Elucidating Ancient Greek Art in Tamil

Gyges watches the unaware nude queen in her royal bedroom - A  painting by William Etty 

In a male-dominated world of a bygone era, stigmatized was a woman, who discovered that a man had spied on her nude body. As she was betrayed so by none other than her husband, she was left with two options – either to kill the man and live with her husband or to kill her husband and live with the man. The ancient Greek tale, which is depicted in a piece of art by the English painter William Etty, throws light on how women were unjustly treated as slaves of man's lust even several centuries ago.

William Etty -the English painter

On a night, Candaules, the king of Lydia in ancient Greece, betrayed his beautiful wife Nyssia, by showing her in nude to his bodyguard Gyges. The king devised a plan that Gyges would hide behind a door in the royal bedroom and watch on the nude, unaware queen while she undresses herself before going to bed.

“ But, Nyssia soon discovered that she had been betrayed by her husband. The next day she summoned Gyges and left him with two options – Either he should meet the doom for his crime of watching her nude, or kill the king and marry her. And Gyges rather chose the second. Therefore, Nyssia engineered a plan the same way the king did earlier. She told Gyges to hide behind the bed room door and stab the king while he was sleeping” explains Stalin, a retired Assistant Director of All India Radio, in his newly- written book Grekka Kalai Marabu ( The tradition of Greek art).

The tale, which is from the accounts of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus is the root for the psychological term 'Candaulism' which denotes a man's sexual practice of exposing his wife to a peeping Tom.

Stalin with his book Grekka Kalai Marabu

 

“ Led by my passion for Greek history, philosophy and art, I purchased a plenty of books and enjoyed reading them. When I thought their new ideas would interest readers, I decided to write a book on them” says Stalin, who has penned a number of Tamil books on Greek literature and philosophy.

Leda and the Swan

Nevertheless, his new book Grekka Kalai Marabu is the first of its kind in Tamil to depict the world of ancient Greek painters, sculptors and architects. The articles in his work were already serialised in Om Sakthi, a Tamil monthly magazine founded by the late industrialist and philanthropist 'Pollachi' N.Mahalingam

“The magazine's editor and popular 'Vanambadi' poet Chidamparanathan of Coimbatore encouraged me to write in the periodical every month, for he felt my write-ups on Greek art would interest many Tamil readers” he informs.

Stalin's book explains a number of pieces in Greek art in the background of interesting tales and mythologies as Echo and Narcissus, Leda and the Swan and Hercules' freeing of Prometheus.

The book has been published by 'Agaram' a Thanjavur-based publishing company, run by Kathirarasan, a son of the late 'Vanambadi' poet Meera, popular for his collection of modern Tamil poems Kanavugal+Karapanaikal= Kakithangal, which appeared in 1971.

Narcissus loves his own image reflected in a stream

“ The tradition of Greek art dates back to over 2000 years. Though its roots are from Phoenicia, an ancient region corresponding to modern Lebanon, with adjoining parts of modern Syria and Israel, the Greeks later theorized and systematized them” Stalin informs.

“In Tamil, there are many books on Greek thinkers and philosophers including Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. But, my new work is an attempt to introduce ancient Greek painters, sculptors and architects to Tamil readers” he avers. 

Link to my article in The New Indian Express: http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/13477294 

Of Humans Turning into Nomads of Water

Photo by A.Raja Chidhamparam

How do you 'hear' the present day life of mankind, which is inextricable from the use of plastic, as plastic disposable cups, plastic water bottles and plastic carry bags? A scene in the modern Tamil play Neer Nadodigal ( Water nomads), written and staged by popular playwright Muruga Boopathy,depicted one such 'sample' of our everyday life, as a 'crowd' of human beings tussle to escape from the clutches of plastic bottles which are thrown aplenty on the dimly-lit drama stage. Matching a traditional solo drum beat, when the crowd treads on the heap of bottles, its raspy noise fills the packed hall and narrates the tragic tale of modern man being caught in the snare of plastic.

