) ― attacked the kuttuvan by sea, but the Chera ruler destroyed their fleet. He is said to have defea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manimekalai
''Maṇimēkalai'' ( ta, மணிமேகலை, ), also spelled ''Manimekhalai'' or ''Manimekalai'', is a Tamil-Buddhist epic composed by Kulavāṇikaṉ Seethalai Sataṉar probably around the 6th century. It is an "anti-love story", a sequel to the "love story" in the earliest Tamil epic ''Silappadikaram'', with some characters from it and their next generation. The epic consists of 4,861 lines in ''akaval'' meter, arranged in 30 cantos. The title ''Manimekalai'' is also the name of the daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi, who follows in her mother's footsteps as a dancer and a Buddhist nun. The epic tells her story. Her physical beauty and artistic achievements seduces the Chola prince Udayakumara. He pursues her. She, a nun of Mahayana Buddhism persuasion, feels a commitment to free herself from human ties. She rejects his advances, yet finds herself drawn to him. She hides, prays and seeks the help of her mother, her Buddhist teacher Aravana Adikal and angels. They teach ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patiṟṟuppattu
The ''Patiṟṟuppattu'' ( ta, பதிற்றுப்பத்து, mal, പതിറ്റുപ്പത്ത്, lit. ''Ten Tens'', sometimes spelled ''Pathitrupathu'',) is a classical Tamil poetic work and one of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') in Sangam literature. A panegyric collection, it contains ''puram'' (war and public life) poems. The Chera kings, known as the Cheramal, are the centre of the work. Its invocatory poem is about Maayon, or Mal (Vishnu). The ''Patiṟṟuppattu'' originally contained ten sections of ten poems, each section dedicated to a decade of rule in ancient Kerala (Cerals, Chera); the first and last sections have been lost. Of the surviving poems, the second-to-sixth-decade-related poems are about the three generations of rulers from the Imayavaramban dynasty. The remaining poems are about the three generations of rulers from the Irumporai dynasty. In the ''Patirruppattu'' palm-leaf manuscripts, each decade ends with a (a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamil Culture
Tamil culture is the culture of the Tamil people. Tamil culture is rooted in the arts and ways of life of Tamils in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, and across the globe. Tamil culture is expressed in language, literature, music, dance, theatre, folk arts, martial arts, painting, sculpture, architecture, sports, media, comedy, cuisine, costumes, celebrations, philosophy, religions, traditions, rituals, organizations, science, and technology. Language and literature Tamils have strong attachment to the Tamil language, which is often venerated in literature as "''Tamil̲an̲n̲ai''", "the Tamil mother". It has historically been, and to large extent still is, central to the Tamil identity. Like the other languages of South India, it is unrelated to the Indo-European languages of northern India. The Tamil language preserves many features of Proto-Dravidian, though modern-day spoken Tamil in Tamil Nadu freely uses loanwords from Sanskrit and English and vice versa. Also, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sangam Literature
The Sangam literature (Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam'';) historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' (Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ'') connotes the ancient Tamil literature and is the earliest known literature of South India. The Tamil tradition and legends link it to three literary gatherings around Madurai and Kapāṭapuram ( Pandyan capitals): the first over 4,440 years, the second over 3,700 years, and the third over 1,850 years before the start of the common era. Scholars consider this Tamil tradition-based chronology as ahistorical and mythical. Most scholars suggest the historical Sangam literature era spanned from c. 300 BCE to 300 CE, while others variously place this early classical Tamil literature period a bit later and more narrowly but all before 300 CE. According to Kamil Zvelebil – a Tamil literature and history scholar, the most acceptable range for the Sangam l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naṟṟiṇai
''Naṟṟiṇai'' ( ta, நற்றிணை meaning ''excellent tinai''), is a classical Tamil poetic work and traditionally the first of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') in the Sangam literature. The collection – sometimes spelled as Natrinai or Narrinai – contains both ''akam'' (love) and ''puram'' (war, public life) category of poems. The ''Naṟṟiṇai'' anthology contains 400 poems, mainly of 9 to 12 lines, but a few with 8 to 13 lines each. According to Takanobu Takahashi – a Tamil literature scholar, the ''Naṟṟiṇai'' poems were likely composed between 100–300 CE based on the linguistics, style and dating of the authors. While Kamil Zvelebil – a Tamil literature and history scholar , dates some poems to the 1st century BCE. The ''Naṟṟiṇai'' manuscript colophon states that it was compiled under the patronage of the Pandyan king named ''Pannatu Tanta Pantiyan Maran Valuti'', but the compiler remained anonymous. The ''Naṟṟiṇai'' poems ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ilango Adigal
Ilango Adigal ()() was a Jainism, Jain monk and a poet, sometimes identified as a Chera dynasty, Chera prince. He is traditionally credited as the author of ''Cilappatikaram'', one of the Five Great Epics of Ancient Tamil literature. He is one of the greatest poets from Chera dynasty, Cheranadu (now Kerala). In a ''patikam'' (prologue) to the epic poem, he identifies himself as the brother of a famous Chera dynasty, Chera king Ceṅkuṭṭuvan (Senguttuvan). This Chera king, as stated by Elizabeth Rosen, ruled over his kingdom in late 2nd or early 3rd century CE. However, this is doubtful because a Sangam poem in ''Patiṟṟuppattu'' – the fifth ten – provides a biography of Ceṅkuṭṭuvan, his family and rule, but never mentions that he had a brother who became an ascetic or wrote one of the most cherished epics. This has led scholars to conclude that the legendary author Ilango Adikal myth was likely inserted later into the epic. In a 1968 note, Kamil Zvelebil suggeste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indra
Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> Indra's myths and powers are similar to other Indo-European deities such as Jupiter, Perun, Perkūnas, Zalmoxis, Taranis, Zeus, and Thor, part of the greater Proto-Indo-European mythology. Indra is the most referred deity in the ''Rigveda''. He is celebrated for his powers, and as the one who killed the great evil (a malevolent type of asura) named Vritra, who obstructed human prosperity and happiness. Indra destroys Vritra and his "deceiving forces", and thereby brings rains and sunshine as the saviour of mankind. He is also an important deity worshipped by the Kalash people, indicating his prominence in ancient Hinduism. Indra's significance diminishes in the post-Vedic Indian literature, but he still plays an important role in various m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anklet
An anklet, also called ''ankle chain'', ''ankle bracelet'' or ''ankle string'', is an ornament worn around the ankle. Barefoot anklets and toe rings historically have been worn for at least over 8,000 years by girls and women in Indus Valley, in South Asia where it is commonly known as ''pattilu'', ''payal, golusu'' and sometimes as ''nupur''. They have also been worn by Egyptian women since predynastic times. In the United States both casual and more formal anklets became fashionable from the 1930s to the late–20th century. While in Western popular culture both younger men and women may wear casual leather anklets, they are popular among barefoot women. Formal anklets (of silver, gold, or beads) are used by some women as fashion jewellery. Anklets are an important piece of jewellery in Indian marriages, worn along with saris. Occasionally, anklets on both ankles are joined by a chain to limit the step. This practice was once prevalent in Southeast Asia, where the effect was to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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