 A typical published original Tamil version of the work | |
| Author | Valluvar |
|---|---|
| Original title | திருக்குறள் |
| Working title | Kural |
| Translator | Seelist of translations |
| Language | Old Tamil |
| Series | Eighteen Lesser Texts |
| Subject | |
| Genre | Poetry |
| Set in | Probably Post-Sangam era (c. 500 CE or earlier) |
Publication date | 1812 (first known printed edition, older palm-leaf manuscripts exist)[3] |
| Publication place | India |
Published in English | 1794 |
Original text | திருக்குறள் at TamilWikisource |
| Translation | Tirukkuṟaḷ at Wikisource |
| Sangam literature | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eighteen Greater Texts | ||||
| ||||
| Related topics | ||||
| Eighteen Lesser Texts | ||||
| Bhakti Literature | ||||
TheTirukkuṟaḷ (Tamil:திருக்குறள்,lit. 'sacred verses'), or shortlytheKural (Tamil:குறள்), is a classic Tamil language text on commoner's morality consisting of 1,330 short couplets, orkurals, of seven words each.[4] The text is divided into three books with aphoristic teachings on virtue (aram), wealth (porul) and love (inbam), respectively.[1][5][6] It is widely acknowledged for its universality andsecular nature.[7][8] Its authorship is traditionally attributed toValluvar, also known in full as Thiruvalluvar. The text has been dated variously from 300 BCE to 5th century CE. The traditional accounts describe it as the last work of the thirdSangam, but linguistic analysis suggests a later date of 450 to 500 CE and that it was composed after the Sangam period.[9]
The Kural text is among the earliest systems of Indian epistemology and metaphysics. The work is traditionally praised with epithets and alternative titles, including "the Tamil Veda" and "the Divine Book."[10][11] Written on the ideas ofahimsa,[12][13][14][15][16] it emphasizesnon-violence andmoral vegetarianism as virtues for an individual.[17][18][19][20][21][a] In addition, it highlights virtues such as truthfulness, self-restraint, gratitude, hospitality, kindness, goodness of spouse, duty, giving, and so forth,[22] besides covering a wide range of social and political topics such as king, ministers, taxes, justice, forts, war, greatness of army and soldier's honor, death sentence for the wicked, agriculture, education, and abstinence from alcohol and intoxicants.[23][24][25] It also includes chapters on friendship, love, sexual unions, and domestic life.[22][26] The text effectively denounced previously-held misbeliefs that were common during theSangam era and permanently redefined the cultural values of theTamil land.[27]
The Kural has influenced scholars and leaders across the ethical, social, political, economic, religious, philosophical, and spiritual spheres over its history.[28] These includeIlango Adigal,Kambar,Leo Tolstoy,Mahatma Gandhi,Albert Schweitzer,Ramalinga Swamigal,V. O. Chidambaram Pillai,Karl Graul,George Uglow Pope,Alexander Piatigorsky, andYu Hsi. The work remains the most translated, the most cited, and the most citable of Tamil literary works.[29] The text has been translated into at least 57 Indian and non-Indian languages, making it one of themost translated ancient works. Ever since it came to print for the first time in 1812, the Kural text has never been out of print.[30] The Kural is considered a masterpiece and one of the most important texts of theTamil literature.[31] Its author is venerated for his selection of virtues found in the known literature and presenting them in a manner that is considered common and acceptable to all.[32] The Tamil people and the government ofTamil Nadu have long celebrated and upheld the text with reverence.[19]
The termTirukkuṟaḷ is a compound word made of two individual terms,tiru andkuṟaḷ.Tiru is an honorific Tamil term that corresponds to the Sanskrit termsri meaning "holy, sacred, excellent, honorable, and beautiful."[33] The termtiru has as many as 19 different meanings in Tamil.[34]Kuṟaḷ means something that is "short, concise, and abridged."[1] Etymologically,kuṟaḷ is the shortened form ofkuṟaḷ pāttu, which is derived fromkuruvenpāttu, one of the two Tamil poetic forms explained by theTolkappiyam, the other one beingneduvenpāttu.[35] According toMiron Winslow,kuṟaḷ is used as a literary term to indicate "a metrical line of 2 feet, or a distich or couplet of short lines, the first of 4 and the second of 3 feet."[36] Thus,Tirukkuṟaḷ literally comes to mean "sacred couplets."[1]
