The River Speaks

by Elizabeth Rani Segran

  Lines 135–38

  you did not pluck these for me, whom you slight. You plucked these for those women who always desire someone new (Pari. 6:61)

  The woman implies that the hero chose to shower his affections on someone unfaithful. The poem uses the phrase viliya viruntu viluvar to hint at the concubine. The word viluvar means ‘those who desire’; viliya viruntu can be read either as ‘imperishable freshness’ or ‘uninvited guests’. The Tamil word for ‘guest’, viruntinar, derives from viruntu or ‘newness’.

  Line 140

  By saying, ‘yes, they really are’, the hero is being ironic. It should be understood as ‘no, they are not’ (Pari. 6:62)

  Although none of the editions of the Paripāṭal we consulted mentions an alternative reading for this line (talirarintay tamivai), we note that if the line is read as talirarintay tamivai, it can be understood as a continuation of the mistress’s words, ‘indeed these are the buds you plucked …’

  Lines 141–52

  The mistress says, ‘Although you are submissive, your love for me is broken. I can see through your deceit. Before, you brought flowers to me as soon as you plucked them. Did they ever wilt? You plucked these for her and she refused them. See how withered they are! Oh, did she not accept these, the flowers that you picked for so long that the garland on your chest withered? Did she not accept these when you handed them to her because you were late? Answer me’ (Pari. 6:63–67)

  Line 162

  ‘beautiful in its flow’—the poem puns on the word kamar. The hero refers to the flow of the Vaiyai as kamar perukku (kamar—beautiful; perukku—flow). But the woman understands kamar as ‘desire’ and replies accordingly.

  Lines 163–81

  The mistress understands the hero’s words to mean that his desire for her is like the flow of the river and replies angrily, ‘Yes, indeed. When desire is accompanied by love, it never remains the same. It swells as rapidly towards some people as it shrinks towards others. Is this not akin to Vaiyai’s flow? By swearing on falsehood, you have erred. Do not swear. Although my town is near yours, you get delayed by the boat during the rains. But during early summer, the river is so dry that the cranes wait in vain for their prey. Such is the nature of Vaiyai! So too is your love for me’ (Pari. 6:71–78)

  Lines 182–95

  ‘You are like a piece of wood which gets swept away by the river. Those women, who are adept in grabbing it, grasp your chest like a raft for them to play in the waters. You stayed with her all night without any fear! Like water that seeps through even when a breach in the banks of the Vaiyai is sealed, her eyes continue to shed tears for you although you fulfilled her desire. So, do not come here and cause her heart to grieve further’ (Pari. 6:79–86)

  Line 198

  The text uses the word terral referring to this woman. The commentator takes the word to mean ‘one who is ignorant’ and understands it as a woman who does not know the pleasures of love. See, by way of comparison, Paripāṭal XI: 304–08.

  ‘I was bathing in a pond when a woman who stood on its bank fell into the water. She tried to stand up and fell on me. I rescued her and she stood on her feet. She is not of an age when one enjoys the pleasures of love’ (Pari. 6:87–91)

  Lines 202–05

  Implying that he would never bathe in the Vaiyai with anyone else, the hero asks rhetorically, ‘Where did I bathe with her?’ For clarity, we made this explicit in our translation where we have the hero say, ‘I would never swim in the Vaiyai / with anyone other than you.’

  ‘But tell me this, who indeed is closer to my heart than this garland of flowers I wear? And where did I bathe with her?’ (Pari. 6:87–91)

  Line 207

  The mistress says, ‘Understand this clearly. Is there any other river? It is the Vaiyai!’ (Pari. 6:92–93)

  Here again, we made this explicit in our translation; the mistress says, ‘I know you betrayed me in the Vaiyai.’

  Lines 208–13

  to which the lover replies, ‘Why do you say river when I tell you I bathed in a pond? I place my hand on my head and swear on Parankunru’ (Pari. 6:94–95)

  Lines 214–30

  The heroine tells the virali [dancer] how the older women in the mistress’s house rebuked her and how the hero’s messengers pacified the mistress (Pari. 6:94–95)

  the older women in the mistress’s house rebuke her, saying, ‘Stop quarrelling and start playing with him—he who fears the redness of your eyes blackened by collyrium. If you persist in your anger, his desire for you will die. The reason for your anger is a girl who is a petai [a girl between the ages of five and seven]’ (Pari. 6:96–100) 6

  Lines 231–44

  The heroine continues to speak.

  ‘His messengers, skilled in placating lovers’ quarrels would beseech her, talk to her at length and make great efforts in pacifying her. Then they [the hero and his mistress] would rejoice in drink; intoxicated, they would bathe and in the river and, as desire swelled, make love. Then they would quarrel again to enhance the sweetness of lovemaking, and play everywhere.’ Saying so to the dancer, she [the heroine] addresses the Vaiyai (Pari. 6:101–04)

  Lines 245–47

  The tenor here is ironic. By praising the Vaiyai, the heroine emphasizes her husband’s infidelity and refuses to be placated by his messenger.

