to another.²⁹ Thus under the kuṛiñci class of poems it would not be permissible to compose or include a poem which had "pining" (neytal) as its essential topic. But a kuṛiñci landscape might be used for a mullai poem. The landscape, or seasons, or flora and fauna of one region could be used by way of exception in the composition of a poem, the essential topic of which was typified by another. Naccinaarkkiniyar in his commentary on the twelfth rule of Tolkaappiyar's akattiṇai-iyal brings together a number of poems which exemplify "regional fusion", terming them as kuṛiciin paalai, kuṛiciin neytal, kuṛiñci in marutam, and so forth.³⁰ Ilampuuranar, in his explanation of another rule, differs entirely from the explanation given by Naccinaarkkiniyar, and quotes as illustration of “regional interchange” lines from the forty-eighth poem of Akanaanuuru,³¹ in which poem the poet says that the hero appears with a garland of water-lilies around his neck and a chaplet of ixora flowers. Water-lilies belong to the agricultural region; the ixora to the montane. The poem's "essential theme" is "union" and therefore it belongs to the montane or kuṛiñci class of poetry. The introduction of "water-lilies" according to Ilampuuranar, is an illustration of what is meant by regional interchange.

"Regional interchange" was used in panegyrics to praise the plurality of regions in a certain kingdom. Among the three kingdoms of the Tamil country, the Paaṇṭiya country was the one which had the largest extent of all the regions, whereas the Cooḷa was mainly agricultural, and the Ceera was mainly mountainous and maritime. The poets take occasion of the longer poems to describe the fertility or life in the different regions. Thus the Perumpaanaarruppaṭai and the Maturai-kaañci have extensive descriptions of the regions.³² The Porunar-aarruppaṭai which is a poem in praise of the Coo˜a kingdom points out that the different regions in the kingdom are in such close proximity that the men, animals and birds of one region have constant relationship with the men, animals and birds of the other regions. The poetical description of the

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   ²⁹T. 958, 959. 30 E.g. Aink; 366; 36, 370, 101, 122, 197, 92, etc.

   ³⁰ Ilam; Akattinai-iyal, No. 15.

   ³¹ Of five regions in the Ceera Kingdom, see Patir; 30.