Kalithogai 53 – From languishing to flourishing

Sangam Lit

In this episode, we perceive the lady’s state in the man’s absence, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kalithogai 53, penned by Kabilar. The verse is situated in the ‘Kurinji’ or ‘Mountains landscape’ and appeals to the man’s kindness to remedy a distressing situation.

வறன் உறல் அறியாத வழை அமை நறுஞ் சாரல்
விறல் மலை வியல் அறை, வீழ் பிடி உழையதா,
மறம் மிகு வேழம், தன் மாறுகொள் மைந்தினான்,
புகர் நுதல் புண் செய்த புய் கோடு போல,
உயர் முகை நறுங் காந்தள் நாள்தோறும் புதிது ஈன,
அயம் நந்தி அணிபெற, அருவி ஆர்த்து இழிதரும்
பய மழை தலைஇய பாடு சால் விறல் வெற்ப!

மறையினின் மணந்து, ஆங்கே மருவு அறத் துறந்தபின்,
இறை வளை நெகிழ்பு ஓட, ஏற்பவும் ஒல்லும்மன்
அயல் அலர் தூற்றலின், ஆய் நலன் இழந்த கண்;
கயல் உமிழ் நீர் போல, கண் பனி கலுழாக்கால்?

இனிய செய்து அகன்று, நீ இன்னாதாத் துறத்தலின்,
‘பனி இவள் படர்’ என பரவாமை ஒல்லும்மன்
ஊர் அலர் தூற்றலின், ஒளி ஓடி, நறு நுதல்
பீர் அலர் அணி கொண்டு, பிறை வனப்பு இழவாக்கால்?

‘அஞ்சல்’ என்று அகன்று, நீ அருளாது துறத்தலின்,
நெஞ்சு அழி துயர் அட, நிறுப்பவும் இயையும்மன்
நனவினால் நலம் வாட, நலிதந்த நடுங்கு அஞர்
கனவினால் அழிவுற்று கங்குலும் அரற்றாக்கால்?

என ஆங்கு,
விளியா நோய் உழந்து ஆனா என் தோழி, நின் மலை
முளிவுற வருந்திய முளை முதிர் சிறு தினை
தளி பெறத் தகைபெற்றாங்கு, நின்
அளி பெற நந்தும், இவள் ஆய் நுதற் கவினே.

Another plea by the confidante on behalf of the lady! The words can be translated as follows:

“In the wide and spreading, fragrant mountain slopes, filled with lush laurel wood trees, that know not the meaning of drought, a male elephant, full of strength and courage, was resting along with its beloved female. Seeing a rival male elephant arriving there, it attacks the newcomer’s spotted face and scars the same. Akin to its tusk pulled out from the skin of the foe, the tall and fragrant flame-lily blooms anew day after day, near the ponds, adorning the space with much beauty, in the song-worthy mountains, where cascades resound and descend, and clouds surround, in your country, O lord!

After trysting with her in secret, when you abandoned her, maybe she could have accepted that the bangles on her wrist would slip away. But when neighbours spread slander, making her fine beauty fade, and when her eyes shed tears, akin to water that spouts out of a fish, what can she do?

After doing sweet things, when you did the harsh thing of forsaking her, maybe they could have remained without offering sacrifices to gods so as to remedy the suffering of their child. But when the town spreads slander, making her lose her radiance, and when her fragrant forehead takes the hue of ridge-gourd flowers, losing its crescent-moon glow, what can they do?

After saying ‘fear not’, when you parted away and deserted her, without your grace, she could have prevented the deep sorrow that destroys her heart. But when owing to reality, her health fades, and further, she trembles and laments because of her dreams at night, what can she do?

And so, my friend suffered because of that unending disease. Akin to sprouting little millets in your mountain, which were languishing owing to the lack of water, but later rises up when it rains, her fine forehead will glow with beauty, when it attains your grace!”

Let’s explore the nuances. The verse is situated in the context of a man’s love relationship, prior to marriage, and the words are rendered by the confidante to the man, when he had parted away temporarily from the lady. The confidante starts with a description of the mountain country, and in this edition, instead of the common trope of an elephant and tiger fighting, here we see one male elephant, which was resting with its female, attacking another rival elephant that arrives on the scene. Taking the action sequence further, the confidante describes how akin to the blood-soaked red tip of this elephant’s tusk when it pulls the same out of the rival’s face, flame-lilies burst all over the moist and lush mountains of the man. Then, she goes on to talk about how the man had trysted and relished the lady’s company for a while and then abandoned her. At this time, the lady suffered so much that she could not accept her bangles slipping away as her eyes shed tears, that the family could not help making sacrifices to heal the state of the lady, who had lost her radiance, and that the lady had no way of checking the sorrow in her heart because not only the reality of parting with the man but also the troubling dreams made her tremble and lose her health. Stating all these terrible effects, the confidante advises the man on the right course of action, saying like the once-languishing millet crops in his mountain would rise up with exuberance, when the rains pour, the lady’s beauty too would return when it receives the shower of the man’s grace.

In short, it’s again ‘Marry her, marry her’ by sketching the importance of the man’s presence in the lady’s life! While it’s impossible to relate to the state of this languishing lady in her man’s absence, the image that we can relate to, is that of the withering millet crops that sprout up with a smile when the rains fall, telling us to focus on those aspects of our life that are languishing, and contemplate on that one thing they need to make them bloom with a flourish once again!