The work is highly cherished in the Tamil culture, as reflected by its twelve traditional titles:Tirukkuṟaḷ (the sacred kural),Uttaravedam (the ultimateVeda),Tiruvalluvar (eponymous with the author),Poyyamoli (the falseless word),Vayurai valttu (truthful praise),Teyvanul (the divine book),Potumarai (the common Veda),Valluva Maalai (garland made by the author),Tamil Manunool (Tamil ethical treatise),Tiruvalluva Payan (fruit of the author),Muppal (the three-fold path), andTamilmarai (the Tamil Veda).[10][37] The work is traditionally grouped under theEighteen Lesser Texts series of thelate Sangam works, known in Tamil asPatiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku.[35]
The Kural has been dated variously from 300 BCE to 5th century CE. According to traditional accounts, it was the last work of the thirdSangam and was subjected to a divine test, which it passed. The scholars who believe this tradition, such asSomasundara Bharathiar and M. Rajamanickam, date the text to as early as 300 BCE. HistorianK. K. Pillay assigned it to the early 1st century CE.[9] According toKamil Zvelebil, aCzech scholar of Tamil literature, these early dates such as 300 BCE to 1 BCE are unacceptable and not supported by evidence within the text. The diction and grammar of the Kural, and Valluvar's indebtedness to some earlier Sanskrit sources, suggest that he lived after the "early Tamil bardic poets," but before Tamil bhakti poets era.[10][38]
In 1959,S. Vaiyapuri Pillai assigned the work to around or after the 6th century CE. His proposal is based on the evidence that the Kural text contains a large proportion of Sanskrit loan words, shows awareness and indebtedness to some Sanskrit texts best dated to the first half of the 1st millennium CE, and the grammatical innovations in the language of the Kural literature.[38][b] Pillai published a list of 137 Sanskrit loan words in the Kural text.[39] Later scholars such asThomas Burrow andMurray Barnson Emeneau show that 35 of these are ofDravidian origin and not Sanskrit loan words. Zvelebil states that an additional few have uncertain etymology and that future studies may prove those to be Dravidian.[39] The 102 remaining loan words from Sanskrit are "not negligible", and some of the teachings in the Kural text, according to Zvelebil, are "undoubtedly" based on the then extant Sanskrit works such as theArthashastra andManusmriti (also called theManavadharmasastra).[39]
In his treatise of Tamil literary history published in 1974, Zvelebil states that the Kural text does not belong to theSangam period and dates it to somewhere between 450 and 500 CE.[9] His estimate is based on the language of the text, its allusions to the earlier works, and its borrowing from some Sanskrit treatises.[10] Zvelebil notes that the text features several grammatical innovations that are absent in the older Sangam literature. The text also features a higher number ofSanskritloan words compared with these older texts.[40] According to Zvelebil, besides being part of the ancient Tamil literary tradition, the author was also a part of the "one great Indian ethical, didactic tradition" as a few of the verses in the Kural text are "undoubtedly" translations of the verses of earlier Indian texts.[41]
In the 19th century and the early 20th century, European writers and missionaries variously dated the text and its author to between 400 and 1000 CE.[42] According to Blackburn, the "current scholarly consensus" dates the text and the author to approximately 500 CE.[42]
In 1921, in the face of incessant debate on the precise date, theTamil Nadu government officially declared 31 BCE as the year of Valluvar at a conference presided over byMaraimalai Adigal.[9][43][44][45][46] On 18 January 1935, theValluvar Year was added to the calendar.[47][c]
"The book without a name by an author without a name."
