From: sp2@cec1.wustl.edu (Sundara Pandian)
Subject: Re: Kamban, VaLLuvan and KaNNadhaasan
Organization: Washington University, St. Louis Mo.
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1992 02:52:19 GMT

In article <Bto1HK.D0G@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca> selvakum@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca (C.R.Selvakumar - Electrical Engineering) writes:
>In article <BtnztC.BzD@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca>, selvakum@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca (C.R.Selvakumar - Electrical Engineering) writes:
>> In article <9208272123.AA01028@cec1.wustl.edu>, sp2@cec1.wustl.edu (Sundara Pandian) writes:
>> > Natarajan Sureshbabu writes :
>> > >>exchanged)
>> > >>
>> >   The correct one using K.Srinivasan's
>> > ADAMI transliteration scheme is,
>> >  
>> >   `yaan-nOkkum kaalai nilan-nOkkum nOkkaakkaal
>> >    thaan-nOkki mella nagum.'
>> > 
>> >    The usage of the word `nagum' may be thought about.
>> >  I think that `avaL nagum' is grammatically incorrect.
>>                  ^^^^^^^^^^
>> >  The correct form is `avaL nagaiththaaL'. `nagum' is
>>                         ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> >  used for `onRan paal' [ adhu, idhu, mudhaliyana.]
>> >  May be, that such grammatical rules are relaxed for
>>    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> >  poems. 
>>   ^^^^^^^
>> 
>>           Please allow me to observe that ThiruvaLLuvar
>>           *does not* say 'avaL nagum'. If you read the 
>>           kuRaL carefully, you can perceive that VaLLuvar
>>           means "kaathaliyin uLLam" or her deeper feeling
>>           and not mere external facial "nagai". There is
>>           a deeper import and a more sublime love-feeling
>>           in vaLLuvar's words. I don't think vaLLuvar made
>>           any grammatically incorrect thodar in this kuRaL
>>           NOR is it any poetic licence. I honestly feel that
>>           vaLLuvar conveys a more sublime deeper love-feeling
>>           that's all. 
>
>   I just wanted to add that in the VaLLuvar's kuRaL the subject is
>   not explicitly stated vis-a-vis "nagaum", therefore it is not
>   right to infer that "avaL nagum" was implied. uLLam( innuNarvil
>   kaLikkum kaathal uLLam) nagum is grammatically correct. The subject
>   corresponding to the predicate ( verb) "nagum" is NOT explicitly
>   given by VaLLuvar and it is one of the beauty of this kuRaL rather
>   than the flaw ! 

      Besides the grammatical purity of the kuRaL under consideration,
 the question raised here is what is being addressed here, the lover
 [ her looks ] or her `uLLam' [ inner feelings ].     
      First I like to remark that this kuRaL is from the chapter
 `kuRippaRidhal' [ reading the signs ]. A reading of this chapter
 reveals that the poet indeed is talking about the looks of her
 lover, like         
      " She has two looks ; one causes pain ;
        That same pain, the other heals again."

      "With tenderness I look upon her face,
       And she relents ; her smile is full of grace ."

 The kuRaL under discussion falls in the same pattern,
      " If I should look, her eyes are on the ground,
        If I look away, her looks with a smile are bound."
    [ Translations by Kasthuri Srinivasan ]

       It is also clear from the kuRaL itself.
    " yaan nOkkum kaalai nilan-nOkkum"
                         ^^^^^^^^^^^^
 This is clearly a description on the lover's looks. 
 The poet is observing her lover's face trying to read the signs.
When he looks at her, he notices that her eyes don't meet his
eyes, but instead fall on the ground. If he looks away, she looks
at him and smiles. So I would take `thaan nOkki mella nagum' as
the signs that the poet notices on her lover. These signs are read
from the facial looks of her lover and we can't take `nagum' as
`avaL uLLam nagum', as `nagum' is a facial sign here.
  Nevertheless, the kuRaL is grammatically correct. 
 There are two Tamil words ending with -um in this kuRaL used a
total of three times : nOkkum (2) and nagum (1).
 nOkk-um (1) : yaan nOkkum kaalai - This is a conditional
                                   sentence, meaning `If I look at
                                   her..'
 nOkk-um (2) : nilan nOkkum - Here the subject is the lover's eyes.
                              Though they are plural, as they are
                                  . 
                              `a . . RiNai', the verb `nOkkum' is
                              correct. We can say `avai pOkum', `avai
                              paRakkum' etc.
 nagum (1) : thaan nOkki mella nagum - Here the subject is the lover's
                                       look. One can take the subject
                                       as the lover's eyes again. Her
                                       eyes looked at him when he looked
                                       away and they smiled. Or one can
                                       take the subject as the lover and
                                       the verb `nagum' is correct here
                                       as only her look is read by the
                                       poet. However, her `uLLam' is not
                                       implied here as claimed by Selva-
                                       kumar. 
                   
>   
>         anbudan 
>         Selva Selvakumar

                                                            S.Pandian
                                                   sp2@cec1.WUSTL.edu

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