HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Commentaries to literary works remain one of the most important and telling aspects of the
Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
literary tradition. Commentaries to ancient Tamil works have been written since the
medieval period In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
and continue to be written in the modern era. Many ancient Tamil works continue to remain in comprehension chiefly due to
exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (philosophy), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern us ...
or commentaries written on them. The most famous examples of such works are the Tolkappiyam and the
Tirukkural The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' (), or shortly the ''Kural'' (), is a classic Tamil language text on commoner's morality consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or Kural (poetic form), kurals, of seven words each. The text is divided into three books wit ...
, with the latter remaining the most reviewed work in the Tamil literature. Nakkeerar, Ilampooranar, Senavaraiyar, Paerasiriyar, Deivachilaiyar,
Nacchinarkkiniyar __NOTOC__ Nacciṇārkkiṇiyar, also spelled Naccinarkkiniyar or Nachinarkiniyar, was a 14th-century Tamil and Sanskrit scholar famous for his commentaries on Sangam literature and post-Sangam medieval Tamil literature. His commentary on some of t ...
,
Parimelalhagar Parimelalhagar (), sometimes spelled Parimelazhagar, born Vanduvarai Perumal, was a Tamil poet and scholar known for his commentary on the ''Thirukkural''. He was the last among the canon of ten medieval commentators of the Kural text most hi ...
,
Kalladar Kalladar (Tamil: கல்லாடர்), also known as Kalladanar (Tamil: கல்லாடனார்), was a poet of the Sangam period, known for authoring 14 verses of the Sangam literature, besides verse 9 of the Tiruvalluva Maalai. B ...
, and Adiyarkku Nallar remain the most celebrated commentators in the history of Tamil literature, all of whose works are praised on par with the original works to which they wrote exegeses.


Background

Tamil is one of the most ancient and classical languages with a rich literary tradition in the world. Along with
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
, it remains one of the languages of the Indian subcontinent that are richest in literature.
Ancient India Anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. The earliest known human remains in South Asia date to 30,000 years ago. Sedentism, Sedentariness began in South Asia around 7000 BCE; ...
is known for its unique
oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication in which knowledge, art, ideas and culture are received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another.Jan Vansina, Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (19 ...
wherein knowledge was chiefly passed on as
word of mouth Word of mouth is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one person tells others a ...
from parents to their children and from preceptors to their students from one generation to the next. The gradual buildup of this oral transfer of ideas through several generations resulted in an extensive corpus of knowledge, which eventually had to be written down on manuscripts. This process generated a vast scholarship in every domain of life in the Indian subcontinent, and both Sanskrit and Tamil, along with other languages, saw an exponential growth in their literature over the millennia. Commentaries to Sanskrit texts, known as ''
Bhashya Bhashya () is a "commentary" or "exposition" of any primary or secondary text in ancient or medieval Indian literature. Common in Sanskrit literature, ''Bhashyas'' are also found in other Indian languages such as Tamil. Bhashyas are found in variou ...
'', started appearing during the first millennia BCE. Unlike Western tradition, where only
critics A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governme ...
abound,
Indian literature Indian literature refers to the literature produced on the Indian subcontinent until 1947 and in the Republic of India thereafter. The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India has 22 officially recognised languages. Sahitya Akadem ...
is rife with commentators who both analyze the works and write exegesis on them. Tamil literary tradition is no exception to this pan-Indian phenomenon, with commentary writing having developed as a distinct domain in the scholarly world over the millennia. V. Suba Manikkanar cites the ancientness of the language as a reason for such development. The developing, patronizing, and guarding of the
Tamil literature Tamil literature includes a collection of literary works that have come from a 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 T ...
and the
language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...
was taken care of by different members of the society in different periods. In the
Sangam period The Sangam literature ( Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam''), historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' ( Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ''), connote ...
, the rulers of the Tamil land took the responsibility. During
Pallava The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of South India, the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The Pallavas played a crucial role in shaping in particular southern Indian history and heritage. The ...
's reign in the Bhakti era, the
Alwars The Alvars () are the Tamil poet-saints of South India who espoused ''bhakti'' (devotion) to the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, in their songs of longing, ecstasy, and service. They are venerated in Vaishnavism, which regards Vishnu as the Ul ...
and
Nayanmars The Nayanars (or Nayanmars; , and later 'teachers of Shiva') were a group of 63 Tamil Hindu saints living during the 6th to 8th centuries CE who were devoted to the Hindu god Shiva. Along with the Alvars, their contemporaries who were devoted ...
were responsible in developing the language. In the later
Chola period The Chola dynasty () was a Tamil dynasty originating from Southern India. At its height, it ruled over the Chola Empire, an expansive maritime empire. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd centu ...
, the responsibility shifted to the literary commentators who wrote exegesis on several ancient and contemporary works. During the period of the Nayakar's regin, minor dynastic kings and aristocratic chieftains furthered the Tamil language and literature. During the
colonial era Colonial period (a period in a country's history where it was subject to management by a colonial power) may refer to: Continents *European colonization of the Americas * Colonisation of Africa * Western imperialism in Asia Countries * Col ...
under the
British rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...
, missionaries of both Indian and foreign religions and the Tamil groups established by the opulent section of the society contributed to the growth of the language. Post-
Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...
, the language continues to grow by various political parties and enthusiasts among the public. The commentators of the medieval era are considered instrumental in preserving the ancient works for the posterity. This is widely acknowledged by scholars, including U. V. Swaminatha Iyer, Pandithamani M. Kathiresan Chettiyar, S. Venkatarama Chettiyar, and M. Arunachalam, among others.