The Kural text was authored by Thiruvalluvar (lit. Saint Valluvar).[5] He is known by various other names including Poyyil Pulavar, Mudharpavalar, Deivappulavar, Nayanar, Devar, Nanmukanar, Mathanubangi, Sennabbodhakar, and Perunavalar.[49][50] There is negligible authentic information available about Valluvar's life.[51] For all practical purposes, neither his actual name nor the original title of his work can be determined with certainty.[52] The Kural text itself does not name its author.[53] The nameThiruvalluvar was first mentioned in the later eraShaiviteHindu text known as theTiruvalluva Maalai, also of unclear date.[5] However, the Tiruvalluva Maalai does not mention anything about Valluvar's birth, family, caste or background. No other authentic pre-colonial texts have been found to support any legends about the life of Valluvar. Starting around early 19th century, numerous inconsistent legends on Valluvar in various Indian languages and English were published.[54]
Various claims have been made regarding Valluvar's family background and occupation in the colonial era literature, all inferred from selective sections of his text or hagiographies published since the colonial era started in Tamil Nadu.[55] One traditional version claims that he was aParaiyar weaver.[56] Another theory is that he must have been from the agricultural caste ofVellalars because he extols agriculture in his work.[10] Another states he was an outcaste, born to a Pariah woman and aBrahmin father.[10][55][57]Mu Raghava Iyengar speculated that "valluva" in his name is a variation of "vallabha", the designation of a royal officer.[10]S. Vaiyapuri Pillai derived his name from "valluvan" (a Paraiyar caste of royal drummers) and theorized that he was "the chief of the proclaiming boys analogous to a trumpet-major of an army".[10][58] The traditional biographies not only are inconsistent, but also contain incredulous claims about the author of the Kural text. Along with various versions of his birth circumstances, many state he went to a mountain and met the legendaryAgastya and other sages.[59] There are also accounts claiming that, during his return journey, Valluvar sat under a tree whose shadow sat still over him and did not move the entire day, he killed a demon, and many more.[59] Scholars consider these and all associated aspects of these hagiographic stories to be fiction and ahistorical, a feature common to "international and Indian folklore". The alleged low birth, high birth and being a pariah in the traditional accounts are also doubtful.[60] Traditionally, Valluvar is believed to have married toVasuki[61] and had a friend and a disciple namedElelasingan.[62][63]
In a manner similar to speculations of the author's biography, there has been much speculation about his religion with no historical evidence. In determining Valluvar's religion, the crucial test to be applied according toM. S. Purnalingam Pillai is to analyze what religious philosophy he has not condemned,[64] adding that Valluvar has "not said a word against" theSaiva Siddhanta principles.[64] The Kural text is aphoristic and non-denominational in nature and can be selectively interpreted in many ways. This has led almost every major religious group in India, includingChristianity during theColonial era, to claim the work and its author as one of their own.[10] The 19th-century Christian missionaryGeorge Uglow Pope, for example, claimed that Valluvar must have lived in the 9th century CE, come in contact with Christian teachers such asPantaenus ofAlexandria, imbibed Christian ideas and peculiarities of Alexandrian teachers and then wrote the "wonderful Kurral" with an "echo of the 'Sermon of the Mount'."[52] This theory, however, is ahistorical and discredited.[65] According to Zvelebil, the ethics and ideas in Valluvar's work are notChristian ethics.[19][d] Albert Schweitzer hints that "the dating of the Kural has suffered, along with so many other literary and historical dates, philosophies and mythologies of India, a severe mauling at the hands of the Christian Missionaries, anxious to post-date all irrefutable examples of religious maturity to the Christian era."[66]
Valluvar is thought to have belonged to eitherJainism orHinduism.[19][26][67][68][69][70] This can be observed in his treatment of the concept ofahimsa ornon-violence, which is the principal concept of both the religions.[a] In the 1819 translation,Francis Whyte Ellis mentions that the Tamil community debates whether Valluvar was a Jain or Hindu.[71] According to Zvelebil, Valluvar's treatment of the chapters onmoral vegetarianism andnon-killing reflects the Jain precepts.[19][a] Certain epithets for God and ascetic values found in the text are found in Jainism, states Zvelebil. He theorizes that Valluvar was probably "a learned Jain with eclectic leanings", who was well acquainted with the earlier Tamil literature and also had knowledge of the Sanskrit texts.[51] According to A. Chakravarthy Nainar, the Jaina tradition associates the work withKunda Kunda Acharya, also known as Elachariyar in the Tamil region, the chief of the Southern Pataliputra Dravidian Sanghaat, who lived around the latter half of the first century BCE and the former half of the first century CE.[72] Nevertheless, earlyDigambara orŚvetāmbara Jaina texts do not mention Valluvar or the Kural text. The first claim of Valluvar as an authority appears in a 16th-century Jain text.[73]
"It's the author's innate nature to select the best virtues
found in all the known literature and present them
in a manner that is acceptable to all."