Neer Nadodigal, which begins after Mahakavi Subramania Bharathi's lyric Manathil Urudhi Vendum.., portrays in a scene, a girl questioning herself of what her tradition,culture and language are. The scene drops a hint at man's alienation from his roots in a modern world, which is known for its great 'developments' in science and technology.

The modern play depicts a number of such social issues effectively, but not through the stereotyped dialogues. Rather, the drama's devices of communication are the actors' strenuous body language, their grave facial expressions and hot sighs.

A bare-bodied man, who seems to be so strong and ungiving, walks upright on the stage. The people, who are apparently under his totalitarian rule, show resistance to his diktat. And the man, symbolizing a dictatorial state and a strait-laced religion, confronts their revolt. The scene ends in the intensity of the land sandwiching the rule and the ruled.

A girl, who looks like a bird or sometimes an animal or sometimes a tree in the woods, is loved by a man. However, a madding crowd opposes their relation and leaves the helpless couple drench in tears of love.

Reminding a scene from the English movie The Ten Commandments, an exodus of people was in search of a land for their survival. Having lost their cultural identity due to several facets of the modern life including developments in science and technology and wars between nations, the helpless humans espy their matriarch, who, at last, resurrects the 'waste land' called earth by her beautiful music.

Produced by Manal Magudi Nataka Nilam, Neer Nadodikal was performed by a team of students from the Drama Club of PSG College of Arts and Science.

The play, each of whose acts reflecting a concept, left the audience spell bound, as it depicted in a scene that all on earth - plants, birds and humans - take the 'form' of water. In a rain-ravaged flood, humans are seen under the blue waters, lamenting over their crimes of annihilating nature.

Now, water takes the form of a woman and 'flows' on the dais. The 'water-filled' drama stage gleams for a while and disappears in the dark.

Crying Out Loud for the Silent Victims of Injustice

S.Balamurugan

Photo by Prakash Chellamuthu

Have you ever met the legendary Kannagi, who furiously burnt Madurai avenging her husband's unjust execution for a crime that he had not committed? But, Smith, an English surveyor, who later visited the parts of the southern district on an official assignment, met the woman in the woods ! She was nude, had large eyes and seen sitting near a cascade, heaving her hot sighs after weeping aloud for ages. The frightened Englishman, despite leaving the country, says that the woman haunts her wherever he moves on.

On reintroducing such victims of injustice in 'Perungaatru' (Gale), his latest fiction, a book of short stories, Balamurugan, a city-based writer, lawyer and human rights activist, says:

“ The contexts and characters in my short stories, are the ones I have come across in my life. Being indelible in my memories, they urge me to depict their miserable lives in my fiction”

The author informs he discovered in his own short stories that women being prominent of all his characters, as he read his writings again after they came out in a book form.

On one such character, Balamurugan writes:

“ At the end of a short story, I am sure the character Valli was raped and murdered. But, don't ask me who killed her, since you and I too have taken part in that gruesome act ”

Such a blame of Balamurugan is just a hint at the people, who turn a Nelson's eye to any unjust act in a society known for its social and economic discrimination.

For the people, who love reading literature for pleasure, Balamurugan's characters could be strange, since they were silent victims of several political and social issues across the country. And by introducing them to the modern readers, the author has thrown light on how members of the marginalized section become prey to the powerful.

Oru Kadal Iru Karaikal ( One sea and two shores), a short story in his book, takes a reader to the world of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, who suffer untold hardships in their camps.

“ A person's pain of pains is his survival as a refugee in a foreign land. As part of the fact-finding team of PUCL a few years ago, when I visited the Mandapam camp for Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, I stumbled upon a woman who had a paralysis. I was shocked to hear that she abstained even from drinking water and eating food to prevent herself from urinating and defecating, since she was totally dependent on others even for answering nature's call. And the woman is the one, whom you meet as 'Malar' in Oru Kadal Iru Karaikal” informs Balamurugan

In the short story Inge Sorgam Thuvangukirathu ( Here begins the heaven), Balamurugan narrates the incident of a Kashmiri man, who goes 'missing' one day, and portrays the abuse meted out to the man's aged mother and his wife. The two women seek the help of an association of parents, who similarly 'lost' their children in Kashmir. With certain human rights activists too coming forward to help them, some army men trespass their house, abuse the two women physically and warn them not to have any contacts with the human rights activists.

