Page:Tamil studies.djvu/216

Rh yazh, 17; Chakota-yazh, 16; and Sengottu-yazh, 7. Perhaps these were the instruments in use during the days of Ilango-adigal. And the Per or big 'yazh' which is supposed to have been in use in the days of Agastya had become extinct even before the third century A. D. It is said to have had one thousand strings,

But with the growing influence of the Jains and Brahmans, spirituality received more attention, much to the detriment of the physical side of his development, which was neglected and even condemned. Self-mortification and abstinence from pleasure were advocated and recommended as the high road to salvation. And the works on music, dancing and the drama written by ancient Tamils, such as பெருநாரை, பெருங்குருகு, பஞ்சபாரதீயம், தாளவகையொத்து, பஞ்சமரபு, இந்திரகாளியம், இசை நுணுக்கம், &c., (on music) and பரதம், முறுவல், சயந்தம், குண நூல், செயிற்றியம், கூத்தநூல், பரதசேனாபதீயம், மதிவாணர்நாடகத் தமிழ்நூல், &c. (on dramaturgy) were neglected and left to shift for themselves; and by the time of Adiyarkunallar about (1200 A.D.) most of them were lost. With them the Dravidian music and dances became extinct. No one can now say what those pans and dances were like. Their places were gradually taken up by the Indo-Aryan ragams and natyams.

However, these æsthetic arts were given a religi-