WORKS ON RELIGION

Christianity-the religion of the foreign scholars-was different from Hinduism. When European scholars began to take an interest in the Tamil people, their religion and religious works also fell within their circle of study. Since the Kuṟaḷ supersedes all barriers of caste, creed, religion and nationality, it would not be correct to limit its scope and appeal as a religious work.

We can take up for consideration other books on Theology, Philosophy etc., of the Tamils.

B. Ziegenbalg as early as 1708, wrote a book “Bibliotheca Malabarica” (August 1708 which was discovered at Halle in 1958) in which he has enumerated 161 Tamil books which he had read. This list contained theological and philosophical books.¹²⁶ Ziegenbalg’s three Indological books were found and printed after nearly a century of obscurity. The books are: (1) Genealogieder Malabarischen Godter (Genealogy of the Malabarian Gods, Madras 1867); (2) das Malabarische Heidenthum (Malabarian Religion, Amsterdam 1926); (3) Kliemere Schriften (Smaller writings, Amsterdam 1930).

From these works, it is evident that the author had made a deep study of the topics and he assures us “that he did not quote the other authors” but he gathered the requisite material from various discussions, books and study.

In the book on the “Geneology of Malabarian God”, Ziegen- balg has given a mine of information about all aspects of the Gods and myraids of allied topics. This book should prove in the near future indispensable to any student of anthropology.¹²⁷

The second book on malabarian Religion by Ziegenbalg has been exhaustively written. He writes at length on the religion, theology and philosophy of the Hindus. The second part deals with rituals, art, medicine, war, etc. This, like the first book, will

126. Arno Lehmann; “Tamil Culture,” Vol. IX, No. 2; 1961, P.111

127. Ibid. P. 113