Manakkudavar

Manakkudavar (c. 10th century CE) was a Tamil poet and commentator known for his commentary on the Thirukkural.[1] His is the earliest of the available commentaries on the ancient work,[2] and hence considered to bear closest semblance with the original work by Valluvar. He was among the canon of ten medieval commentators of the Kural text most highly esteemed by scholars.[3] He was also among the five ancient commentators whose works had been preserved and made available to the Modern era, the others being Pari Perumal, Kaalingar, Paridhi, and Parimelazhagar.

Early life

Manakkudavar is believed to have been born in Manakkudi, from which he came to be referred to as "Manakkudiyaar", and later as "Manakkudavar". He lived around the 10th century CE.[4]

Nature of the commentary

The word arrangement of Manakkudavar is often considered by modern scholars to be better than that of Parimelalhagar. According to P. S. Sundaram, Manakkudavar's "division of words makes better sense without any sacrifice of the metrical requirements."[5]

Variations in ordering of the Kural verses

The following table depicts the variations among the early commentators' ordering of, for example, the first ten verses of the Tirukkural. Note that the ordering of the verses and chapters as set by Parimelazhagar, which had been followed unanimously for centuries ever since, has now been accepted as the standard structure of the Kural text.

Kural verse beginning Manakkudavar ordering Pari Perumal ordering Paridhi ordering Kaalingar ordering Parimelazhagar ordering
அகர முதல எழுத்தெல்லாம் 1 1 1 1 1
கற்றதனால் ஆய பயன் 2 2 2 2 2
மலர்மிசை ஏகினான் மாணடி 3 3 3 3 3
வேண்டுதல் வேண்டாமை இலான் 6 6 5 7 4
இருள்சேர் இருவினையும் சேரா 7 7 6 6 5
பொறிவாயில் ஐந்தவித்தான் 8 8 7 7 6
தனக்கு உவமை இல்லாதான் 4 4 6 4 7
அற ஆழி அந்தணன் 5 5 10 9 8
கோளில் பொறியில் குணமிலவே 10 10 8 5 9
பிறவிப் பெருங்கடல் நீந்துவர் 9 9 9 10 10

Being the earliest available commentary of the Tirukkural, Manakkudavar's work is considered to bear the closest semblance with the original work of the Kural text by Valluvar. Thus, Manakkudavar's commentary is consider the cornerstone against which other commentaries are compared in order to find variations in them. The modern chapters 10, 13, 17, 18, and 19 appearing under the subsection "Domestic virtues" of the Kural text appear as chapters 26, 27, 30, 31, and 32, respectively, under the subsection "Ascetic virtues" in Manakkudavar's commentary. Similarly, the modern chapters 26, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, appearing under the subsection "Ascetic virtues" appear as chapters 19, 20, 10, 16, 17, 18, respectively, under the subsection "Domestic virtues" in Manakkudavar's work.[6] Researchers have found as many as 16, 20, 120, and 171 variations in the ordering of the Kural couplets by Pari Perumal, Paridhi, Parimelazhagar, and Kaalingar, respectively, with respect to the commentary by Manakkudavar.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Vedhanayagam, Rama (2017). திருவள்ளுவ மாலை மூலமும் எளிய உரை விளக்கமும் [Tiruvalluvamaalai: Moolamum Eliya Urai Vilakkamum] (in Tamil) (1st ed.). Chennai: Manimekalai Prasuram. pp. . 7–8.
  2. ↑ N. Velusami and Moses Michael Faraday (February 2017). Why Should Thirukkural Be Declared the National Book of India? (in Tamil and English) (First ed.). Chennai: Unique Media Integrators. p. 54. ISBN 978-93-85471-70-4.
  3. ↑ Natarajan, P. R. (December 2008). Thirukkural: Aratthuppaal (in Tamil) (First ed.). Chennai: Uma Padhippagam. pp. 1–6.
  4. ↑ Arunachalam, M. (1972). Thamiz Ilakkiya Varalaaru, Patthaam Nootraandu (in Tamil) (First (Revised 2005) ed.). Chennai: The Parker. p. 95.
  5. ↑ Sundaram, P. S. (1990). Tiruvalluvar: The Kural (First ed.). Gurgaon: Penguin Books. p. 9. ISBN 978-01-44000-09-8.
  6. ↑ Aravindan, M. V. (1968). உரையாசிரியர்கள் [Uraiaasiriyargal] (in Tamil) (First ed.). Chennai: Manivasagar Padhippagam. pp. 346–347.
  • Casie Chetty, Simon (1859). The Tamil Plutarch, containing a summary account of the lives of poets and poetesses of Southern India and Ceylon. Jaffna: Ripley & Strong. p. 65.

Further reading

  • M. Arunachalam (2005). Tamil Ilakkiya Varalaru, Padhinaindhaam Nootraandu [History of Tamil Literature, 15th century].
  • D. M. Vellaivaaranam (1983). Tirukkural Uraikotthu. Thiruppananthal Shri Kasimadam Publications.
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