Qns. related to Chola era book

[N. Ganesan]

10/22/97

Hello!

I am working on Aathinaathan vaLamaDal  by JayamkoNDaar
from a palmleaf manuscript. The only two known mss.
(one at GOML, Madras and other at Perur, near Coimbatore)
are used.

This  12th century work from the age of the imperial Cholas is beautiful.
It praises "kaamam" to be superior to all other purusharththas.
> From this work and a study of inscriptions,  it can be determined
that Deepangudi near Dindivanam to be the birthplace of JayamkoNDar.
U. V. Saminathaiyar & R. Raghavaiyangar have said this also.
(But for others, they are not sure whether the village in Dindivanam
or in Tanjore District.) This work sheds new light.

All 550 lines has "takara varga etukai"! I believe this is
the fourth work in Tamil that has the same etukai/prAsam.
Tirumangai Alvar's two maDals, TattuvarAyar's kalimaDal
are the only other books that have same etukai in the entire
gamut of tamil literature. But those maDals are
much smaller than JayamkoNDar's work.


I have two questions:

a) In the parapaksha section, the author criticizes Buddhists
as:
                                    "tampaciyin
   vaatai tavira manamtiriyAk kanjcitanaip

   pOtuceya vENTip putumarutap pUvaTutta
   pItaka aaTai uTalmUTip  pEyttanamaayc

   caatukamE kallukamE caaturika maalaikaLin
   *****************************************
   pEtakamE enRu pirakaTangkaLe pitaRRip
   ****************************

   pOta mutumarattin pon^tilE muttiyinaic
   cAtippaayt taRkiTan^tu n^iRpaarum,"

Rough translation:
To remove hunger, Buddhists take a food that does not
spoil the mind; they use dress whose color is made into
orange by boiling cloth with 'marutam' flowers. They
always tell "caatukamE, kallukamE, caaturikamE" or a
string of variations of these words. They do meditation
in the holes of old trees for liberation.

>From Jaffna akaraati,
  kallukam = peru Acai (Big Desire) ( from(?) < kalka = sinful, wicked)
  caatukam = perungkaayam (stuff used in cooking to add smell)
            (This meaning does not fit with other two)
  caaturikam = cuutu (cunning, cheating) (< caatara = clever, flattering,
     shrewd)


May be Buddhism says some thing against Big desire, shrewdness etc.,
Are there any references to these in Pali or sanskrit literature?

Could 'prakaTam" be "piTakam"? Does the piTakas talk anything
about "caatukam, kallukam, caaturikam"?

Many thanks for any pointers.

b) In a section on different types of jobs people do,
there are few lines:

                                    ", vaarmatatta
       pOtakattin kaipppukkup poypoy enappukanRu

       vItiyilkoN TOTuvatum, vETTaviru tangkattuk
       kaati uraiyaRin^tu kaTTuvatum,  kaTTappaTTu

       Otuvatum,"


People sit in the trunks of a mad elephant and shout
"Lies, untruths" and go in the streets on a parade.

In old India, was there a habit like this? Any pointers
where it occurred? May be against some philosophical sects?

What does virutangam mean? It could be irutangam too,
if you treat 'v' as glide acc. to tamil grammar. (vakara uTampaTumey)

If it is irutangam, it is 'Double Gold'. The context
says destroying virutangam or irutangam. Is it used in
medicine or alchemy?

Can someone post this for me in RISA list?
Any help is deeply appreciated.

Sincerely,
N. Ganesan
nas_ng at lms420.jsc.nasa.gov

*********************************

More importantly, it is the only Lokayata/Chaarvaaka philosophical
book available in tamil. The philosophy is sensual enjoyment.
Denies existence of aanma/ rebirth etc., It is beautiful poetry
too. 550 lines in kaliveNpaa. About 10-12 lines in total
we don't understand. It ridicules Vedanta, Buddha, Jain
Kalamukha etc., philosophies. Portrays "inbam" as ulterior
svargam. Very interesting, beautiful work. I am laboring along
with Kambaraman. Will publish and then people can fill up
what we don't understand. Will write more on the
ancient, 900 year old philosophical kavithai by
Kaviccakkaravartti. Lokayatam is debated and denied
by Manimekalai, Sivagnana Siddhiyar, Sivagnaana MaapaaDiyam.
But here, JayamkoNDar uses the old tamil custom of maDal ERutal
to propagate and defend the Lokayata philosophy. Materialistic
and at places sounds scientific.

Today's installment of JayamkoNDar's vaLamaDaL:

naatan namakkiniya nampi uyirkkuRuti
Oti aruLum ulOkaa yatankaaTTum

Etuvinaik kaNTaal itamakitam enRuraiyIr;
yaatEnum onRum aRiyaa tavaraippOR

pEtaiyaraik kaaNil piNangip  piTittamukki
mEtiyinum veLLaaTTup  paalpOtum, minminiyE

cOti uTaittuc cuTarOnil, tUmattin
cAti neruppin tazalkuLirum, can^tazalum,

mEtaku tEnpuLikkum, menkarupum kaikkumenpIr!
Ati anAti akAraNa kaariyamaam

pEtamapE tappira mANApra  mANamenum
vaaytaTu maaRRattaal vaaLaa uraikkinRIr;

mEtaikaaL! vaaNaaLai vINE kazittatanpin
vaatait tanampiTittu vaRkamaRat taRkittup

pEtikkum palcamayap peTTavaayk kaTTuraiyaal
vEtikkap paTTu viLakkirukkat tIttETik

kaataR kalavik kaniyiruppak kAykavarn^tu
cEtap paTumcitaTTut tiNNarkAL! munnIrkku

naatamum, naaNmalarkku naaRRamum, veNmatikkuc
cItamum uNTaakac ceytaaraar? ceytavattaal

yaatum payanillai; evvuyirkkum epporuTkum
aatal azital iyalpanRO? yaartaTuppaar?

kaatalikkum inpamelaam kaivan^ tiTakkaama
vEtanaiyai nIkki virakap perun^tavamaam

Otap perungkaTalil mUzkiir: oLimatiyin
aatapattE nillIr, akaruvuTan taNpanin^Ir

mItu pukavIzn^tu mUzkIr; viraikkaLapac
cItaveL Lattazun^tIr; tenRaR kaLiRERIr;

vItiyilE pOyppukIr; meLLamaLi mElERir;
paatakanjcey  pUnjcayanap panjcaangka mattimattE

kEtamuRa mUzkIr; keTuvIr! ivaiyaRRaal
paatiyinum ovvaatu paazvaruttam; meyvaruttam

EtEnum inpam viLakkumO engaTku?
maatava njaana matanaa kamattilE

.....

See his caarvaka philosophy coming here also.




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