Avvaiyar ( Tamil: ஔவையார்) was the title of more than one

female poet This is a list of female poets with a Wikipedia page, listed by the period of time in which they were born. Before CE 1–500 CE 500–999 CE 11th–14th centuries In chronological order: 15th century 16th century 17th century ...

who were active during different periods of

Tamil literature Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution. Contributors to the Tamil literature are mainly from T ...

. They were some of the most famous and important female poets of the Tamil canon. Abidhana Chintamani states that there were three female poets titled ''Avvaiyar''. Among them, the first Avvaiyar lived during the Sangam period (c. 3rd century BCE) and is said to have had cordial relations with the Tamil chieftains Vēl Pāri and Athiyamān. She wrote 59 poems in the Puṟanāṉūṟu. Avvaiyar II lived during the period of Kambar and

Ottakoothar Ottakoothar (c. 12th century CE) was a Tamil court poet to three Later Chola kings, namely Vikrama Chola, Kulotunga II and Rajaraja II. He wrote poems in praise of these three kings. The poet's memorial is believed to be still in a place know ...

during the reign of the

Chola dynasty The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BC ...

in the tenth century. She is often imagined as an old and intelligent lady by

Tamil people The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Dravi ...

. Many poems and the Avvai Kural, comprising 310 kurals in 31 chapters, belong to this period. The third Avvaiyar is the most widely known for her ' Vinayagar Agaval', ' Aathichoodi', ' Kondrai Vendhan', ' Nalvazhi' and ' Moodhurai'.

Name etymology

The name Avvaiyar is a combination of Tamil word ''avvai'' with honorific suffix ''ar''. ''Avvai'' refers to 'respectable elderly woman' as the word ''ammai'' which means 'good woman' in general term for a woman of any age. Thus the name Avvaiyar means a 'respectable good woman', hence a generic title rather than a specific name of a person.

Sangam-age Avvaiyar

The Avvaiyar who lived during the

Sangam period The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

is considered to be contemporary to poets Paranar, Kabilar and

Thiruvalluvar Thiruvalluvar ( Tamil: திருவள்ளுவர்), commonly known as Valluvar, was a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of the '' Tirukkuṟaḷ'', a collection of couplets on ethics, political ...

. She is attributed as the author of 7 verses in

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 a ...

, 15 in

Kuṟuntokai Kuṟuntokai ( ta, குறுந்தொகை, meaning ''the short-collection'') is a classical Tamil poetic work and traditionally the second of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') in the Sangam literature. The collection belongs to the ...

, 4 in

Akanaṉūṟu The ''Akananuru'' (, literally "four hundred oemsin the akam genre"), sometimes called ''Nedunthokai'' (''lit.'' "anthology of long poems"), is a classical Tamil poetic work and one of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') in the Sangam lite ...

and 33 in Puṟanāṉūṟu. Legend states that she was a court poet of the rulers of the Tamil country. She travelled from one part of the country to another and from one village to another, sharing the gruel of the poor farmers and composing songs for their enjoyment. Most of her songs were about a small-time chieftain Vallal Athiyamaan Nedumaan Anji and his family. The chieftain had also used her as his ambassador to avert war with another neighbouring chieftain ''Thondaiman''. The rest of her songs related to the various aspects of state governance. Although traditions claim that she was a sister of Kabilar, Thiruvalluvar and Athiyamaan, V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar refutes this claim based on his studies that all four of them were most likely of different walks of life, thus from different caste backgrounds and hence impossible to be siblings. Tirukkovilur is an ancient temple town in Tamil Nadu. This is where the demon Andhaka was killed by Lord Shiva. Sangam epics recount that it was here that Avvayar was blessed with a vision of her lord slaying Andhaka and she has dedicated verses to the same. At great ancient temple of Thillai Chidambaram she sang Vinayakar Thiruakaval when Lord Ganesha displayed his dancing form to her. Vinayakar Thiruakaval is an extremely esoteric work.

