ar

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Portrait of Thiruvalluvar

Thiruvalluvar (Tamil: திருவள்ளுவர்) is a celebrated Tamil poet who wrote the Thirukkural, a work on ethics

in Tamil literature. He is also known by other names like Theiva Pulavar, Valluvar and Poyyamozhi Pulavar.

Thiruvalluvar was born at Mylapore. His wife Vasuki was a chaste and devoted lady, an ideal wife, who never
disobeyed the orders of her husband, but always carried them out implicitly. Thiruvalluvar showed people that a
person could lead the life of a Grihastha or householder, and at the same time, lead a divine life or a life of
purity and sanctity. He showed people that there was no necessity to leave the family and become a Sannyasin
to lead a divine life of purity and sanctity. All his wise sayings and teachings are now in book form and known
as ‘Thirukkural’[1]. The Tamil Calendar is dated from that period and referred as Thiruvalluvar Aandu (Year). [2]

The time period of Thiruvalluvar's existence has been based on mostly linguistic evidences rather than
archeological evidences since none such has been determined. His period has been estimated to be between
200 BC and 30BC.[3]

Contents
 [hide]

1 Traditional

accounts

2 Thirukkural
 3 See also

4 Notes

5 References

[edit]Traditional accounts

The name Thiruvalluvar (ThiruValluvar) consists of Thiru (a Tamil word meaning honorable, similar to Mr)

[4]
 and Valluvar (a polite name forValluvan, according to Tamil tradition). The name Valluvan is a common name
representing his caste/occupation rather than his proper name. However, the question of whether the author of
Thirukkural (Valluvan) is named after his community or vice versa remains unanswered.

There are a few legends about the birth of Thiruvalluvar. The Saiva, Vaishnava, Jaina, Buddhist denominations
contend that Thiruvalluvar belongs to their school. There are a few legends about the birth of Thiruvalluvar who
could be a Jain samanar Saint or a Hindu. But no evidence is/was available about his religion [Kamatchi
Srinivasan "Kural Kuram Samayam", Thirukkural Publications, Madurai Kamaraj University, 1979]. The work
does begin with a chapter Saluting the Almightly God. So Thiruvalluvar was a theist. But his God is Almighty,
creator of all the worlds, and who delivers those who throw themselves at his feet. The Kural per se does not
advocate any specific or sectarian religious faith. One legend associates him to Madurai, the ancient capital of
the Pandya rulers who vigorously promoted Tamil literature. According to another he was born and lived
in Mylapore, a part of present day Madras city and traveled to Madurai to submit his work, the Thirukural, for
approval of the king (Pandian) and his college of poets. His wife is named Vasuki. [5]

There are, also, more traditional stories citing the Tamil  Sangam of Madurai (the assembly/conference of
eminent scholars and researchers conducted on a regular basis) as the authority through which Thirukkural
was introduced to the world. Thiruvalluvar might have spent most part of his life in Madurai because it was
under the Pandiya rulers that many Tamil poets flourished. There is also the recent claim
byKanyakumari Historical and Cultural Research Centre (KHCRC) that Valluvar was a king who ruled
Valluvanadu in the hilly tracts ofKanyakumari District of Tamil Nadu.[6]

Most of the Researchers and great Tamil Scholars like George Uglow Pope or G.U. Pope who had spent many
years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English, which includes Thirukkural, have recognised
Thiruvalluvar as a Paraiyar. Karl Graul (1814–1864) had already by 1855 characterized the Tirukkural as 'a
work of Buddhist hue'. In this connection it was then of particular interest that Thiruvalluvar, the author of
the Tirukkural was identified as a Paraiyar in Tamil tradition (as, incidentally, were also other famous ancient
Tamil writers, e.g., Auvaiyar ; cf. Pope 1886: i–ii, x–xi). Graul might have subsumed the Jains also under the
name of the Buddhists (Graul 1865: xi note).

[edit]Thirukkural
Tiruvalluvar statue in Kanyakumari

Main article:  Thirukkural

Thirukkural is one of most revered ancient works in the Tamil [7] . Kural is considered as 'World common
faith'[citation needed], as it shows the way for human morals and betterment in life. The Kural has been translated into
most languages, likely next only to the Bible, Qur'an and Gita . [citation needed]. The Latin translation of Thirukkural
made by Constanzo Beschi in 1730 helped significantly to make known to European intellectuals the richness
and beauty of Tamil literature.

Thirukkural is a combined word formed by joining the two words Thiru and Kural, i.e. Thiru + Kural =
Thirukkural.

Thirukkural is divided into three sections. Section one deals with Aram, good ethical behavior with conscience
and honor ("right conduct"), Section two discusses Porul, the right manner of conducting worldly affairs, and
Section three dwells on Inbam, love between man and woman. The First section has 38 chapters, Second has
70 chapters and the Third 25 chapters. Each Chapters consists of 10 couplets or kurals thus making 1330
couplets in total.

There is a 133 feet tall statue of Saint Thiruvalluvar erected at the southern tip of Indian subcontinent
(Kanyakumari) where the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Indian Ocean converge. The 133 ft
denotes Thirukkural's 133 Chapters or athikarams and the show of three fingers denote the three
themes Aram, Porul, and Inbam ie the Sections on Morals, Wealth and Love.

[edit]See also

 Paraiyar

 Statue of Thiruvalluvar

 Thirukkural

 Sarvajna
 Vemana

 Sarvajna and Tiruvalluvar statue installation

 Valluvar Kottam

 Ovvaiyar
[edit]Notes

1. ^ http://www.tn.gov.in/literature/thiruvalluvar/Thirukkural/kural.htm
2. ^ http://www.dlshq.org/saints/thiruvalluvar.htm
3. ^ http://www.tn.gov.in/literature/thiruvalluvar/thiruvalluvar.htm
4. ^ Caldwell, Robert. 1875. A comparative grammar of the Dravidian or South-Indian family of languages.
London: Trübner.

5. ^ Kanakasabhai (1997). The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Years Ago. Asian Education Service.
pp. 138. ISBN 8120601505.

6. ^ "Valluvar lived in Kanyakumari district". Yahoo! News. 26 April 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-
03-28. Retrieved 2007-08-22.

7. ^ Tamil Nadu seeks national status for 'Thirukkural'

[edit]References

 http://www.Thirukural.com Thirukural.com both in Tamil and English

 Thurston, Edgar & Kadambi Rangachari. 1909. Castes and Tribes of Southern India. vol VI. Madras:
Government Press. Page 82

 Dialogue and History Constructing South India,1795–1895, Eugene F.Irschick,UNIVERSITY OF

CALIFORNIA PRESS

 www.theologie.uni-hd.de/rm/online-artikel/bergunder-2004-contested-past.pdf Page 70

 Karl Graul, Reise in Ostindien (Leipzig 1855) vol. IV, p. 193, quoted in (Nehring 2000: 77).

 Tirukkural of Tiruvalluvar - English Translation

 http://www.indiastudychannel.com/resources/20874-Thiruvalluvar.aspx

Wikiquote has a collection of
quotations related
to:Tiruvalluvar

Categories: Tamil poets