Aganaanooru 169 – A feast for pallor and pining

In this episode, we listen to a man’s worry about his beloved, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 169, penned by Thondi Aamoor Saathanaar. Set amidst the arid spaces of the ‘Paalai’ or ‘Drylands landscape’, the verse sketches the consequences of parting in a visual manner. மரம் தலை கரிந்து நிலம் பயம் வாட,அலங்குகதிர் வேய்ந்த அழல் திகழ் நனந்தலை,புலி தொலைத்து உண்ட பெருங் களிற்று ஒழி ஊன்கலி கெழு மறவர் காழ்க் கோத்து ஒழிந்ததை,ஞெலி கோற் சிறு தீ மாட்டி, ஒலி திரைக்கடல் விளை அமிழ்தின் கணம் சால் உமணர்சுனை கொள் தீம் நீர்ச் சோற்று உலைக் கூட்டும்சுரம் பல கடந்த நம் வயின் படர்ந்து நனிபசலை பாய்ந்த மேனியள், நெடிது நினைந்து,செல் கதிர் மழுகிய புலம்பு கொள் மாலைமெல் விரல் சேர்த்திய நுதலள், மல்கிக்கயல் உமிழ் நீரின் கண் பனி வார,பெருந் தோள் நெகிழ்ந்த செல்லலொடுவருந்துமால், அளியள், திருந்திழைதானே! A trip to the drylands filled with striking events, where we get to hear the man say these words to his heart, in the middle of his journey to seek wealth: “Scorching treetops and ruining the land’s fertility, the hot sun spreads its swaying rays in those wide open spaces, where the carcass of a huge elephant that a tiger has attacked, fed on and abandoned, is carried by uproarious highway robbers on a pole, and what’s left over from that, is collected by salt merchants, who travel in hordes, bearing that elixir harvested from the resounding waves of the sea. They light up a small flame with their fire rods and add this meat to the rice cooking in the sweet waters of the spring. As her heart forsakes her and rushes to me, who has crossed many such drylands, with pallor spreading on her form, ceaselessly thinking, pressing her soft fingers on her forehead, with tears spilling over from her eyes, akin to water drops spit out by a fish, her thick arms wasting away, she would be worrying deeply in that evening hour of loneliness, when the sun’s rays diminish. That maiden wearing well-etched jewels is to be pitied indeed!” Let’s observe the changing scene in this domain and learn more! The man starts by describing the drylands that he has come across. He first talks about the relentless sun, burning and ruining everything in sight. Then, he points to a single spot and talks about three different events that have occurred right there. First, it’s a fight between a tiger and an elephant. The elephant loses out and is killed by the fierce tiger. After the tiger has had its fill of the beast, it abandons the carcass and walks on. Next, a bunch of highway robbers, who come there, carve out a huge portion of the meat and tying it on a pole, they carry it away. Finally, salt merchants arrive there, and of course, there’s still a lot of meat left, for it’s an elephant we are talking about. They set up camp nearby, start a fire with their fire rods, and then to the rice they are cooking in sweet spring water, they add the meat too. No spring water here, for sure. It must be something they have carried along in their carts. Thus, that huge elephant has now been fed upon by not one, not two, but three different parties in the scene.  After that vivid description, the man turns to reflect on the lady and laments to his heart that she is sure to be worried immensely, wondering about his whereabouts, as pallor spreads on her body and her arms thin away. He paints a portrait of the lady sitting there with her hands holding her feverish forehead and tears spilling out of her eyes like water from the mouth of a fish. The man concludes by echoing how his heart throbs with pity for the lady’s state. In the scene of the elephant carcass that was abandoned by the tiger, being fed on by the highway robbers and salt merchants, the man places a metaphor for how the lady’s beauty abandoned by him is now being feasted upon by pallor and pining. The pain in parting felt in the intimate spaces of the heart is illustrated with the scenes of the wide open spaces in the drylands, highlighting the Sangam poets’ expertise in seamlessly connecting the inner world and the outer!