Probably the most popular belief might be that Kovalan went behind Madahavi and spent all money for her and when Kovalan burnt all the money he had , Madhavi broke up with him. But that’s not how things happen in Illango’s master epic. Kovalan goes behind Madhavi and spends all his wealth for her and expect sexual union and physical pleasure from her when ever he visits her. Madhavi wants a emotional bondage and just not physical pleasure from Kovalan. Kovalan gets frustrated with Madhavi after some time because Madhavi expects love but all Kovalan wanted was making love. Kovalan breaks off from Madhavi after a period of time when Madhavi doesn’t give herself in for a sexual union whenever he expected.
In Canto 7 Kaanalvari of Puhar Kandam, Illango brings the tension between Madhavi and Kovalan. Madhavi and Kovalan sit in the shores of the beach and sing songs. Kovalan to press his sexual urge, sings lusty sailor songs which are vulgar, whereas Madhavi sings songs of hapless girls who long for love.
I have selected two songs from this chapter to highlight this tension. One poem sung by Kovalan and other by Madhavi.
கரிய மலர் நெடுங் கண் காரிகைமுன் கடல்-தெய்வம்
காட்டி காட்டி,
அரிய சூள் பொய்த்தார் அறன் இலர் என்று, ஏழையம் யாங்கு
அறிகோம், ஐய?
விரி கதிர் வெண் மதியும் மீன் கணமும் ஆம் என்றே,
விளங்கும் வௌளைப்
புரி வளையும் முத்தும் கண்டு-ஆம்பல் பொதி அவிழ்க்கும்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
Good day, my lord!
How can we,small people,understand
why some unscrupulous gentlemen
so often lead our mistresses,
whose eyes are like dark flowers,
to the altar of the sea god, there
to lavish pledges never kept?
We’re from Puhar, where water lilies smile,
and open when you show them pearls,
or even bracelets of cheap nacre, which
they surely take to be the Moon
or some star pouring milky rays.
காதலர் ஆகி, கழிக் கானல், கையுறை கொண்டு,
எம் பின் வந்தார்
ஏதிலர்-தாம் ஆகி, யாம் இரப்ப, நிற்பதை யாங்கு
அறிகோம், ஐய?
மாதரார் கண்ணும், மதி நிழல் நீர் இணை கொண்டு
மலர்ந்த நீலப்
போதும், அறியாது-வண்டு ஊசலாடும்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
How can we know,my lord, who are
the men who follow us along the strand?
Their hands are heavy with their presents,
but they prove to be odd foreigners who
expect us to pay dearly for their gifts.
We’re from Puhar where demented bees mistake
the blue eyes of its girls for lotus blossoms
gazing along the moonlight’s path.
மோது முது திரையான் மொத்துண்டு, போந்து அசைந்த
முரல் வாய்ச் சங்கம்
மாதர் வரி மணல்மேல் வண்டல் உழுது அழிப்ப,
மாழ்கி, ஐய!
கோதை பரிந்து அசைய, மெல் விரலால் கொண்டு ஓச்சும்
குவளை மாலைப்
போது சிறங்கணிப்ப, போவார் கண் போகாப்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
We’re from Puhar where conchs from the sea,
bruised by the shameless waves,
are thrown upon the beach and crash
upon sand castles that our girls have built.
The Flowers fall out of their undone hair.
Angry, they tear the lilies from their wreaths
to beat the shells. And passers- by
at sight of all these flowers, take them for
alluring glances from unnumbered eyes.
Poet: Illango
Translated by Alian Danileou
This poem is sung by Kovalan in praise of Puhar. If you note the lines of poem , its about how gullible the girls of Puhar are. How easily they are cheated by their lovers. The first few lines tell about how men make so many promises to make love to the girl and then they run away. The poem also indicates the girls easily get fooled by the gifts given by the men and give themselves in for sexual union. The poem focuses more on the mistakes made by the gals by being naive and hence giving themselves to the men who want to have sexual union and run away.
தீம்-கதிர் வாள் முகத்தாள் செவ் வாய் மணி முறுவல்
ஒவ்வாவேனும்,
‘வாங்கும் நீர், முத்து ‘, முத்து ஒ என்று, வைகலும், மால்-மகன் போல்
வருதிர், ஐய!
வீங்கு ஓதம் தந்து, விளங்கு ஒளிய வெண் முத்தம்;
விரை சூழ் கானல்
பூங் கோதை கொண்டு; விலைஞர் போல் மீளும்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
Sir! Like the god of Love you come
and try each day to give us pearls.
