DEIVATHIN KURAL # 07 (Vol # 6) Dated 12 June 2012

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 07 (Vol # 6) Dated 12 June 2012

(These e-mails are translations of talks given by PeriyavaaL of Kanchi Kaamakoti Peetam, over a period of some 60 years while he was the pontiff in the earlier part of the last century. These have been published by Vanadi Padippagam, Chennai, in seven volumes of a thousand pages each as Deivathin Kural. Today we are going ahead from the middle of page No 43 of Vol 6 of the Tamil original. The readers may note that herein ‘man/he’ includes ‘woman/she’ too mostly. These e-mails are all available at http://Advaitham.blogspot.com updated constantly)

(Note:- In the preceding issue of Deivathin Kural PeriyavaaL has talked about various inscriptions on stone and copper plates. Mr T N Ramachandran as the Chief Executive in the Department of Study of Ancient Scriptures and Artifacts, has said that, “Though PeriyavaaL is talking in all humility, it is a mute question if anyone else has the same amount of knowledge as himself in this line even in, Epigraphica Indica!”)
52. Even when the books like Silppadikaaram talk about Seran Senguttuvan’s fight with the Arya Kings, the word Arya does not mean some different race. The three different royal dynasties within Tamil Land fought against each other, didn’t they? Then it would have been said that ‘so and so fought against the king of Pandyas’, or that ‘he opposed the king of Sozha Naadu’, or even that, ‘he fought against the Telugu or Kannada Kings, who still come within Dravida Desam’, isn’t it? Similarly the use of the word ‘Aryavartam’ with reference to the context meant that the particular king fought against the rulers of the northern part of the Indian Sub-Continent and not a different race! If it was purely a fight against a people of a different race then, he would have been an enemy not only for the rulers there but all sorts of people. That too if we have to go by the opinion of the so called champions of the Tamizh Inam, then the Brahmins of the Aryan North India should have been utterly detestable to the Tamil Kings, isn’t it? But if you look into the text of Silappadigaram, you will note that this Chera King Chenguttuvan fought only with the Kings of North India but ensured that no harm came to the Brahmins there. The Rishis are referred here as ‘visumbu munivar’ literally translated as ‘saints of the skies’! (Ref: Silambu – Vanji – KaalkoL Kaadai 92.) This ‘Visumbu Munivar’ comes in front of him and tells him “There are ‘arumarai andaNargaL’ (meaning Brahmins who know and chant the Vedas), in the areas of Himalayas, to take care of whom is your responsibility and duty.” (Ref: Silambu – Vanji – KaalKoL Kaadai 102 – 103. Quote ‘arumarai andaNar aanguLar vaazhvor perunila manna peNal nin kadan’ Unquote.) Not only is it mentioned that he did not harm them, but it is clearly given in so many words that he ordered his troops that they were not to create any inconvenience to them but to protect and save those who protect and take care of the sacrificial fires! (Ref: Silambu – Vanji – KaalkoL Kaadai 248 – 250. Quote ‘vada disai marungin marai kaathombunar tadavuththee aviyaat taNperu vaazhkkai kaartroo taaLarai porrik kaamin’ Unquote.)
53. Having defeated the northern kings, taking rocks from the Himalayas for making a statue for KaNNagi, loading those stones on the heads of the defeated kings, on return to his native land, this king Seran Chenguttuvan is said to have conducted Yaagas to complete a successful campaign, as described in Silappadigaram! This was done on the advice of a Brahmin from Tamil Land by name ‘Maadala Maraiyon’ and the king listened to it with total attention and due respect, it is said in the famous Silappadigaram! It says, “That Brahmin was telling in the receptive arable land of king’s ears, and was sowing the seeds of the noble ideas using his tongue (that is all the time chanting words of the Vedas), as a plough. The King was thus motivated to reap the benefits of such sowing, in terms of harvest of heavenly life or Moksham. So he started conduct of Yaagas making use of Brahmins who were well versed in the intricacies of the traditions of four Vedas”. Let me further quote poems in Tamil as given in Silappadigaram!
Quote – “maraiyon marai naa uzhudu vaan poruL
irayon sevi seruvaaga viththalin
viththiya perumpadam viLaindu padamiguththut
thuiththal vetkair soozhga nalvendan
naanmarai marabin nayamteri naavin
kelvi mudintha veLvi maakkaLai
maadala maraiyon solliya muraimyin
veLvich chaandiyin vizhaakoL evi” – Unquote. (Ref: Silambu – Nadunar Kaadai 187 – 194.)
