Puṟanāṉūṟu
Puṟanāṉūṟu, translating to "the four hundred [poems] about the exterior," is a significant anthology of Tamil poetry that highlights themes related to the life outside the familial sphere. It consists of four hundred poems composed by over 150 poets, including notable contributions from women poets, and serves as a vital resource for understanding South Asian history, culture, and linguistics. The poems largely revolve around the figure of the king, celebrating his valor, generosity, and ethical conduct, while also reflecting on broader societal themes such as the fleeting nature of life and death.
Central to the collection is the concept of karpu, or woman’s purity, emphasizing its importance in Tamil culture. Additionally, the anthology acknowledges a unique caste system, known as kuti, distinct from the Aryan varṇa system. The poets, including prominent figures like Kapilar and Auvaiyar, pay homage to legendary kings for their noble deeds. Each poem is categorized by a tinai, which links it to specific geographic, temporal, and musical contexts, enriching the reading experience. Overall, the Puṟanāṉūṟu offers a multifaceted view of heroism, loyalty, and societal values in ancient Tamil society, making it a crucial component of Tamil literary heritage.
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Puṟanāṉūṟu
Related civilizations: Dravidian, India.
Date: composed between first and third centuries c.e.
Locale: South India
Authorship: Composite; more than 150 poets
Puṟanāṉūṟu
Puṟanāṉūṟu (pew-RAH-na-NEW-rew; English translation in Tamil Heroic Poems, 1973) literally means “the four hundred [poems] about the exterior.” The “exterior” refers to life outside the family, which encompasses the king, the wars he fights, his greatness and generosity, his ethics in life for kings and commoners, the evanescence of life, and death. This anthology of four hundred poems written by more than 150 poets, including at least 10 women poets, is seminal to the understanding of South Asia’s history, culture, religion, and linguistics.
Puṟanāṉūṟu describes a Tamil society that revolves around the king, whose generosity and valor are the main subjects of the poems that also celebrate the power of karpu, or woman’s purity, which is of great importance to Tamils, both ancient and modern. Reference is also made to a caste system called kuti (now known as jati) that is peculiar to the Tamils and has no connection with the varṇa (caste) system described by the Aryans in the Vedas. Distinguished Puṟanāṉūṟu poets such as Kapilar and Auvaiyar paid eloquent tribute in their poems to kings Pari and Atiyaman, respectively, for their generosity and valor. Each of the Puṟanāṉūṟu poems is also assigned a tinai, defined as a place, region, or site, and each tinai corresponds to a tract of land, a time of day, a situation, and a raga (melody) in which it was sung. In the puram (exterior) poems, the tinai is further subdivided into a turai, or subject. These complex and sophisticated poems celebrate heroism and loyalty among men and chastity and purity among women.
Bibliography
Hart, George L., and Hank Heifetz, trans. The Four Hundred Songs of War and Wisdom: An Anthology of Poems from Classical Tamil—“The Purananuru.” New York: Columbia University Press, 1999.
Ramanujam, A. K. Poems of Love and War from the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985.