“ The Kashmiri old woman's lullaby to her little grandson merged in the murmur of river Jhelum, fell on the mountain tops and spread everywhere. And her 'lost' son could have heard it from somewhere in that cold night” Balamurugan ends the short story.

Link to my article in The New Indian Express:http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/12117250

Looking for the Lost Tirthankara in the Hindu Hill Shrine

The image of a Jain Thirthankara engraved on the large rock, which is believed  to have rolled down from the hill some centuries ago at the Thirumurthi Hills

“Buy and offer Neytheepams for the Mummoorthies ”

Calls out a woman lamp vendor beside the Amanalingeshwarar Temple at Thirumurthi hills. Many devotees purchase the little earthen lamps from her, light and offer them to the Hindu trinity or ''Thir'i'murthies ' Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. But, as most believe, the name 'Thirumurthy Malai' indicates only the mountain of a Jain Tirthankara and not the Hindu trinity.

“The Vedic religion followed the tactics of annihilating its rival faiths including Buddhism and Jainism just by incorporating their spiritual tradition into its pantheon. And that was how Lord Buddha, a man who campaigned against the meaningless rituals of Hinduism, was trumped up as the ninth 'avatar' of the Hindu God Vishnu! “ pointed out eminent archeologist R.Poongundran, who is also the former Assistant director of Tamil Nadu Archeology Department.

Leading a team of history enthusiasts to the places Kalandhai, Karapadi, Anaimalai and Thirumurthy Hills in the 'Varalatru Ula' ( Historical trip) organised by The Vanavarayar Foundation recently, the archeologist explained:

“ Lord Shiva is called ' Amana Lingeshwarar ' only at a few places in the Kongu region including Karapadi and Thirumurthy Hills and nowhere else in Tamil Nadu. With Jainism flourishing in these regions, the monks of the religion, who would stay in caves, wearing no clothes, had been called 'Amanars'. When such spots were later converted into Hindu shrines, the name indicating the nude Jain monks was given even to Lord Shiva, who, at last, came to be called ' Amana Lingeshwarar' “

“ A carving on a huge rock, which is worshiped by the devotees as 'Mummurthy' or 'Thir'i'murthy' at the hill shrine, is only a Jain Tirthankara and not the Hindu trinity Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva! Evident to this, ancient Jain literary works in Tamil like Soolamani and Seevaka Cinthamani describe the Jain God Aruhan as ‘Thirumurthi’ “ writes Kovai Kizhar, the first historian of Coimbatore, in his book Kongunadum Samanamum.



The huge rock, on which the carving of a Tirthankara appears slanted, is believed to have rolled down from the hill during a flood some centuries ago. When closely observed, the engraving portrays the Tirthankara with two Samendras( The ones who wave fans to the deity standing with their ‘Samarams’ or Fans on both sides to Him).



R.Jegadisan, a popular epigraphist, who organised the historical trip, said:

“The carving of a Tirthankara on the huge rock hints at the fact that certain Jain monks must have lived somewhere in the forests of the hill. However, their spots of stay are yet to be discovered”

“ However, unaware of this history, Velayudha Pandithar, a Tamil scholar, later wrote a Sthalapurana on Thirumurthy Temple, linking it with a Hindu myth“ informed Poongundran.