View on Valluvar and the Kural

It is said that Avvaiyar was one of the several scholars who were present at the time when

Valluvar Thiruvalluvar (Tamil: திருவள்ளுவர்), commonly known as Valluvar, was a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of the ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'', a collection of couplets on ethics, political and ...

submitted his masterpiece of the

Tirukkural The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' ( ta, திருக்குறள், lit=sacred verses), or shortly the ''Kural'' ( ta, குறள்), is a classic Tamil language text consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or kurals, of seven words each. The tex ...

at the Madurai College. Soon after the presentation and the subsequent acceptance by the scholars and the Pandiyan King, Idaikkadar praised Valluvar and the Kural text thus: On hearing this, Avvaiyar remarked to him that it would be more appropriate to liken the Kural text to an atom, which is even smaller than a mustard seed. Both Idaikaadar and Avvaiyar's remarks appear as the last two verses of the Tiruvalluva Maalai.

Chola-age Avvaiyar

Adhiyaman avvaikku nellikani vazhanguthal

The medieval period Avvaiyar was the court poet of the Chola monarch and was the contemporary of Kambar and

Ottakkuttar Ottakoothar (c. 12th century CE) was a Tamil court poet to three Later Chola kings, namely Vikrama Chola, Kulotunga II and Rajaraja II. He wrote poems in praise of these three kings. The poet's memorial is believed to be still in a place known ...

. She found great happiness in the life of small children. Her works,

Ātticcūṭi The Athichudi ( ta, ஆத்திசூடி, translit=Āthichūdi) is a collection of single-line quotations written by Avvaiyar Avvaiyar (Tamil: ஔவையார்) was the title of more than one female poet who were active during ...

and Konraiventhan, written for young children, are even now generally read and enjoyed by them. Her two other works, Mooturai and Nalvali were written for older children. All the four works are

didactic Didacticism is a philosophy that emphasizes instructional and informative qualities in literature, art, and design. In art, design, architecture, and landscape, didacticism is an emerging conceptual approach that is driven by the urgent need t ...

in character – they explain the basic wisdom that should govern mundane life.

Quotes

The following quotes from Aathichoodi illustrate the simplicity of her style and profoundness of the messages: ''"Thol Ulagil Nallaar Oruvar Ularael Avar Poruttu Ellarkum Peiyum Mazhai"'' – The rain falls on behalf of the virtuous, benefitting everyone in the world. ''"Nandri Oruvarukku Seithakkal An Nandri Endru tharum kol ena vaenda nindru Thalara valar thengu Thaanunda Neerai Thalaiyaalae Thaan Tharuthalal"'' -Don't wait for a return benefit as to when a good deed done will pay back, but be just like that tall and erect coconut tree that drank water from its feet gives the benefit of giving that sweet water by its head." Her quote ''"கற்றது கைமண் அளவு, கல்லாதது உலகளவு"'' has been translated as ''"What you have learned is a mere handful; What you haven't learned is the size of the world"'' and exhibited at

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...

. Her famous works include: * Vinayagar Agaval

Shrine

In Muppandal, a small village in the

Kanyakumari District Kanniyakumari district is one of the 38 districts in Tamil Nadu state and the southernmost district in mainland India. It stands second in terms of population density among the districts of Tamil Nadu. It is also the richest district in Tamil Nad ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

. there is an image of Avvaiyar. By tradition, this is stated to be the spot where the great poet left the mortal world.

''Avvai Vizha''

Annual Avvai Vizha is organised and conducted by the

Government of Tamil Nadu Government of Tamil Nadu is the subnational government for the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is seated at Fort St George, Chennai. The legislature of Tamil Nadu was bicameral until 1986, when it was replaced by a unicameral legislature, lik ...

to commemorate Avvaiyar's contribution to

. This festival is celebrated every year in the month of Panguni on Sadhayam star day. Avvai Vizha has been started by local community long time back and still continuing willingly. Now Government of Tamil Nadu is continuing this function and adding more values. Local community, Tamil scholars and scholars from various fields participating with passion on this occasion and deliver their speech. Avvai Vizha is conducted in the temple Avvayar situated at Thulasiyappattinam village,

Vedaranyam Vedaranyam () (also spelt as Vedaraniam and Vedaranniyam) is a town in Nagapattinam district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The town is named after the presiding deity of the Vedaranyeswarar Temple. The recorded history of Vedaranyam is know ...