54. Now, the most surprising thing is that, the man who has written Silappadigaram is a Jain Bikku, who have been condemned as ‘those who decry and denigrate the conduct of Vedic Yaagas’, by Thiru Gnaana Sambandar! He has honestly, truthfully and sincerely described as to how the conduct of Yaagas was fairly common that was more important in very important occasions, despite himself being outside the need to be loyal to those practices! Nowadays people ask questions such as, “Is it so very necessary to say the Veda Mantras only while installing the statue? If we say with love some words in Tamil, will that not be enough to instil the divine powers in the statue?” But while installing the statue for KaNNagi, who is being deified as a special Goddess of the Tamilians; Seran Chenguttuvan employed ‘arangaLattu andaNar’ to do so, as reported by ILango, the author of Silappadigaram! This phrase ‘arangaLattu andaNar’ is a beautiful use of words. In the battle field of ‘marakkaLam’ the Sera Raja has shown his bravery and prowess! As a follow up, he has arranged to get the stones from the Himalayas carried by the Kings of those northern states! Now the job pending is that the stones have to be solemnised. That cannot be done by the tactics and strategy applied in the battle fields! This can only be done by the experts of the spiritual domain – the ‘arakkaLaththu andanar’! So it is said that, making use of his family Guru (a Brahmin expert in Purohitam), ‘PerunkaNi’ (another Brahmin expert in astrology and Josyam) and the Silpi (experts in the Saastraas related to sculpture.) Quote – ‘arakkaLaththu andaNar aasaan perunkaNi, sirappudaik kammiyar...’ – Unquote. (Ref: Silambu – Vaazhthuk Kaadai 222 – 3.)
55. As I said earlier, the author ILango of the acclaimed magnum opus is a renunciate monk of the Jain order! Now, the state of affairs is that, the writers, poets, researchers including those who have come up the Vedic tradition, are putting a screen over the attachment and trust of those ancient Kings to Vedic methods and are fictitiously cooking up a ‘so called Tamil Culture’! To hide the truth and play around with facts of the past is a criminal act for a historian. Having blacked-out the past, they are wrongfully hoisting their present day ideas on the past, which is not justice! Interestingly, making a fool of the common man who does not read or refer to such classic literature, they are misquoting and misinterpreting to their whims and fancies! There are always some distinct features of regional nature depending on language, climate and geographical differences. But that is not to mean a total negation of national ethos and traditions. Like a huge tree having many branches, while the trunk and roots are the same, the differences are generally only peripheral!
56. But, today in the name of publicising Indian Culture and Traditions, when they conduct many meetings, seminars and conferences, they are mostly hiding, ignoring and obfuscating the existence of the Vedic Culture, which is like the base of the trunk with roots, completely! In their talks and writings, the regional cultures are being given a boost and magnification to enable the depiction and dramatisation of imaginary Dravidian / Aryan confrontation in which Dravidian is the local accommodating gentleman and the Aryan is the dominating bully, come from elsewhere! It is paining to note that those who write fiction based on historical characters also do not depict the factual events of those times at all, despite their mass appeal. Since majority of people today are discrediting the truth behind old time Itihaasaas, PuraNas, and period literature; and rely more on the modern fiction and what is claimed to be research papers; their understanding of our own history is completely and pitiably distorted! It is alright for one to have whatever one’s views and opinions are today. But when it comes to reporting, we owe it to ourselves and the future generations of people to be honest and truthful! It is painful to note that people do not seem to be aware of the basic discipline that our present day views and ideas should not be hoisted on the people of the past!
57. Like the King’s Way of the present day world, the Vedic ways and methods were spread as the common factor throughout the Indian main land. From it like the branches of a tree or a river’s tributary system were the regional languages and cultures. From time immemorial Tamilians as people of this part of the world, speaking this particular language were also very much part of the Vedic system only! At the same time, my above statement is not meant to deny that they were true legates to certain unique traditions of art and culture of essentially what is Tamilian heritage. In this way we can say that the Sera, Sozha and Pandya kings were those who nourished the cultural branches of Tamil tradition. But the main, basic and root tradition and culture remained as that of the Indian ethos. So the three royal dynasties of Sera, Sozha and Pandya, took care of the Tamil culture and traditions as an integral part of Indian Vedic Culture, without even thinking of it as something separate! A branch cannot survive and grow if cut and separated from the main body of a tree!
(In later days, there were also the Dynasty of Pallavas. We will talk about them in the next edition of Deivathin Kural!) Sambhomahadeva