History

Bhashya Bhashya () is a "commentary" or "exposition" of any primary or secondary text in ancient or medieval Indian literature. Common in Sanskrit literature, ''Bhashyas'' are also found in other Indian languages such as Tamil. Bhashyas are found in variou ...
s, which are "commentary" or "exposition" of any primary or secondary text, started appearing in Sanskrit literature in the first millennia BCE. Among the earliest known ''Bhashya'' are the Maha-bhashya of Patanjali from the 2nd century BCE,A Datta (2009), Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, Volume 2, Sahitya Akademi, , page 1338 and ''Sabara Bhashya'' of the Mimamsa school of Hinduism, dated to have been likely composed between 100 BCE and 200 CE, but no later than the 5th century.Othmar Gächter (1990), Hermeneutics and Language in Purva Mimamsa: A Study in Sabara Bhasya, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 9 However, commentaries to Tamil literary works, known as ''urai'', did not exist during
antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...
. According to Perasiriyar, verses 653 and 656 of the "Porul" section of the ''Tolkappiyam'' assert this fact. Commentaries to work was literally non-existent during the Sangam era. The development of commentaries is thought to have begun around the medieval times during the time of the
later Cholas The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...
(11th to 14th centuries CE) and developed over the centuries. The exegesis to the work '' Iraiyanar Kalaviyal'' is considered the first commentary in the Tamil literary tradition. According to A. M. Paramasivanandhan, it is the first prosaic commentary to a composition in verse. Iraiyanar Kalaviyal was passed on orally to nine generations from Nakkiranar till Nilakandanar. It was written down in manuscripts only in the 8th century CE. This marked the beginning of commentaries in Tamil literary tradition, which reached it peak between the 10th and 15th centuries. Commentaries had a humble beginning in the history of Tamil literature. The earliest commentaries were more of glossaries listing the meanings of difficult terms appearing in poetries. As time went by, few historical accounts pertaining to the verse on hand were appended to these glossary lists. Such commentaries were termed ''arumpadha urai'' (literally, glossary commentary). The first commentary to the '' Silappathigaram'' was of such kind. Over time, with the addition of few intermittent, brief notes to the glossary explanations, these "glossary" commentaries morphed into what came to be known as ''kurippurai'' (literally, notes commentary). The earliest commentaries to the Sangam works of '' Pathittrupatthu'', '' Agananuru'', ''
Purananuru The ''Purananuru'' (, literally "four hundred oemsin the genre puram"), sometimes called ''Puram'' or ''Purappattu'', is a classical Tamil literature, Tamil poetic work and traditionally the last of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') i ...
'', ''
Ainkurunuru Ainkurunuru ( meaning ''five hundred short poems'') is a classical Tamil poetic work and traditionally the third of the Eight Anthologies (''Ettuthokai'') in the Sangam literature. It is divided into five groups of 100 short stanzas of 3 to 6 ...
'', and '' Paripaadal'' are examples of notes commentaries. As with most of the ancient Tamil works, not much is known about the authors of these commentaries. With centuries of scholarships over the works, these commentaries expanded to become ''vilakka urai'' (literally, explanatory commentary), which contained several examples and elaborations in their briefings. For instance, the earliest commentary to
Nammalwar Nammalvar was one of the twelve Alvars, Alvar saints of Tamil Nadu, India, who are known for their affiliation to the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. The verses of the Alvars are compiled as the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, Naalayira Divya Prab ...
