Page:The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Years Ago.djvu/217

Rh language of these poems is, however, so modern that no critical student will hesitate to declare them to be forgeries. The legend regarding the origin of these poems is found in tle Halasya Mahatmya, a Sanscrit chronicle of the temple of Siva at Madura, the pious author of which, whc lived about the eleventh century A.D., appears to have had little or no knowledge of ancient Tamil literature. The poem states that during the reign of the Pandyan king Vankya Sekaran 43 Pandit from Kási (Benares) travelled southwards and settled at Madura under the patronage of the Pandya. His successor Vankiya-Chûdmani aliâs Champaka-Mâran was one day seated in the royal park, with his queen, and charmed by the fragrant smell of her tresses, wondered whether the fragrance was natural or acquired. In a gay mood he sent word to the poets of his court offering a parse of 1,000 gold coins to anyone who would guess his thought and solve his doubt. The poets who were not thought-readers were at a loss to know what they should do to satisfy their royal patron. A poor Brahmin who heard of this handsome offer thought it a good opportunity to enrich himself, and entering the temple of Siva and falling at the feet of the image of the god, prayed fervently that the god should help him to win the prize. Moved by his prayer the god gave him a palm leaf with a stanza written on it. The Brahmin received it with joy and hastened to the Poet’s hall and presented the verse. It was a gem of poetry: every one pronounced it beautiful in language and sentiment. It was taken to the king who read it with pleasure and ordered that the purse of gold be given to the Brahmin. He hurried back to the poet’s hall to receive the prize: but Nakkirar said that there was a fault in his verse, and that the prize ought not to be awarded to him. The Brahmin, sadly disappointed, retraced his steps to the temple of Siva and falling once more at the feet of Siva’s image implored the mercy of the god. Incensed at the presumption of Nakkirar in criticising his verse, the god assumed the form of a bard, and appearing in the assembly of poets, enquired which of them had dared to find fault in his verse. Nakkirar replied that it was himself and that the fault was in the statement that women’s tresses wore naturally fragrant, which he said was impossible. The god enquired whether the tresses of Padminis, the highest class of women, were not naturally