Pazhamozhi Nanuru (Tamil: பழமொழி நானூறு) is a

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

poetic work of didactic nature belonging to the

Eighteen Lesser Texts The Eighteen Lesser Texts, known as the Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku ( ta, பதினெண்கீழ்கணக்கு) in the literature, is a collection of eighteen poetic works mostly created during the 'post Sangam period' (between 100 ...

(''Pathinenkilkanakku'') anthology of

Tamil literature Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution. Contributors to the Tamil literature are mainly from T ...

. This belongs to the 'post Sangam period' corresponding to between 100 and 500 CE. ''Pazhamozhi Nanuru'' contains 400 poems written by the poet Munrurai Araiyanaar, a

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

. The poems of ''Pazhamozhi Nanuru'' are written in the

Venpa Venpa or Venba ('' வெண்பா'' in Tamil) is a form of classical Tamil poetry. Classical Tamil poetry has been classified based upon the rules of metric prosody. Such rules form a context-free grammar. Every venba consists of between two ...

meter. ''Pazhamozhi Nanuru'' employs old Tamil

proverb A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbia ...

s to illustrate its messages. The following poem uses the adage that it is impossible to straighten the tail of a dog, as it impossible to control the unchaste mind of a girl by throwing her in prison. நிறையான் மிகுகலா நேரிழை யாரைச்
சிறையான் அகப்படுத்தல் ஆகா - அறையோ
வருந்த வலிதினின் யாப்பினும் நாய்வால்
திருந்துதல் என்றுமே இல்.

References

* Mudaliyar, Singaravelu A., Apithana Cintamani, An encyclopaedia of Tamil Literature, (1931) - Reprinted by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi (1983) * http://tamilnation.org/literature/ * http://tamilnation.org/literature/pathinen/pm0036.pdf ''Pazhamozhi Nanuru'' eText at

Project madurai Project Madurai (மதுரை தமிழ் இலக்கிய மின்தொகுப்புத் திட்டம்) is an open and voluntary initiative to publish free versions of ancient Tamil literature on the Internet. Te ...

Sangam literature Jain texts {{India-lit-stub

See also

References