's ''
Tiruvaimoli The ''Tiruvaymoli'' ( ) is a work of Tamil Hindu literature. Comprising 1102 verses, it was composed in the ninth century CE by the Hindu poet-saint Nammalvar, who is regarded as the foremost of the Alvar saints of South India. It is the most prom ...
'' was 6,000 lines in length, which later expanded to 9,000, then to 24,000, and finally to 36,000 lines. The ''vilakka urai'' commentaries are considered the best of all the commentaries and have stood the test of time, chiefly owing to their emulating the best of their ''arumpadha urai'' and ''kurippurai'' predecessors. Mohan and Sokkalingam call this literary phenomenon the "survival of the fittest". Thus the later commentaries to the ''Tolkappiyam'' such as those by Senavaraiyar, Paerasiriyar,
Nacchinarkkiniyar __NOTOC__ Nacciṇārkkiṇiyar, also spelled Naccinarkkiniyar or Nachinarkiniyar, was a 14th-century Tamil and Sanskrit scholar famous for his commentaries on Sangam literature and post-Sangam medieval Tamil literature. His commentary on some of t ...
, and Deivacchilaiyar are preferred to the earliest commentary by Ilampooranar. The 36,000-lined ''Eedu'' commentary to ''Tiruvaimoli'' fared the best among other earlier commentaries to the work. The earliest known commentary to the
Kural text The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' (), or shortly the ''Kural'' (), is a classic Tamil language text on commoner's morality consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or kurals, of seven words each. The text is divided into three books with aphoristic teaching ...
was written around the 10th century CE by
Manakkudavar Manakkudavar (c. 10th century CE) was a Tamil scholar and commentator known for his commentary on the Tirukkural. His is the earliest of the available commentaries on the Kural text, and hence considered to bear closest semblance with the origin ...
.
Parimelalhagar Parimelalhagar (), sometimes spelled Parimelazhagar, born Vanduvarai Perumal, was a Tamil poet and scholar known for his commentary on the ''Thirukkural''. He was the last among the canon of ten medieval commentators of the Kural text most hi ...
's commentary, which appeared during the 13th century, is considered the best among the ten medieval commentaries to the Kural text. Sivagnana Munivar's ''Nannul Virutthi Urai'' took precedence over older commentaries to '' Nannul'' such as those by Mayilai Nathar and Shankara Namacchivayar. Despite several earlier commentaries to ''Sivagnana Bodham'', the ''Sivagnana Padiyam'' which appeared much later is considered the best. When the first commentaries began to appear in the Tamil literary world, they appeared more in the prevalent spoken dialect. More often than not, they resembled the conversations between a preceptor and a disciple. This is because the commentators who wrote the earliest commentaries were scholars who taught students on those subjects. Examples of such commentaries include the early commentaries to ''Iraiyanar Agapporul'', Senavaraiyar's commentary to Part II of the ''Tolkappiyam'', Perasiriyar's commentary to ''
Tirukkovaiyar The ''Tirukkovaiyar'' () is a Shaivite work composed by Manikkavacakar. Dated to the 9th century CE, the work is part of the 12-volume ''Tirumurai'' and, along with Thiruvasagam, is traditionally placed as the 8th volume of the work. The work is ...
'',
Kaalingar Kaalingar (c. 12th century CE), also known as Kalingarayar, was a Tamil scholar and commentator known for his commentary on the ''Thirukkural''. He was among the canon of Ten Medieval Commentators of the Kural text highly esteemed by scholars. H ...
's commentary to the ''Tirukkural''. Commentaries to the works of the
Alvars The Alvars () are the Tamil poet-saints of South India who espoused '' bhakti'' (devotion) to the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, in their songs of longing, ecstasy, and service. They are venerated in Vaishnavism, which regards Vishnu as the ...