  Explaining the hero’s actions [to his messenger], the heroine addresses the Vaiyai saying, ‘Oh, Vaiyai! Love ever abounds in the hearts of those who bathe in your waters. May this trait of yours never leave you’, and refuses entry [to her husband] (Pari. 6:105–06)

  Paripāṭal VII

  Poet: Maiyotakkovanar

  Music: Pittamattanar 7

  Melody: Pālaippaṇ

  The colophon reads the poem as the words spoken by the heroine’s female companion. Upon hearing that the hero bathed in the Vaiyai with the heroine, the heroine’s foster mother asks the heroine’s companion to describe the festivities at the river. The friend’s reply takes the form of this poem.

  This poem exhibits certain structural features common to all the Vaiyai songs: it begins with the rains in the hills, goes on to describe the advent of the waters and the chaos they cause. The poem then focuses on a specific situation between two lovers, and ends with a salutation to the river.

  Lines 12–17

  Like the vast army of the Southern King, which marches to capture the land of the enemy, so too the waters spread with no place beyond their reach, turning even the dark night into day (Pari. 7:1–10)

  In our translation, we followed Coma. and chose a simpler reading, that is, the waters flow everywhere, night and day. The poem uses the word tennavar, often used in old Tamil poetry to signify the Pāṇṭiyaṉ kings.

  Lines 36–46

  [The river flows] everywhere like a girl who does not know how to dance; it breaches the dams built in its path like a woman who does not know how to quarrel with her husband, but in anger leaves him (Pari. 7:31–39)

  The Tamil literary tradition emphasizes that a quarrel between lovers accentuates the pleasure of love. For instance, the Kural says ututal kamattirkinpam—‘to feign displeasure is pleasure in the act of love’ (Kural 1330).

  Lines 68–72

  The farmers who rush to the flooded fields with their families are compared with shoals of fish during breeding season. Pari. explains this by quoting from another caṉkam work, the Purananuru: 8

  the farmers whose stomachs are full with food rush to the flooded fields with their families; they resemble the pregnant valai fish (Pari. 7:31–39)

  Line 94

  The poem refers to the Vaiyai as the ‘river of the exalted one’. Pari. construes ‘exalted one’ as ‘Southern King’ in line 90, and takes it to mean the Pāṇṭiyaṉ king. Coma. reads the phrase as

  in the river of the Pāṇṭiyaṉ king whose beauty is desired by all (Coma. 7:51–60)

  Lines 112–15

  Pari. construes ‘desired’ with ‘clothes’:

 
; to dry her body, clothes and jewels desired [by the onlookers], she holds a cup of liquor (Pari. 7:61–64)

  Lines 126–29

  It would seem that there were songs specific to this theme—the eyes of the woman who bathes in the river. Some examples are found in the Tamil epic Cilappatikaram. 9

  Line 149

  The reference to the paṇ (melody), pālai, may be significant, since this poem was set to music in the same melody.

  Lines 154–55

  The poem refers to the women and men who dance as manmakalir and cenniyar. Pari. glosses these lines as

  women proficient in the art of dancing and the panar [bards] begin the dance (Pari. 7:77–86)

  From the context, especially lines 147–53, we may surmise that dance performances were held on the banks of the river.

  Line 159

  Tirumarutamunturai is the name given to the shallow waters, or bathing area, of the Vaiyai. The word turai means ‘bathing area’ and marutam is the name of a tree; it is likely that such a tree stood on the banks of the river in Maturai by the bathing area.

  Line 163

  Pari. glosses this line as

  the deep waters that instil fear [in the bathers] (Pari. 7:84)

  We have chosen to retain the ambiguity of the text.

  Paripāṭal X

  Poet: Karumpillaipputanar

  Music: Maruttuvan Nallacutanar

  Melody: Pālaippaṇ

  The colophon describes the following situation: a heroine waits for her lover who is away at war. Unable to see her distress, her female companion sends a bard as the heroine’s messenger to the hero. The bard reminds the hero that the rainy season has commenced and describes the advent of the Vaiyai and the ensuing festivities in the city of Kutal (Maturai).

  Line 13

  The drums may have been used to announce the coming of the river; see, for a comparison, Paripāṭal VI:57.

  Line 16

  The meaning of this line is unclear. The text reads talita noynur caranattar, and Pari.’s commentary for this portion is unavailable. Coma. suggests splitting the word talitam as tal (foot) + itam (comfortable) and speculates that talitam may have been a particularly soft material used as footwear.

  Line 17

  The text uses the word enippatukal to describe the ornaments. According to Pari., these girdles were strung with rows of beads in increasing numbers from two to thirty-two, and resembled the rungs of a ladder (eni).

  Lines 18–20

  Squirts were commonly used in water games; see, for a comparison, Paripāṭal VI:72.