Legend has it that the three Hindu deities Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, while visiting Anushya Devi, wife of sage Athari Maharishi, at her home in Thirumurthi Hills, asked her to serve them food without wearing clothes. They asked her to do so only to test her ‘Prativrathayam’ (Devotion to her husband) However, as she prayed to her husband in mind and came unclothed, the Hindu deities got metamorphosed into three innocent babies, whom she breastfed and put them to sleep in cradle. The Sthalapurana states that this was why the place came to be called as Thir’i’murthy Temple (A Shrine of three Hindu Gods)

Link to my article in The New Indian Express http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/11570743

Meet Prof ' Pe. Murugan', for Writer Perumal Murugan is 'No More'

When Tamil professor and popular writer Perumal Murugan was hounded by Hindutva and caste outfits for his alleged depiction of Kongu women in poor light in his novel Madhorubhagan, his old students, who have high regards for him, were also helpless like him. On a day, when they heard that their 'Ayya' (Tamil professor) had received continuous threats and haunts from his protestors, his students, who were mostly Tamil teachers in different schools and colleges across the state, could hardly do anything to condemn the incident. Nevertheless, recollecting their great teacher's care and affection for them, they have now come out with a book ' Engal Ayya' ( Our Tamil teacher).

It may be noted that Perumal Murugan had to tender an unconditional apology for the 'controversial' content and decide to pulp all his literary works. In his Facebook page, the writer even declared the 'death' of the author ' Perumal Murugan' in him and he would, henceforth, be called only by his natural name ' Pe. Murugan', a mere Tamil teacher.

At this juncture, answering a question on how his students estimated the writer's controversial works and whether they have any idea to bring the writer ' Perumal Murugan' back to life, Velayudham, proprietor of Vijaya Pathipagam, who presided over a symposium on the book at the literary organisation 'Kalam' recently, said:

“ This symposium is only on 'Pe. Murugan' the Tamil teacher, and not on ' Perumal Murugan', the writer. Let's discuss the latter some time in future “

Admiring 'Engal Ayya', Velayudham informed:

“ I read the entire book in an over night. 'Pe. Murugan' is a man of simplicity, who was always seen carrying a 'Manjal Pai' ( An ordinary yellow cloth bag) and wearing a pair of ordinary Khadhi chappals. A great teacher, he was of any help to his students, both academically and personally. The book on him should be read by professors of the present day so that they could learn the role of a teacher in shaping a student's personality” added Velayudham.

A Chinnadurai, an old student of 'Pe. Murugan', recalled:

“ Like his favourite legendary Tamil scholar, U.Ve.Sa alias U.V. Saminatha Iyer, our Ayya too loved the mischief of his students. Though he was a great writer with a number of books to his credit, he never popularized any of his works in class ”

N.Arul Murugan, Chief Educational Officer of Coimbatore District, who was also a student of 'Pe. Murugan', said in his special address:

“ What we learned from our Ayya was his life, as he lived it the way he taught us”

Manikandan, Sivakumar, Chandran, Savitri, Jayakumar and Ranjan, who were also professor 'Pe. Murugan's students, addressed the symposium. 

Link to my article in The New Indian Express : http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/11339763 

Rediscovering the Stone Inscription inside a Jungle

A private deemed university, which is functioning close to the Ettimadai forest, in case, extends its campus further, Tamils are sure to lose a historical treasure - a 1100 year old inscription on a rock inside the deep forest. A venba ( A four-lined traditional verse) inscribed on the rectangular slab of rock, is in praise of the king Aditya Chola I, who relaid an ancient highway that ran through Coimbatore for several centuries even before the Christian era. Interestingly, the inscription, which is alongside the disused ancient highway, mentions the road's name as 'Rajakesari Peruvazhi', carrying the monarch's title ' Rajakesari' (Lion of kings).

Though the inscription has withstood the test of time, braving heat and rain for these many centuries, protecting the monument is the need of the hour, for it is already in peril.

This correspondent, who failed for two times earlier in tracing the inscription due to the dangers of wild animals, was successful exactly at 4.25 PM on April 1 - ironically on the day of fools !

“ We could never have imagined to catch a glimpse of the inscription, had Anbarasu, Ramasamy and Guruvayurappan, the natives of Ettimadai, not taken us into the woods “ averred D.Sundaram, an epigraphist.

As the mountain path is blocked by numerous thorny bushes, Ramasamy, who leads the team, cuts through the undergrowth with his sickle. And one could be amazed at the rural man's knowledge of native geography, as he rediscovers the inscription after an interval of 25 years.