, Nagappatinam District, in the temple premises of Arulmigu Visvanathaswamy Thirukovil. Also this place is referred to famous interaction between Lord Muruga and Avvaiyar "Suttapazham Venduma Sudatha Pazham Venduma". This temple is under the control of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department.

Legend

A popular legend in Tamil is the story of the first Avvaiyar and the ''Naaval'' ( Jambu) tree. Avvaiyar, believing she had achieved everything that is to be achieved, was pondering her retirement from Tamil literary work while resting under a ''Naaval'' tree. She was then met by a disguised

Murugan Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Gan ...

(regarded as one of the guardian deities of the Tamil language; the god of war, victory, and knowledge), who jousted with her wittily. He later revealed himself and made her realise that there was still a lot more to be done and learned. Following this awakening, Avvaiyar is believed to have undertaken a fresh set of literary works, targeted at children. These works, even after a millennium, are often among the first works of literature that children are exposed to in Tamil Nadu schools (compare the note to

Letitia Elizabeth Landon Letitia Elizabeth Landon (14 August 1802 – 15 October 1838) was an English poet and novelist, better known by her initials L.E.L. The writings of Landon are transitional between Romanticism and the Victorian Age. Her first major breakthrough ...

's poem referenced below under Legacy). Another legend has it that once the great king Athiyaman gave an "eternal" gooseberry (''Nellikani'' in Tamil) fruit to Avvaiyar I. It was a special fruit that would bestow on whoever ate it a very long and healthy life. Athiyaman wanted Avvaiyar to eat the eternal fruit as she was the right person who could serve the Tamil community. If she could live forever, so would the Tamil heritage and language. While on a visit to

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, Avvai was caught up in torrential rain, and took shelter in the house of two women of lower caste, Angavay and Sangavay. These women took care of Avvai with great kindness and the poet promised that they would be given in marriage to the King of Tirucovalur. On hearing this the King agreed to take the women in marriage if they were given away by the Chera,

Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century B ...

and the Pandya kings. Avvai then made an invocation to

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

for making the invitation on a palmyra leaf, on which Ganesha appeared before her. On receiving the invitation the kings from the three kingdoms come to the wedding ceremony and gave Angavay and Sangavay away in marriage. (pp. 57–59).

Legacy

In her poetical illustration of 1835,

writes of Avvaiyar(Avyia)'s triumph and calls her 'One who upon the scroll Flung the creative soul, Disdainful of life's flowers and of its rest.' In 1991, a 20.6 km-wide crater in Venus was named the ''Avviyar crater'', after the ancient Avvaiyar, by the

International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...

Publication in the United States

In 2009,

Red Hen Press Red Hen Press is an American non-profit press located in Pasadena, California, and specializing in the publication of poetry, literary fiction, and nonfiction. The press is a member of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, and was a final ...

published a selection of Avvaiyar's poetry from the 12th century, entitled ''Give, Eat, and Live: Poems by Avviyar''. The poems were selected and translated into English by Thomas Pruiksma, a poet and translator who discovered Avviyar's work while on a

Fulbright scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

The American College in Madurai The American College, often referred to as American College, is one of the oldest colleges in India, located in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded in 1881 by American Christian missionaries. The red-brick buildings, in the Saracenic style, ble ...

, Tamil Nadu, India.

Notes

References

* * Krishnamurti, Dr. C.R. (Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. Canada) Thamizh Literature Through the Age

* Project Madurai – Purananuru eText – http://tamilnation.org/literature/ettuthokai/pm0057.pdf * Project madurai – Avvaiyar works in PDF – http://tamilnation.org/literature/auvaiyar/pm002.pdf * NASA link for citation of Auvaiyar's quote – https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/informal/features/F_Cosmic_Questions.html * http://www.aathithamizharperavai.com/home.html * https://web.archive.org/web/20110308182216/http://www.tn.gov.in/policynotes/archives/policy2004_05/hrce2004-05-3.htm *NASA Venus Nomenclature list which includes Avviyar's name - https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/512

External links

Project Madurai Homepage

- Translated into English {{authority control Hindu poets Tamil poets Ancient Indian poets Ancient Asian women writers Indian women poets Hindu female religious leaders Tamil epic poets Tiruvalluva Maalai contributors Sangam poets Female poets of the Sangam Age Ancient Indian women writers Tamil Hindu saints Dalit Hindu saints