  Line 24

  [carts pulled by] oxen and mules that were called out by their names (Pari. 10:9–18)

  Lines 28–29

  ‘Old and young’ are to be understood as older and younger women. These women are described in lines 30–35.

  Lines 37–40

  Just as different musical instruments when played at different tempi are slowed down by the instrument which is played at the slowest tempo, so too people walking at different paces—fast, medium, and slow—are all slowed down by the crowds (Pari. 10:24–25)

  Lines 63–64

  The text reads ‘like those who eagerly await ships that return to the port after offloading their cargo’. We follow Coma. in our translation.

  Lines 95–103

  Swaminatha Aiyar notes that parts of the text (as well as the commentary) are indecipherable. We follow Coma.’s construction of this portion.

  Lines 112–13

  Mixing love and liquor, the flowing waters provide joy that breaks all barriers (Pari. 10:69)

  Lines 121–34

  The women who place their lips on the cups containing liquor are compared to the celestial damsels who drink moonlight.

  like the celestial damsels who feast on the rays of the moon (Pari. 10:78)

  Lines 142–44

  casting in the waters figurines of snails, crabs, fish and salamander made of gold (Pari. 10:85–86)

  This is likely to have been a fertility rite. Coma. notes a similar reference in the Tamil epic, the Civaka Cintamani.

  Lines 190–93

  The river as a battlefield; see, for a comparison, Paripāṭal VI:73–82.

  Lines 198–216

  These lines describe the people returning to the city of Kutal after bathing in the river.

  Lines 223–28

  like the valuti [a generic title of the Pāṇṭiyaṉ kings] who showers gold on the outstretched arms of indigent poets (Pari. 10:126–27)

  Paripāṭal XI

  Poet: Aciriyan Nallantuvanar 10

  Music: Nakanar

  Melody: Pālaippaṇ

  The longest amongst the available songs in the Paripāṭal, this poem is attributed to Aciriyan Nallantuvanar. He is also the author of three other poems in the Paripāṭal text currently available to us. The same poet is credited with having composed all the thirty-three poems of the Neytarkali in another caṉkam anthology, the Kalittokai. 11 Some of the unique features of this poem are: an elaborate account of the planetary constellation, descriptions of religious practices and the occurrence of the name Paripāṭal in the text. For these reasons, this particular poem has been studied carefully by several scholars.

  The colophon classifies this poem under the head varaivu malital—a situation in which the heroine is happy at the prospect of marriage. According to the colophon, the heroine’s female companion, speaking indirectly to the hero, praises the Vaiyai.

  Lines 1–25

  These describe a particular constellation of planets and stars. Often, the poem refers to the names of the planets (and stars) obliquely. We retained this aspect of the poem in our translation. However, for clarity, at some places we added a phrase to indicate that the poem alludes to a specific planet or star. It is fair to say that this part of the poem would have remained largely unclear but for Parimelalakar’s commentary. Given the extraordinary detail, it is likely that the poet Nallantuvanar was familiar with astrology. For a more detailed analysis of this part of the poem and its significance in assigning a historical date for the caṉkam corpus, we refer the reader to an essay by François Gros. 12

  Line 2

  ‘the star of the fire god’—the text uses a single word, eri, which could mean light, brightness, fire, etc. Pari. glosses the word as

  Karttikai, which has for its god, Anki. By this is indicated Itapam, which has its three-quarter planetary aspect (Pari. 11:2)

  Karttikai—the Pleiades constellation. Itapam—Taurus, the second sign of the zodiac.

  Line 3

  ‘the star of the god with fine locks’—the text uses a single word, catai, or locks. The commentator writes,

  Tiruvatirai, which has for its god, the One with catai [Siva]. Mitunam is indicated by this (Pari. 11:2)

  Tiruvatirai—a star belonging to the Orion constellation. Mitunam—the zodiac sign Gemini.

  Line 4

  ‘the star that bears the Ram’—Pari. glosses this as,

  Parani, the mother of the Velam. By this is indicated Metam (Pari. 11:2)

  Jennifer Clare (Pondicherry: Institut français de Pondichéry; Tamil Chair: Department of South and Southeast Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley, 2009), pp. 79–85.

  Parani—a star belonging to the constellation of the Ram. Velam—the zodiac sign Aries. Metam—the Ram.

  Lines 6–8

  Abiding in the three paths, the three being: Itapaviti, Mitunaviti and Metaviti [viti—path]. Of these, Itapaviti [path of Taurus] comprises Kanni [Virgo], Tulam [Libra], Minam [Pisces] and Metam [Aries]; Mitunaviti [path of Gemini] comprises Tel [Scorpio], Vil [Sagittarius], Makaram [Capricorn] and Kumpam [Aquarius]; Metaviti [path of the Ram] comprises Itapam [Taurus], Mitunam [Gemini], Karkatam [Cancer] and Cinkam [Leo]. Since one zodiacal sign is two and a quarter days, these groups of four signs become nine days. Being the abodes of planets, these twelve are called irukkai [seat of the planets] (Pari. 11:2)

  Line 9