LESSON - 2
P10332 - சிற்றிலக்கியத்தின் வகைப்பாடுகள்




    This lesson tells you about the different literary forms included in
சிற்றிலக்கியம். Remarkable among them are குறவஞ்சி. தூது, மடல், உலா, பள்ளு and கலம்பகம். The nomenclature, origin, structure, content, and development of these forms are described in this lesson. This has six units, each dealing with one of the six literary forms mentioned now.

    குறவஞ்சி talks about the activities of girls belonging to a social class called குறவர். Forecasting the future, conversation with her husband, and interpreting the omens are some of the activities that occupy the central parts of this class of சிற்றிலக்கியம். குறவஞ்சி can be named after the place of occurrence of events described like திருக்குற்றாலக் குறவஞ்சி, or after the hero like தியாகேசர் குறவஞ்சி, or after both such as தஞ்சை வெள்ளைப் பிள்ளையார் குறவஞ்சி. The heroine can also figure in the title. for example, தமிழரசி குறவஞ்சி. குறவஞ்சி originates from the use of குறி meaning forecasting or interpreting the omens by a குறத்தி.

    The structure of குறவஞ்சி is very striking. It comprises various events but begins with an invocation called பாயிரம். This part has four poems such as கடவுள் வணக்கம், தோடையம், நூல் பயன் and அவையடக்கம். This serves as a prelude to the main contents concerning the hero, the heroine, the companions, the குறத்தி and her husband குறவன். The work ends with வாழ்த்து or மங்கலம் indicating longivity or auspicious desires.

    In the next unit you come to know about தூது, another type in சிற்றிலக்கியம். It deals with the sending of a message through messengers. They can be human beings or even inanimate objects. The grammar of this poetic form called தூது is found even in earlier forms of literature. The origin and development of தூது இலக்கியம் can be traced in தொல்காப்பியம் and in Sangam literature. The first தூது work is said to be நெஞ்சு விடு தூது of the fourteenth century. A disciple uses his mind as the messenger to his Guru. தூது is a message from a male to another male character or from a female to a male and vice versa.

    மடல் is a special form related to the ancient Tamil culture. This literature deal with the one-sided love of the heros. The hero, in order to prove his love for the heroine, rides on a horse made up of palmyra fronds with thorny edges. It is drawn by his friends. The hero carries the picture of the heroine with her name written on it. Thus he tries to proclaim his love, patiently tolerating the cuts on his body caused by the thorny edges. This literary tradition is primarily male-oriented. Women do not embark on these activities. However, later periods talk about a change in this tradition for specified reasons like devotion.

    உலா இலக்கியம் is the subject of the next unit. The hero’s procession is described. Fourteen stages divided into earlier and later parts of hero’s life are spoken of. The reaction of the women folk is the theme of this category of literature. Seven stages in the life of a women are listed as பேதை, பெதும்பை, மங்கை, மடந்தை, அரிவை, தெரிவை and பேரிளம்பெண். Earlier literature and devotional literature are the sources for உலா.

    பள்ளு is named after the songs sung by பள்ளர் during their hard work of ploughing the land and other agricultural activities. முக்கூடற்பள்ளு of the 17th century is found to be the first in this kind of சிற்றிலக்கியம்.

    கலம்பகம் is a miscellaneous or eclectic form of சிற்றிலக்கியம். கலம்பகம் is made up of two words, கலம்+பகம். கலம் stands for 12 measures and பகம் is half of it. So கலம்பகம் denotes 12+6=18. Hence கலம்பகம் comprises 18 parts or limbs. Some of them like கைக்கிளை, தூது, தழை, இரங்கல், etc., belong to the அகம் division. நந்திக் கலம்பகம் written in the 9th century is the first of this kind.

    On reading this lesson you will learn how deep Tamil literary forms delve into the life and culture of this ancient society.

முன்