Valluvar's writings, according to scholars, also suggest that he might have belonged to Hinduism. Hindu teachers have mapped his teachings in the Kural literature to the teachings found in Hindu texts.[68][69] The three parts that the Kural is divided into, namely,aṟam (virtue),poruḷ (wealth) andinbam (love), aiming at attainingveedu (ultimate salvation), follow, respectively, the four foundations of Hinduism, namely,dharma,artha,kama andmoksha.[1][70] While the text extols the virtue of non-violence, it also dedicates many of 700poruḷ couplets to various aspects of statecraft and warfare in a manner similar to the Hindu textArthasastra.[67] For example, according to the text, an army has a duty to kill in battle, and a king must execute criminals for justice.[75][e] Valluvar's mentioning of GodVishnu in couplets 610 and 1103 andGoddess Lakshmi in couplets 167, 408, 519, 565, 568, 616, and 617 suggests theVaishnavite beliefs of the author.[76][77] P. R. Natarajan lists at least 24 different usage of Hindu origin in 29 different couplets across the Kural text.[77] According to Purnalingam Pillai, who is known for his critique ofBrahminism, a rational analysis of the Kural text suggests that Valluvar was a Hindu, and not a Jain.[78]Matthieu Ricard believes Valluvar belonged to the Shaivite tradition of South India.[79] According to Thomas Manninezhath – a theology scholar who grew up in South India, theTirukkuṟaḷ is believed by the natives to reflectAdvaita Vedanta philosophy and teaches an "Advaitic way of life".[80] Similarly,J. J. Glazov, a Tamil literature scholar and the translator of the Kural text into theRussian language, sees "Thiruvalluvar as a Hindu by faith", according to a review by Kamil Zvelebil.[81]
Notwithstanding these debates, Valluvar is praised by scholars for his innate nature to select the virtues found in all the known works and present them in a manner that is considered common and acceptable to everyone.[32] The author is remembered and cherished for his universal secular values,[82] and his treatise has been calledUlaga Podhu Marai (the universal scripture).[83][84][85][86]
The Kural is structured into 133 chapters, each containing 10 couplets (or kurals), for a total of 1,330 couplets.[87][f] All the couplets are inkural venbametre, and all the 133 chapters have an ethical theme and are grouped into three parts, or "books":[87][88]
"Virtue will confer heaven and wealth; what greater source of happiness can man possess?"
The book onaṟam (virtue) contains 380 verses, that ofporuḷ (wealth) has 700 and that ofinbam orkāmam (love) has 250. Eachkural or couplet contains exactly seven words, known ascirs, with fourcirs on the first line and three on the second, following thekuralmetre. Acir is a single or a combination of more than one Tamil word. For example, the termTirukkuṟaḷ is acir formed by combining the two wordstiru andkuṟaḷ.[87] The Kural text has a total of 9310cirs made of 12,000 Tamil words, of which about 50 words are from Sanskrit and the remaining are Tamil original words.[90] A manual count has shown that there are in total 42,194 letters in the entire work, with the shortest ones (kurals 833 and 1304) containing 23 letters and the longest ones (kurals 957 and 1246) containing 39 letters each.[91] Among the 133 chapters, the fifth chapter is the longest with 339 letters and the 124th chapter is the shortest with 280 letters.[92]
Of the 1,330 couplets in the text, 40 couplets relate to god, rain, ascetics, and virtue; 340 on fundamental everyday virtues of an individual; 250 on royalty; 100 on ministers of state; 220 on essential requirements of administration; 130 on social morality, both positive and negative; and 250 on human love and passion.[26][93]
Along with theBhagavad Gita, the Kural is one of the earliest systems of Indianepistemology andmetaphysics.[94] The work largely reflects the first three of the four ancient Indian aims in life, known aspurushaarthas, viz., virtue (dharma), wealth (artha) and love (kama).[1][8][70][95][96][97] The fourth aim, namely, salvation (moksha) has been omitted from being dealt with as the fourth book since it does not lend itself to didactic treatment,[98] but is implicit in the last five chapters of Book I.[99][g] The components ofaṟam,poruḷ andinbam encompasses both theagam andpuram genres of the Tamil literary tradition as explained in the Tolkappiyam.