chiefly appeared in a mixture of Tamil and Sanskrit, known as
Manipravalam Manipravalam (, ) is a macaronic language found in some manuscripts of South India. It is a hybrid language, typically written in the Grantha script, which combines Sanskrit lexicon and Tamil morpho-syntax.The Illustrated weekly of India, (1965). ...
. The Bhakti literature, which proliferated during the Bhakti era that began around the eighth century CE, remained without any exegeses for centuries. This was chiefly because of the widespread notion that spiritual texts should be interpreted only through personal experience and not by the elaborations given by others. Nevertheless, during the time of
Ramanuja Ramanuja ('; Middle Tamil: Rāmāṉujam; Classical Sanskrit: Rāmānuja; 1077 – 1157), also known as Ramanujacharya, was an Indian Hindu philosopher, guru and social reformer. He is one of the most important exponents of the Sri Vaishnavi ...
in the 10th century, scholars attempted to write commentaries to the
Vaishnavite Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole Para Brahman, supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, ''Mahavishnu''. It is one of the majo ...
works of the Alvars. Initially met with rejection, they slowly gained acceptance with the public discourses given by religious scholars. These discourses were written down by scholars among the audience and grew to become exegeses on their own. Exegeses to
Shaivite Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the supreme being. It is the second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million Hindus, found widely across South Asia (predominantly in ...
works, nevertheless, did not appear until the 19th century. It was only in the 20th century that scholars felt the need for literary commentaries to the Shivite literature. In the words of Mohan and Sokkalingam, the commentators are considered responsible for initiation the process of "return to classicism." According to S. Vaiyapuri Pillai, they are also responsible for the revival of interest among the general public in the study of olden literature and linguistics, especially when the original dialect of the language was no more in general usage. Chief among them were Ilampooranar, Senavaraiyar, Paerasiriyar, Nacchinarkkiniyar, Parimelalhagar, and Adiyarkku Nallar, who lived between the 11th and the 14th centuries CE. Scholars consider this period as "the golden age of Tamil prosaic literature". In the Tamil literary tradition, it is conventional to regard the commentators on par with the author of the original work. In line with the Tamil traditional practice of naming a work eponymous with the author, the exegeses written by the commentators, too, were named after the commentators. Thus the exegetical works of Ilampooranar, Senavaraiyar, Paerasiriyar, and Nacchinarkkiniyar came to be known, respectively, as Ilampooranam, Senavaraiyam, Paerasiriyam, and Nacchinarkkiniyam. Their works were hugely popular among the common public that people even went on to name their children after these commentators. According to V. Suba Manikkam, efforts in literary development appeared in three forms, viz. exegeses to ancient works, supportive grammar works, and short literatures. Examples of the first form, exegeses to ancient works, include the ten Medieval commentaries of the Tirukkural and the commentaries to the Tolkappiyam. Supportive grammar works included Iraiyanar Agapporul, Nambi Agapporul, Purapporul Venbamaalai, Nannool, Yapparunkalam, Yapparunkala Kaarigai, Dhandiyalankaram, and so forth. Short literatures include Pillai Tamil, Thoodhu, Ula, Barani, Anthadhi, Kovai, Kalambagam, Kuravanji, Pallhu, Madal, Maalai, Sadhakam, Venba, Thogai, and so forth. Literary criticism in Tamil tradition is said to have flourished between the 11th and 14th centuries CE.


