Page:The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Years Ago.djvu/216

Rh Chera king Vana-varmman alias Athan. Only two of his poems are now extant, viz. Tiru-murugaruppadai and Nedu-nal-vadai. In the former he praises Muruga, the god of war who had six faces and twelve arms, and who was worshipped at ParankKunru, Alaivai, Avinan-kudi, Erakam, and Palam-utir-cholai. In the latter poem the long winter night at Madura is described. The chill north wind blows through the groves of areca-palms. and down the broad streets of Madura Windows and doors are bolted and closed to keep out the cold air, and fires are lit in bed rooms. In the Pandya’s palace, the queen lies sleepless on her couch thinking of her lord who had gone with his army to fight with neighbouring king, and tears fill her eyes and trickle down her cheeks: while the Pandyan king encamped on hostile ground is also awake. He is not however thinking of his queen: but is busy visiting the wounded and issuing orders for their treatment and for the safety of the camp. Both the poems are well conceived and expressed in a polished style. Many stray stanzas uttered by him are found in the poetic collections known as Purananuru, Akananuru Kurunthokai and Narrinai.

The poems of Nakkirar are full of allusions to contemporary events and show that he was no ordinary bard who cared only to flatter and please his patrons; but was a fairly good scholar who strove to produce lasting memorials of his literary skill. It is from his verses that we know that Karikâl Chola settled the wandering tribes of Kurumbas ; that seven kings, whose names he mentions, were defeated by the Pandyan king NedunjCheliyan at A’1ankanam ; that the same Pandyan king invaded the Chera territory and went up to Muchiri (the Muziris of Ptolemy) on the western coast ; and that Palayan Maran defeated under the walls of Madura the large army with which Killi Valavan had invaded the Pandyan territory. He picks his words and uses the most appropriate expressions to convey his ideas, and his style is always dignified and elegant; but he tries to show off his learning and sometimes pushes his scholarship almost to the verge of pedantry. Besides the Tiru-Muru-kârrup-padai, nine small poems which are attributed to Nakkirar appear in the eleventh Book of the collection of Saiva hymns. The