the heroine that her doubts and misgivings about the hero are unfounded runs thus:

The meaning the companion wishes to convey is that the hero is as industrious as the crab, and if he tarries in returning home, it is not because of courtezans, but that he may perform with credit the tasks for which he set out.⁴⁹

The Tamil allegory made use of Nature, the flora and fauna to the full, and deserves a separate study because of the elaborate explanations it requires. It is altogether a characteristic feature of Nature poetry in Tamil. It is not always easy to explain the allegory. Here, the commentators are very helpful, though, at times, too elaborate.

The Desert

The Tamils have the distinction of being one of those peoples in history who, while not being desert dwellers, made poetry blossom in the desert, and at times better poetry than that which the other regions inspired. In this must be seen the resource of poets who could use to their advantage the most unsuitable conditions of climate and terrain. If there are seasons in the Tamil year when most of the Tamil country is parched and presents a dreary appearance, they are the seasons of the young or tender or early spring, and the elder or aged or advanced spring. In some districts, the early spring manifests a pleasant revival of Nature's joys after the rain, and dewy season, but these are temporary manifestations.⁵⁰ If there is a period of day when the dreariness and sweltering heat is most intensified in the landscape, it is mid-day. These are the background seasons for poems on separation of lovers. The conversion of mountain and pasture-land into desert is by no means universal in the Tamil country. There will always be green spots refreshing glades, but these only heighten the

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