“ I last saw the inscription in 1991. However, as boys, my friend Anbarasu and I used to graze goats near it. At that time, we had little chance to realise its historical value“ says Ramasamy,

Pointing at a herd of Sambar deer walking on an adjacent hill, Anbarasu informs:

“ A day in summer is the suitable time to trace the inscription inside this forest, since animals are easily visible in the absence of green “

Anbarasu now stumbles upon a fallen antler near a sandalwood tree:

“ You know the antlers of the Sambar deer falls off once they have ossified ” he informs.

Pointing at a tree, whose bark is peeled off, Anbarasu explains it in his typical Kongu Tamil dialect:

“ Maanu, Kombu Theeteerukkuthu Paarunga ( Just look at the tree, against which a deer has rubbed its antler) ”

Anbarasu used to read books while grazing goats near the disused highway. But, it was a coincidence that he discovered the highway’s name as ‘Rajakesari Peruvazhi’ while reading an article in a magazine at the same Rajakesari Peruvazhi! 

The Venba in the inscription is in praise of the Chola king Aditya I, which reads thus:

திருநிழலும் மன்னுயிரும் சிறந்தமைப்ப
ஒருநிழல் வெண்டிங்கள் மேலோங்கி - பெருநிழல்போல்
வாழிய கோச்சோழன் வளங்காவிரி நாடன்
கோழியர் கோக்கண்டன் குலவு'

 

Link to my article in The New Indian Express: http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/9576104

Lord Indra was not a Beef-eating Muslim

In a country with a plural character, after one particular animal, the cow, is made 'holy', it is undemocratic that even an individual's traditional right of consuming beef has become a 'crime' these days. Receiving a tip off, an angry crowd, armed with deadly weapons, reach the Muslim beef eater's home and lynch him for the 'crime'. But, it is a wonder that no such people were murdered for eating beef in Coimbatore decades ago.

Sarcastically mentioned as 'Periyattu Kari' ( Big goat's meat), beef was eaten by the people in the slum areas including Puliyakulam and Ammankulam. Since most residents from these two localities were from a lower socio-economic background, they could afford to buy only beef, as the prices of mutton and chicken were so high even those days.

It was a common sight that a number of beef stalls functioned busy along the Sowripalayam Road in Puliyakulam. Further, near the junction, where the Asia's largest statue of Lord Ganesha stands now, functioned a pork stall, serving its customers hot idlis with tasty meat.

The beef cattle were also seen slaughtered in Yerimedu, which connects Ammankulam and Puliyakulam on the banks of the Sanganur stream. Hence, the frightened children of Ammankulam, who walked with their parents to watch films in the yesteryear movie halls Maniam and Krishna at Ramanathapuram, would beg them not to take the short route via Yerimedu.

44 year old Jayaprakash from Ammankulam, a school bus driver, recalls:

“ My mother was an expert in making tasty dishes in beef, and not a Sunday would pass our home without a delicious meal in cow's meat ”

Nonetheless, it is hardly correct to conclude that beef was eaten only by the people, who were from a lower socio-economic background.

According to the book Pasauvin Punidham : Marukkum Aadharangal by D. N. Jha, the ceremony of sacrificing animals in the rituals called 'Yajnas' and consuming their meat dates back to the Vedic age with the settlement of the Indo- Aryans in India.

The verses in the Rigveda, a literature portraying the Aryan social life, inform that their Gods Indra, Agni and Soma loved eating beef. Also, Lord Indra speaks in a verse that He had eaten the meat of around 1000 oxen !. Taittriya Samhita, another Vedic text, even instructs the method of sacrificing animals in Yajnas and how their meat should be shared among the people.

Moreover, a work of Dharmasutra ( A manual of early Hindu law) points out that the meat of the cow and oxen is pure and worth to be eaten.

Yajnavalkya, the well-known sage and philosopher in the court of king Janaka in Mithila, loved eating beef and preferred more, if it was the meat of a calf !

Source: Pasuvin Punidham : Marukkum Aadharangal – D.N.Jha. V. Govindasamy in Tamil. 

Link to my article in The New Indian Express: http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/c/6757157