MY FAVORITE TAMIL POEM
அலைக்கடல் கடையக் கண்டேன், ஐயன் ஐந்து சிரமும் கண்டேன்,
மலை இருச்சிறகு கண்டேன், சிவன் சுத்த கழுத்தும் கண்டேன்,
மன்மதன் முழுவடிவு கண்டேன், புலவரிகண் கண்டேன்,
வாரிதி தண்ணீர் கண்டேன், கொடுத்ததை வாங்கக்காணேன்!
The English translation is as follows:
“I have seen the grand ocean swept away, I have seen Brahma with five heads,
I have seen the two-winged mountains, as well as Lord Shiva’s pure nape,
I have admired the whole body of Manmatha, I have cast my look on Indira’s eyes,
I have seen even pure water in the ocean, but I have never seen anyone ask for what he has given away!”
This is a poem from the Tamil folklore, but I got this from a Telugu website, నాకు నచ్చిన ఓ తమిళ పద్యం | చంద్రిమ (wordpress.com)
Here’s a little background:
Having defeated Ravana in the war and relinquished his kingdom to his brother Vibhishana, Rama and his men were making preparations to return to Ayodhya. Sita happened to see and admire a grinder in Ravana’s place; it seemed special to her and she very much wished to take it with her. She asked the monkeys to have it removed and put aboard the Pushpaka Vimana that would eventually carry the royal entourage back to the capital. When the monkeys spoke to their leader Hanuman about this, he found himself in a dilemma. After all, the grinder was no big thing – Vibhishana could get even thousands of them if Sita had so desired. The problem was, as soon as Rama had made his triumphant entry into the Lankan capital, he had implicitly surrendered the kingdom with all its assets – from the most important to the most trivial – to Vibhishana. Hanuman was averse to take back any object, however small, that had now become a part of the alien party. How could he explain this to Sita? He could never bring himself to do such a thing, so he sought the advice of his mentor Jambavan, who simply smiled at his embareassment and promised he would handle the matter himself.
Jambavan approached Sita and began, “I am the most senior among the people here, and I have seen and wondered at many interesting things in my life.”
That’s when he recited the above poem. On listening to the poem that concludes with the reassertion of a time-honored tradition, Sita realizes the inaptness of her wish and changes her mind.
This story stresses three important lessons:
- When tradition forbids an action, it must be scrupulously avoided;
- The advice against such misconduct must be proffered only by a qualified person;
- Advice when offered in the right manner will be welcomed and followed.
These morals, I think, are valid on any day. If you set the poem aside, there are many interesting episodes from our epics that find reference here. They are discussed in the following Appendix:
APPENDIX
“I have seen the grand ocean swept away”
Legend has it that when the Devas and Asuras churned the Ocean of Milk, they used Mount Mandira as a fulcrum and Vasuki, the snake as a rope. When Mount Mandira lost balance and fell on one side causing havoc, they needed someone to straighten it. That task fell to Vali, who swept the sea with one hand and restored the balance. Thus Vali had been described by Kamban as
I have seen Brahma with five heads;
Brahma originally had five heads. Lord Shiva cut one of them.
I have seen the two-winged mountains, as well as Lord Shiva’s pure nape,
Originally, mountains had wings and could freely fly all over the places at their will. They became such a big nuisance to sages and the general public that Lord Indira went on a spree, cutting off their wings with his weapon Vajraudha. The mountains were scared of Indira and hid themselves under the sea. In the Ramayana, it is mentioned that Hanuman, during his fight across the ocean to Lanka, rested on one of the mountains named Minaka.
Lord Shiva’s nape was white (pure) before he swallowed the poison emanating from the snake Vasuki during the churning of the Ocean of Milk. The name Neelakantan came with that episode.
I have admired the whole body of Manmatha
Manmatha, the God of Love, provoked Lord Shiva during meditation and was burnt to ashes
I have cast my look on Indira’s eyes,
Indira was cursed with a thousand eyes ( that curse by Sage Gautama is too indecent to describe here).
Suffice to say that that eventually Indira was restored with two eyes.
I have seen even pure water in the ocean
There was a time when sea water was pure – not salty, even drinkable! Legend has that Saint Agastya had, in an angry mood, cursed it.
