Lesson - 5

A01125 VILLIBHARATHAM

     This lesson tells you all about the Bharatham written by Villipuththooraar, his life, and the form, structure and style of his work.

     Two classics are considered as the greatest in Indian literature. They are the Ramayana and the Mahabharatha. Out of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu, those of Rama and Krishna are the most celebrated. Though Lord Krishna plays the pivotal role in the Mahabharatha, it is the pancha pandavas who are regarded as the protagonists. The Pandavas and the Kauravas are the descendants of Bharatha, the son of King Dushyantha and Shakuntala. Hence, the story of the Pandavas was called Bharatham. Although there are innumerable stories in the Mahabharatha, the most important part of the epic, is the Bhagaved Gita, the advice given by Lord Krishna to Arjuna on the battlefield.

     The Mahabharatha was popular even during the Cangam erra. Many writers in Tamil had written the Bharatham. However, the work composed by Villipuththoorar is considered the best. Villipuththoorar was born in a place called Saniyoor near Thirumunaippadi. His father, Veeraraghavachari, was a vaishnavite priest. We do not know exactly when Villipuththoorar lived. But there is evidence to indicate that he must have lived during the 14^th century.

     Villipuththoorar’s Mahabharatham is divided into ten Paruvankal which in turn are divided into fifty Carukkankal.