Kalithogai 130 – The vanishing pallor

Sangam Lit

In this episode, we observe the transformation in a person, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Kalithogai 130, penned by Nallanthuvanaar. The verse is situated in the ‘Neythal’ or ‘Coastal Landscape’ and sketches the effect of an evening on a maiden.

‘நயனும், வாய்மையும், நன்னர் நடுவும்,
இவனின் தோன்றிய, இவை’ என இரங்க,
புரை தவ நாடி, பொய் தபுத்து, இனிது ஆண்ட
அரைசனோடு உடன் மாய்ந்த நல் ஊழிச் செல்வம் போல்,
நிரை கதிர்க் கனலி பாடொடு பகல் செல,
கல்லாது முதிர்ந்தவன் கண் இல்லா நெஞ்சம் போல்,
பல் இருள் பரத்தரூஉம் புலம்பு கொள் மருள் மாலை

இம் மாலை,
ஐயர் அவிர் அழல் எடுப்ப, அரோ, என்
கையறு நெஞ்சம் கனன்று தீ மடுக்கும்!

இம் மாலை,
இருங் கழி மா மலர் கூம்ப, அரோ, என்
அரும் படர் நெஞ்சம் அழிவொடு கூம்பும்!

இம் மாலை,
கோவலர் தீம் குழல் இனைய, அரோ, என்
பூ எழில் உண்கண் புலம்பு கொண்டு இனையும்!

என ஆங்கு,
படு சுடர் மாலையொடு பைதல் நோய் உழப்பாளை,
குடி புறங்காத்து ஓம்பும் செங்கோலான் வியன் தானை
விடுவழி விடுவழிச் சென்றாங்கு, அவர்
தொடுவழித் தொடுவழி நீங்கின்றால் பசப்பே.

For a change, it’s the onlookers who are rendering these words, which can be translated as follows:

“Making people say with tenderness, ‘Surely, grace, truth and fairness must have been born only because of him’, analysing the right ways of uplifting, avoiding lies entirely, with goodness, ruled a great king. Akin to the wealth of good times that vanishes away with him, the sun, brimming with rays, decides to part away and end the day. Akin to the visionless heart of an uneducated old man, darkness then spreads in this lonely and confusing evening.

At this evening hour, when priests light the flame, alas! my helpless heart burns with the fire of desire;

At this evening hour, when the huge flowers in the backwaters close their buds, alas! my suffering-filled heart closes with despair;

At this evening hour, when the cowherds play on their sweet flutes, alas! my flower-like, kohl streaked eyes join in unison with loneliness;

And so, in that evening, when the sun sets, with a sorrowful disease, she suffered. Akin to a king with a red sceptre, who protects his people, by wielding his wide army, wherever, wherever he wishes, whenever, whenever her beloved touches her, fades away that pallor of hers!”

Let’s explore the nuances. The verse is situated in the context of the man’s parting from the lady, prior to marriage, and here, the onlookers talk about the lady’s state. First, they describe the time of the day with the simile about the passing away of a great king, who ruled with justice and goodness, and the vanishing away of all good times with his passing, to talk about the setting of the sun. Then, another philosophical simile about the mind of an uneducated person, which cannot see far, when old age arrives, and thus is filled with confusion, is brought forth to highlight the darkness of the night to come. Then, the effect of the evening on the lady is detailed, mentioning how as priests light flames, it’s the lady’s heart that burns; as flowers close, the lady’s heart too closes with sorrow; as cowherds send out the music of their flutes, the lady’s heart seems to join that song of melancholy. The same onlookers, most probably, the friends of the lady, conclude by talking about how the lady who was so ruined by an evening, without her beloved, was transformed, when he arrived. Like how a just king protects his people with his powerful army wherever he goes, whenever the man touches the lady, her pallor seemed to retreat, conclude those onlookers.

The words that spoke to me in this verse were the ones that highlighted the importance of education, by detailing how without learning, a person cannot see far and triumph over the travails of old age. This learning need not be only from the books, but it can also be from a life filled with rich experience. I was stunned by the truth and relevance of this thought after two thousand years, when studies have shown that a mentally active lifestyle, is of prime importance to put up a fight with dementia and other illnesses that attack one in the twilight years. Here’s to keeping those brain cells active and the mind’s eyes seeing far, even after the sun of youth sets in the horizon of our lives!