Muthumozhikkanchi (Tamil: முதுமொழிக்காஞ்சி) is a

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 ...

poetic work of

didactic Didacticism is a philosophy that emphasises instructional and informative qualities in literature, art, and design. In art, design, architecture, and landscape, didacticism is a conceptual approach that is driven by the urgent need to explain. ...

nature belonging to the

Eighteen Lesser Texts The Eighteen Lesser Texts, known as the Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku () in the literature, is a collection of eighteen poetic works mostly created during the 'post Sangam period' (between 100 and 500 CE). The poems of this collection differ from t ...

(''Pathinenkilkanakku'') anthology 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 ...

. This belongs to the 'post Sangam period' corresponding to between 100 and 500 CE. ''Muthumozhikkanchi'' contains 100 poems written by the poet Mathuraikkoodalaar Kilaar who must have lived in

Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...

. The poems of ''Muthumozhikkanchi'' are divided into ten groups of ten poems each and employs simple poetic style to enable the lay person to understand the messages. All the poems start with the same phrase - ஆர்கலி உலகத்து மக்கட் கெல்லாம் ("For all the people of this world") as a preface and the rest of the first line qualifies the characteristic dealt by the rest of the ten lines of the section. In the following poem, the excellence (சிறந்தன்று) of righteous behaviour and chastity are found in the second and third lines: ஆர்கலி உலகத்து மக்கட் கெல்லாம்
ஓதலில் சிறந்தன்று ஒழுக்கம் உடைமை,
காதலில் சிறந்த ன்று கண் அஞ்சப்படுதல்.

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/pm0025.pdf ''Muthumozhikkanchi'' eText at Project madurai Sangam literature {{India-lit-stub