Thiruvarur Viruttachala Kalyanasundaram (Thiruvarur Virudhachala Kalyanasundaram : 26 August 1883 – 17 September 1953), better known by his initials Thiru. Vi. Ka, was an Indian scholar, essayist and activist for the

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 ...

. The analytical depth of his commentaries on classical

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 philosophy, and the clear, fluid style of his prose. His works, along with those of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai,

Maraimalai Adigal Maraimalai Adigal (15 July 1876 – 15 September 1950) was a Tamil Saivite writer, orator and father of the Tanittamil Iyakkam movement. He authored more than 100 books, including works on original poems and dramas and notable research works o ...

, and

Arumuka Navalar Arumuka Navalar (; 18 December 1822 – 5 December 1879) was a Sri Lankan Shaivite Tamil language scholar and a religious reformer who was central in reviving native Hindu Tamil traditions in Sri Lanka and India. Navalar's birth name was N ...

, are considered to have defined the style of modern Tamil prose.

History

Thiru Vi.Kalyanasundaram was born in

Thuluva Vellala Thuluva Vellalar, also known as Agamudi Mudaliar or Arcot Mudaliars, is a caste found in northern Tamil Nadu, southern Andhra Pradesh and southern Karnataka. They were an elite and dominant land-owning community. Etymology The earliest occu ...

family in the village of Thullam, presently called Thandalam in Chengalpet district, near

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

in the southern Indian state of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

on 26 August 1883. His family moved to Thiruvarur as his father got transferred. He attended the Wesley College High School, and also studied Tamil under

and N. Kathiravel Pillai of

Jaffna Jaffna (, ; , ) is the capital city of the Northern Province, Sri Lanka, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a Jaffna Peninsula, peninsula of the same name. With a population o ...

. He worked briefly as a teacher and, in 1917, became an editorial assistant on ''Desabaktan'', a nationalist, Tamil daily newspaper. Thiru Vi. Ka. was soon involved in various aspects of the independence movement. During this period, he became a strong campaigner for worker rights. In 1918 he became active in the trade union movement as an associate of BP Wadia and organised the first trade unions in the south of India.

Contribution to literature

In 1920, Thiru. Vi. Ka. started a new Tamil weekly magazine, titled ''Navasakthi''. Navasakthi would be the vehicle for his thoughts for much of the rest of his life. Thiru Vi. Ka. sought to make his magazine a beacon to the Tamil people. His writings reflected his political and philosophical views. He published one of the first Tamil interpretations of the thought of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

, which is still regarded as an important milestone in Gandhian studies. He wrote a number of works on the religious and spiritual thought of

Ramalinga Swamigal Thiruvarutprakasa Vallalār Chidambaram Ramalingam (5 October 1823 – 30 January 1874), also known as Vallalār, Ramalinga Swamigal and Ramalinga Adigal, was one of the known Tamil people, Tamil Hindu saint and a true God of Enlightenment who t ...

, an influential Tamil Saivite philosopher-

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

of the 19th century. He wrote commentaries on a number of works of classical Tamil literature, which appeared as serials in Navasakthi. Over the course of his writing career, Thiru Vi. Ka. published over fifty books. These include ''Manitha Vazhkkaiyum Gandhiyadigalum'', a study of the implications of Gandhi's thought for human conduct. His ''Pennin perumai allatu valkait tunai nalam'' was one of the most read books of that period. Also very influential, albeit at a more critical level, is his study of the concept of Beauty in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, published as (Lord Murugan or Beauty). His writings reflect the

internationalism Internationalism may refer to: * Cosmopolitanism, the view that all human ethnic groups belong to a single community based on a shared morality as opposed to communitarianism, patriotism and nationalism * International Style, a major architectura ...

characteristic of Indian intellectuals of that period, a strong pride in Indian and Tamil culture, coupled with a strong belief in the unity and universal kinship of all human thought. In his writings, Thiru Vi. Ka. developed a prose style which built on the inner rhythms of the Tamil language and produced a rhythmic, flowing text. The field of Tamil prose was still relatively new, and the style he developed was extremely influential. His works are today seen as having given a new energy to the Tamil language and regarded as part of the foundations on which the modern Tamil prose style has been built.

Politics

Through this period, Thiru Vi. Ka. continued to remain active in politics and the

Indian independence struggle The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic movement to ...

. He was considered to be one of the three pillars of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

in Tamil Nadu, even becoming the President of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee in 1926. He spent much time touring Tamil Nadu, making speeches on the need for independence. He remained active well into his sixties, and did not retire from politics until Indian independence in 1947.

Death

Thiru Vi. Ka. died on 17 September 1953 at the age of 71.

Recognition

*On 21 October 2005, the Indian government commemorated his life by releasing a stamp in his honor. * Thiru. Vi. Ka Nagar, Chennai * Thiru. Vi. Ka Park, Chennai * Thiru. Vi. Ka Bridge, Adyar, Chennai

References