Aganaanooru 172 – Taking the trophy home

In this episode, we perceive an attempt at changing a person’s behaviour, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 172, penned by Madurai Paalaasiriyar Nappaalanaar. The verse is situated amidst the roaring cascades and resounding slopes of the ‘Kurinji’ or ‘Mountain Landscape’ and paints vivid images of life in this domain. வாரணம் உரறும் நீர் திகழ் சிலம்பில்பிரசமொடு விரைஇய வயங்கு வெள் அருவிஇன் இசை இமிழ் இயம் கடுப்ப, இம்மெனக்கல் முகை விடர்அகம் சிலம்ப, வீழும்காம்பு தலைமணந்த ஓங்கு மலைச் சாரல்;இரும்பு வடித்தன்ன கருங் கைக் கானவன்விரி மலர் மராஅம் பொருந்தி, கோல் தெரிந்து,வரி நுதல் யானை அரு நிறத்து அழுத்தி,இகல் அடு முன்பின் வெண் கோடு கொண்டு, தன்புல் வேய் குரம்பை புலர ஊன்றி,முன்றில் நீடிய முழவு உறழ் பலவில்,பிழி மகிழ் உவகையன், கிளையொடு கலி சிறந்து,சாந்த ஞெகிழியின் ஊன் புழுக்கு அயரும்குன்ற நாட! நீ அன்பிலை ஆகுதல்அறியேன் யான்; அஃது அறிந்தனென்ஆயின்அணி இழை, உண்கண், ஆய் இதழ்க் குறுமகள்மணி ஏர் மாண் நலம் சிதைய,பொன் நேர் பசலை பாவின்றுமன்னே! In this action-packed trip to the mountains, we get to hear the confidante say these words to the man, after bringing over the lady for a tryst with him: “In the water-filled mountains, elephants trumpet; shining white cascades descend, fused with honey, resounding akin to the sweet music of instruments, making clefts and caves in the hills echo with a loud sound; bamboos crowd densely on the slopes of the soaring peaks; Here, a mountain hunter, having black hands, appearing as if cast in iron, climbs on to a blooming bur-flower tree, aims the perfect arrow and pierces the tough chest of an elephant with a lined forehead, and brings its white tusk, capable of attacking enemies with strength, and plants it to dry in front of his hut, thatched with grass. Then, from a jackfruit sprouting in his front yard, appearing akin to a drum, he extracts sweet nectar and relishes it, amidst the uproar of his joyous kith and kin, sharing with them, rice cooked with meat on the fire of sandalwood barks. Such is your domain in the mountains, O lord! I never knew that you were such a loveless person; Had I known that, I wouldn’t have let the beauty of the young maiden, adorned with exquisite ornaments, having kohl-streaked, petal-like eyes, to be ruined, by the spreading of gold-like pallor on her sapphire-like skin!” Trek time! The confidante starts by bringing the mountains alive. She makes us hear the roar of elephants and the descent of cascades, flowing with the music of an orchestra. She points to the densely crowding bamboos and after giving us a sense of place, she zooms on to a person, namely a mountain hunter, who is perched atop a burflower tree. From his vantage point, he takes aim with a sharpened arrow and hits straight into the chest of an elephant. Then, coming down, he brings home the gentle giant’s tusk and plants it in front of his home. His day’s work done, the hunter delights in drinking the nectar of jackfruit juice and eating rice and meat, cooked on a sandalwood fire, in the boisterous company of his beloved kin. The confidante has mentioned all these vivid elements to represent the man’s domain. After such glowing praise for his land, the confidante arrives at the core concern and declares that she never knew the man would turn up to be such a person, lacking in love. She concludes by lamenting if only she had known, she would have never allowed the lady’s beauty to be ruined by the fair pallor that was spreading on her dark skin!  The confidante means to say to the man, ‘I thought you loved the lady. How can you make her suffer so?’. In response, he would query the reason for such an accusation and the confidante would end up revealing how his absences affected the lady and brought great suffering to her. In the opening scene of elephants trumpeting and cascades roaring, using the imagery of sound, the confidante places a metaphor for how slander is spreading through town about the relationship between the man and the lady. Then in the scene of the mountain hunter felling the elephant and bringing the trophy of its tusk home, the confidante places a wish for the man to fell the enemy of slander and claim the lady’s hand and rejoice in the permanent union, sanctioned and celebrated by the kith and kin. Thus, with the firm stones of vivid images in the outer world, the confidante paves the road to happiness in the life of the man and the lady!