S. Kanapathipillai (27 June 1899 – 13 March 1986) was a minority

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...

literary figure and

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

revivalist in the school of

Arumuga Navalar Arumuka Navalar (; 18 December 1822 – 5 December 1879) was a Sri Lankan Shaivite Tamil language scholar, polemicist, and a religious reformer who was central in reviving native Hindu Tamil traditions in Sri Lanka and India. Navalar's bi ...

. His father was Sinnathamby Pillai of Madduvil in

Chavakachcheri Chavakachcheri ( ta, சாவகச்சேரி Cāvakaccēri, si, ජාවකච්චේරි Jāvakachchēri) is a large town in the Jaffna peninsula of Jaffna District, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It may have Javanese people, Javane ...

. Kanapathipillai was enrolled at the Navalar Kaaviya Paadasalai, under

Kumaraswamy Pulavar Chunnakam Kumaraswamy Pulavar ( ta, சுன்னாகம் குமாரசாமிப்புலவர்) was a well-known Sri Lankan Tamil scholar and poet from Maylani village in Chunnakam township in Jaffna peninsula in the British ...

, where he pursued higher studies in

classical Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

. He was also guided by

Swami Vipulananda Swami Vipulananda ( ta, சுவாமி விபுலாநந்தர்) (27 March 1892 – 20 July 1947), also known as Vipulananda Adigal, was a Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu social reformer, literary critic, author, poet, teacher and ascet ...

, while still a student at the Navalar Kaaviya Paadasalai. In 1925, he became one of only four people from

Jaffna Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th most ...

who had been bestowed the

Pandit A Pandit ( sa, पण्डित, paṇḍit; hi, पंडित; also spelled Pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt.) is a man with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge whether it is shashtra (Holy Books) or shastra (Wea ...

har qualification by the

Madurai Tamil Sangam Madurai Tamil Sangam, also known as the fourth Tamil Sangam, was a language academy founded by Prince Pandithurai Thevar and other Tamil language scholars to promote the use of Tamil language and Tamil culture in the late 19th century in British ...

. Kanapathipillai was a trained teacher and was in charge of the Saiva Teachers Training School at

Thirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British Raj, British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian ...

, Jaffna, from 1929 until he retired. He was also knowledgeable about

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

, about

Saiva Siddhanta Shaiva Siddhanta () (Tamil: சைவ சித்தாந்தம் "Caiva cittāntam") is a form of Shaivism that propounds a dualistic philosophy where the ultimate and ideal goal of a being is to become an enlightened soul through Shiv ...

and is a revered Tamil scholar of high repute and was given the title of "Pandithamani". In his last years he lived at his residence in "Kalasalai Veedi" in Thirunelveli, Jaffna.Government stamp on 4 December 1999 in honour of S. Kanapathipillai
/ref> Panditamani S.Kanapathipillai had recorded his conversations with Mouna thava munivar-P.Kailasapathy of Alaveddi, Vice-Principal of Saiva-training College, Thirunelveli, Jaffna, from 1941.01.29 to 1957.03.19 in his very presence almost verbatim. The

University of Jaffna The University of Jaffna ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாணப் பல்கலைக்கழகம், translit=Yāḻppāṇap Palkalaikkaḻakam; si, යාපනය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ''Yāpanaya Viśvavidyālaya''; ...

had published them, in 1994, scrupulously edited by Prof. S. Suchindraraja and A. Sabaratnam. The 700 pages of typed Tamil document will soon be published by the Department of Hindu-religious Affairs, Colombo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kanapathipillai, S. 1899 births 1986 deaths 20th-century Hindu religious leaders Hindu revivalists Sri Lankan Tamil literature Sri Lankan Hindus Sri Lankan Tamil revivalists