Your pearls have not the brightness
of our dear lady’s spotless teeth
set between coral lips in her moon – white face.
We’re from Puhar where an ambitious sea
barters its brilliant pearls against our wreaths.
“தோழியிற் கூட்டம் கூடி, பின்பு வந்து வரைவல்
என்ற தலைவனுக்குத் தோழி கூறுதல்”
மறையின் மணந்தாரை வன் பரதர் பாக்கத்து
மடவார் செங் கை
இறை வளைகள் தூற்றுவதை ஏழையம் எங்ஙனம்-யாங்கு
அறிகோம்? ஐய!
நிறை மதியும் மீனும் என, அன்னம் நீள் புன்னை
அரும்பிப் பூத்த
பொறை மலி பூங் கொம்பு ஏற, வண்டு ஆம்பல் ஊதும்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
Gold bracelets on the shapely arms
of sturdy daughters of our fisher folk
show they are married, but in secret.
Naive, we fail to understand.
We’re from Puhar, where water lilies
hiding the bustling bees within their hearts,
open their petals when they see a swan,
perched on a blossoming punnai tree,
thinking it is the moon among the stars.
உண்டாரை வெல் நறா ஊண் ஒளியாப் பாக்கத்துள்,
உறை ஒன்று இன்றித்
தண்டா நோய் மாதர் தலைத் தருதி என்பது யாங்கு
அறிகோம்? ஐய!
வண்டால் திரை அழிப்ப, கையான் மணல் முகந்து,
மதிமேல் நீண்ட,
புண் தோய் வேல் நீர் மல்க, மாதர் கடல் தூர்க்கும்
புகாரே, எம் ஊர்.
In this our country, where the good wine
makes him who drinks it so drunk
he cannot hide his drunkenness,
how can we know why there’s no remedy
for that queer enlarging malady you cause our girls.
We’re from Puhar, where a male sea rapes
the sandy castles that we girls construct,
and eyes,as sharp as spears, on full- moon faces,
shed bitterest regrets too tardy tears.
We take up sand by handfuls, throwing it
against the impudent waves,trying to fill the sea.
Poet: Illango
Translated by Alian Danileou
This poem is sung by Madhavi. It has nearly the same lines used by Kovalan but has very new meaning to it. Unlike the first poem this poem tells the heart of a women in search of true love. The poem starts with same motif of men giving girls pearls , but here the heroine doesn’t value the gifts. The heroine or the young girls collect gift not because of what is being gifted, its rather because of who is gifting it. A girl gets a gift of pearl only from person she thinks it is apt.She lives in port where getting a pearl isn’t the biggest gift(Since their sea is abundant with pearls) so the girl gets the gift just because she loves the person who gives the gift and not because its a valuable gift.
The second stanza also serves as a reply to Kovalan’s lyrics. Kovalan sings that women are sort of greedy and get the gifts first and they are worried later for the price they have to pay for the gift. Madhavi sings that women when women get gift from a man, it means she is married to the man in her heart and she agrees for sexual union not for the gift but for the man whom she has considered her husband in her heart.Madhavi also gives beautiful explanation that women open up and give theirself to sexual union since they feel they have found their love of their life. The girl considers the man to be like a moon who brightens the dark night. But unfortunately they get fooled by swans who are as white as the moon but would fly away. The lines where Madhavi says’ The waterlilies which are capable hiding the bees in their heart’ indicate the typical psychology of a girl, who is capable of hiding all her feelings yet she gives herself to a man since she thinks he is like a moon in sky.
Another beutiful line from Madhavi is when she explains that when people drink every one knows that person is drunk meaning they know what they know the consequences of drinking, whereas women when they get into love dont know the pain of the love sickness. She ends with a befitting reply to Kovalan’s lines. Kovalan implies that young gals are stupid enough to build sand castles near the sea and get angry when waves destroy it. Madhavi sings that the young gals when they see their sand castle getting destroyed by the waves it is like their dreams getting destroyed. More than getting mad they have an unbearable disappointment which they let it down as painful tears. Without knowing what do when all their dreams have gone like a vapour , they just get mad and throw sand at the vast sea. Even today we hear dialogue likes ‘ un thalaiyila neeye manna vari potukitta’ in movies when typically parents find the girl has lost her virginity to a man.
Illango has brought out the difference in thought process of Kovalan and Madhavi through a series of poems. I wished I could post all the poems and contrast them but since this is my first attempt , I decided to stop with one set of poems.
Please post your comments on this attempt.
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