Types of commentaries


Commentaries in verse

In Indian literary tradition, exegeses are also written in verse form to the original work in verse, which remained a widespread practice since the ancient times. While this is more common with Sanskrit works, the Tamil literary tradition, too, has had this practice since the middle ages. The exemplifying venbas of the ''Sivagyana Bodham'' and Siddhiyar remain in verse forms. In his ''
Periyapuranam The ''Periya‌ Purāṇa‌m'' ( Tamil: பெரிய‌ புராண‌ம்), that is, the ''great purana'' or epic, sometimes called ''Tiruttontarpuranam'' ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a Tamil po ...
'', Sekkilar's exegesis to the ''
Thevaram Thevaram is a town in Theni district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thevaram is located in Tamil Nadu near the border of Kerala at the Eastern side foot-hill of the Western Ghats. It is connected with State Highway SH100. Farming is main ...
'' appears in verse. There was an exegesis in verse to the Sangam work of the '' Akananuru''. Many earliest commentaries of the Tirukkural appear in verse. Even after the arrival of prosaic commentaries to the Kural text, such as the ten medieval commentaries, as many as 21 verse commentaries to the Kural text were written in the medieval times, such as the Murugesar Muduneri Venba, Jinendra Venba, Irangesa Venba, Sivasiva Venba, Dhinakara Venba, Vadamalai Venba, and Somesar Mudumoli Venba. Kumarakurubarar's ''Needhineri Vilakkam'' explains several Kural couplets in verse. In his work '' Kalladam'',
Kalladar Kalladar (Tamil: கல்லாடர்), also known as Kalladanar (Tamil: கல்லாடனார்), was a poet of the Sangam period, known for authoring 14 verses of the Sangam literature, besides verse 9 of the Tiruvalluva Maalai. B ...
has written verse exegesis in ''akaval''
metre The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...
to 100 verses of the ''Tirukkovaiyar''. Aandippulavar's 15th-century exegesis to the '' Nannul'' and Gurugyanasambandar's ''Gyanavarana Vilakkam'', which is an exegesis to the Sivagyana Siddar's philosophy, are all examples of commentaries in verse form. The practice of writing exegeses in verse form continued well into the 20th century. Examples include verse commentaries to the Kural literature such as ''Tirukkural Akaval'', ''Kutti Kural'', and ''Tirukkural Isai Maalai'',
Bharathidasan Bharathidasan Birth name: K. Subburathinam, the person's given name: Subburathinam, father's given name: Kanagasabai. (K. Subburathinam by the prevalent patronymic initials as prefix naming system in Tamil Nadu and it is Subburathinam Kanag ...
's elaborations of some of the Kurunthogai verses, and
Kannadasan Muthiah Sathappan Chettiar better known as Kannadasan (; 24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was a poet, film song lyricist, producer, actor, script-writer, editor, philanthropist, and is heralded as one of the greatest and most important l ...
's elaborations of some of the '' Mutthollayiram'' verses.


Self-written commentaries

Self-written commentaries are commentaries that are written by the author himself/herself. According to the 17th-century work ''Prayoga Vivegam'', the practice of writing self-written commentaries in the Indian Subcontinent began in Sanskrit literature. The first self-written commentary in the Tamil literature was the one written by Iyyanaridhanar for his work ''Purapporul Venbamaalai''. This was followed by several others, including the following: * The exegesis of the 12th-century author for his work ''Thandiyalankaaram'' * Meikkanda Thevar's exegesis to the 12 axioms of his work ''Sivagyana Bodham'' * The late-13th-century author Naarkavirajanambi's exegesis to his grammar work ''Akapporul Vilakkam'' * The 17th-century author Subramaniya Dikshitar's exegesis to his grammar work ''Prayoga Vivegam'' * Vaidhyanatha Desikar's exegesis to his grammar work ''Ilakkana Vilakkam'' * Swaminatha Desikar's exegesis to his grammar work ''Ilakkana Kotthu'' *
Constanzo Beschi Constantine Joseph Beschi (8 November 1680 – 4 February 1747), also known under his Tamil name of ''Vīramāmunivar'', was an Italian Jesuit priest, missionary in South India, and Tamil language littérateur. Early years Born in Castiglione ...
's exegesis to his work ''Thonnul Vilakkam'' This trend, too, continued well into the 20th century, with authors such as R. Raghava Iyengar, Jagavira Pandiyanar, and Bharathidasan writing their own exegesis to their respective works of Paari Kaadhai, Kumaresa Venba, and Pudhiya Aatthicchudi.


