Iraiyanar ( Tamil: இறையனார்), literally meaning "the Lord" and also a common name of Shiva, was a legendary poet of the Sangam period who is believed to have composed verse 2 of Kurunthogai. [1] He is believed to be the incarnation of Lord Shiva of the temple at Madurai, known as 'Aalavaai Sokkar' or 'Sokkanathar'. [1] Verse 3 of the Tiruvalluva Maalai, praising Valluvar, is also attributed to him. [2]
Legend
Iraiyanar is said to be the human incarnation of Lord Somasundarar at the temple at Madurai. [3] Iraiyanar appears in the Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam, where he confronts poet Nakkirar II.[ citation needed] He is also said to have given the work Iraiyanar Akapporul. [3] [4] Some claim that Iraiyanar was a mortal poet who lived during the Sangam era. [3]
Views on Valluvar and the Kural
Iraiyanar opines about Valluvar and the Kural text thus: [5]
The Cural which has proceeded from the mouth of Valluvar, the king of poets, will never lose its beauty by the lapse of time: it will be always in its bloom, shedding honey like the flower of the tree in Indra's paradise. [Emphasis in original]
See also
Citations
- ^ a b Kowmareeshwari 2012.
- ^ Vedanayagam 2017, pp. 44–45.
- ^ a b c Gopalan 1957, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Zvelebil 1973, pp. 112–113.
- ^ Robinson 2001, p. 24.
References
- Gopalan, P. V. (1957). புலவர் அகராதி [Dictionary of Poets] (in Tamil) (1 ed.). Chennai: M. Duraisami Mudaliyar and Company. pp. 30–31.
- Kowmareeshwari, S., ed. (August 2012). Kurunthogai, Paripaadal, Kalitthogai. Sanga Ilakkiyam (in Tamil). Vol. 2 (1 ed.). Chennai: Saradha Pathippagam.
- Robinson, Edward Jewitt (2001). Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. ISBN 9788120615878.
- Vedanayagam, Rama (2017). Tiruvalluva Maalai: Moolamum Eliya Urai Vilakkamum (in Tamil) (1 ed.). Chennai: Manimekalai Prasuram. pp. 44–45.
- Zvelebil, Kamil (1973). "The Earliest Account of the Tamil Academies". Indo-Iranian Journal. 15 (2). doi: 10.1007/BF00157289. S2CID 189777598.