P20144 Samaya Mozhli Pearpugal

This lesson describes the religious literature translated into Tamil. Through such translations from Sangam period to modern times the religious spirituality is introduced. The middle four units deal with the religious translations of Sangam period, the translations of the epics, the role of translation in religious development and the characteristics of religious translations. புறநானூறு, கலித்தொகை, and பரிபாடல் speak about the burning of the three fortresses by Lord Siva. The transition period following Sagam produced பதினெண்கீழ்க்கணக்கு treating the ideas of the Jain, Buddha and other orthodox religions. ஆசாரக்கோவை is an example of this variety. பாரத வெண்பா available only in parts belongs to the Pallava period. மகாபாரதம் has a number of folklores like நளவெண்பா and குசேலோபாக்கியானம் in it. Bharathiar’s பாஞ்சாலி சபதம் and Rajaji’s வியாசர் விருநது are the recent works in this direction. கம்பராமாயணம் by கம்பர் was based on Valmiki’s Ramanyana in Sanskrit. This Ramayana was the source for மயில் ராவணன் கதை and இராம நாடகக் கீர்த்தனை etc., Vaali’s அவதார புருஷன் is a popular work of modern times, dealing with the story of Rama. Translations contributed a lot to the religious development, especially the Jain and Buddha religions. For the last 200 years Islamic and Christian religious concepts get translated in Tamil. மணிமேகலை and குண்டலகேசி are remarkable Buddhistic religious works in Tamil. They are the Tamil reproductions of the stories found in Pali and Sanskrit. சித்தாந்தக் கொள்கை and தம்ம பதம் are later additions to Tamil religious literature from Pali. சீவகசிந்தாமணி and நீலகேசி of ஐம்பெருங் காப்பியம் have the Jain background. யசோதர காவியம் is an adaptation of the Sanskrit work of the same name. The 19th century saw the increase in orthodox religious books. Vedas, Upanishads, Agamas, Bhagavatham, and Puranas appeared in Tamil in large numbers during this period. கூர்ம புராணம், காசி கண்டம், பிரமகீதை, மச்ச புராணம் and Bharathiar’s பகவத் கீதை are examples of this genre in Tamil literature. புதூகுஷ்ஷரம் of Islamic religion and கிறிஸ்தவ வேதோபதேசம் and ஜெபப்புத்தகம் and இரட்சணிய யாத்திரிகம் illustrate the advent of these religions in Tamil. Tamil is rich and multi-dimensional capable of expressing religious ideas from ancient religious thoughts to modern science. Translation is the best literary mode for such development. Through this lesson you will appreciate the role of translations in the development of Tamil religious literature.