Dialogic commentaries

The process of writing prosaic commentaries to the
itihasas In Hinduism, Itihasa-Purana, also called the fifth Veda, refers to the traditional accounts of cosmogeny, myths, royal genealogies of the lunar dynasty and solar dynasty, and legendary past events, as narrated in the ''Itihasa'' (Mahabharat ...
, , and other Indian epics, which were originally written in verse, began in the early 19th century. Exegeses to epics such as the
Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...
, the
Mahabaratha The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succes ...
,
Periya Puranam The ''Periya‌ Purāṇa‌m'' (Tamil: பெரிய‌ புராண‌ம்), that is, the ''great purana'' or epic, sometimes called ''Tiruttontarpuranam'' ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a Tamil poet ...
, and
Kanda Puranam The ''Skanda Purana'' (IAST: Skanda Purāṇa) is the largest '' Mukhyapurāṇa'', a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts. The text contains over 81,000 verses, and is of Shaivite literature, titled after Skanda, a son of Shiva and Parvat ...
, began to appear in Tamil, and these came to be known as ''vasanam'' or dialogic commentaries. Soon, dialogic commentaries to the Sangam works, such as the
Eight Anthologies The Eight Anthologies, known as Eṭṭuttokai () or "Eight Collections" in the literature, is a classical Tamil poetic work that forms part of the Eighteen Greater Texts (''Patiṉeṇmēlkaṇakku'') anthology series of the Sangam Literature. ...
and
Ten Idylls The Ten Idylls, known as Pattuppāṭṭu () or Ten Lays, is an anthology of ten longer poems in the Sangam literature – the earliest known Tamil literature. They range between about 100 and 800 lines, and the collection includes the celebrat ...
series of texts, began to appear.


Compiled commentaries

Twentieth century witnessed the practice of comparative study and compilation of exegeses from different periods. The prime example of this type of anthological exegeses is that of the Tirukkural. Commentaries to the Kural text are available at least from the 10th century CE, and scholars have been continuously analyzing various Kural commentaries ever since. These have resulted in the publication of various commentary compilations to the Kural text in the 20th century, such as ''Tirukkural Urai Kotthu'' (Compendium of Kural exegeses), ''Tirukkural Urai Valam'' (Kural exegeses omnibus), and ''Tirukkural Urai Vettrumai'' (Differences in Kural exegeses). Old exegeses to the Naladiyar were compiled and published in two volumes entitled ''Naladiyar Urai Valam'' by the
Saraswati Mahal Library Saraswathi Mahal Library, also called Thanjavur Maharaja Serfoji's Saraswathi Mahal Library is a library located in Thanjavur (Tanjore), Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the oldest subsisting libraries in Asia established during 16th century by ...
. Similar compiled commentaries have appeared for other works such as the Tirumurugattrupadai and the Tolkappiyam. Compiled commentaries to the Tolkappiyam have appeared exclusively for each of the three parts of the work.


Simplified commentaries

Simplified commentaries are commentaries written on age-old commentaries, which are complex by virtue of their ancientness, in order to make them comprehensive to the contemporary public. The process of writing simplified commentaries began in 1949 with M. Varadharajan's exegesis on the Tirukkural titled ''Tirukkural Thelivurai'', whose 175th edition was published in 2003. Several similar commentaries started appearing on other ancient works such as the Tolkappiyam and the Athichudi.


See also

*
Ten medieval commentators The Ten Medieval Commentators (Tamil: உரையாசிரியர்கள் பதின்மர்) were a canonical group of Tamil scholars whose commentaries on the ancient Indian didactic work of the Kural are esteemed by later schol ...
*
Tamil language Tamil (, , , also written as ''Tamizhil'' according to linguistic pronunciation) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. It is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world,. "Tamil is one of ...
*
Tamil literature Tamil literature includes a collection of literary works that have come from a 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 T ...


Citations


References

* * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* *


External links


தமிழ் இலக்கியம் – A repository of Tamil LiteratureLargest Collections of Tamil Literature ArticlesTamil Literature Collection – தமிழ் மொழி ஆர்வலர்களுக்காக


{{DEFAULTSORT:Tamil Literature Tamil-language literature Literary criticism