[100] According to Sharma,dharma (aṟam) refers to ethical values for the holistic pursuit of life,artha (poruḷ) refers to wealth obtained in ethical manner guided bydharma, andkāma (Inbam) refers to pleasure and fulfilment of one's desires, also guided bydharma.[101] The corresponding goals ofporuḷ andinbam are desirable, yet both need to be regulated byaṟam, according to J. Arunadevi.[102] On the same lines, Amaladass concludes that the Kural expresses that dharma and artha should not be separated from one another.[103] According to Indian philosophical tradition, one must remain unattached to wealth and possessions, which can either be transcended or sought with detachment and awareness, and pleasure needs to be fulfilled consciously and without harming anyone.[101] The Indian tradition also holds that there exists an inherent tension betweenartha andkama.[101] Thus, wealth and pleasure must be pursued with an "action with renunciation" (the doctrine ofNishkama Karma), that is, one must act without craving in order to resolve this tension.[101][104] Accordingly, Valluvar insists that all worldly attachments be renounced gradually and in right time.[104][h] The last five chapters of Book I are based on this doctrine.[100]
The content ofTirukkuṟaḷ, according to Zvelebil:[22]
The Kural text is the work of a single author because it has a consistent "language, formal structure and content-structure", states Zvelebil.[105] Neither is the Kural an anthology nor is there any later additions to the text.[105] The division into three parts (muppāl) is probably the author's work. However, the subdivisions beyond these three, known asiyals, as found in some surviving manuscripts and commentaries, are likely later additions because there are variations between these subtitles found in manuscripts and those in historical commentaries.[106][107]
Starting from the medieval era, commentators have multifariously divided the Kural text into differentiyal sub-divisions, grouping the Kural chapters diversely under them.[108] The idea of subdividing the Tirukkural intoiyal sub-divisions was first put forth by aTiruvalluva Maalai verse attributed toNanpalur Sirumedhaviyar.[109][110] The medieval commentators have variously grouped the chapters of Book I into three and fouriyals, grouping the original chapters diversely under these divisions and thus changing the order of the chapters widely;[107][111][112] while Parimelalhagar divided it into threeiyals, others divided it into four,[113] with some 20th-century commentators going up to six.[111] Book II has been variously subdivided between three and sixiyals.[111][114][115] The chapters of Book III have been variously grouped between two and fiveiyals.[111][113][116] For example, the following subdivisions oriyals are found inParimelalhagar's version, which greatly varies from that ofManakkudavar:[117]
Modern scholars and publishers chiefly follow Parimelalhagar's model for couplet numbering, chapter ordering, and grouping the chapters intoiyals.[118]
Such subdivisions are likely later additions, but the couplets themselves have been preserved in the original form and there is no evidence of later revisions or insertions into the couplets.[105][117] Thus, in spite of these later subdivisions by the medieval commentators, both the domestic and ascetic virtues in Book I are addressed to the householder or commoner.[119] AsYu Hsi puts it, "Valluvar speaks to the duties of the commoner acting in different capacities as son, father, husband, friend, citizen, and so forth."[120] According to A. Gopalakrishnan, ascetic virtues in the Kural does not mean renunciation of household life or pursuing of the conventional ascetic life, but only refers to giving up immoderate desires and having self-control that is expected of every individual.[119] According to Joanne Punzo Waghorne, professor of religion and South Asian studies at theSyracuse University, the Kural is "a homily on righteous living for the householder."[61]
Like the three-part division, and unlike theiyal subdivisions, the grouping of the couplets into chapters is the author's.[121] Every topic that Valluvar handles in his work are presented in ten couplets forming a chapter, and the chapter is usually named using a keyword found in the couplets in it.[121] Exceptions to this convention are found in all the three books of the Kural text as in Chapter 1 in the Book of Aram, Chapter 78 in the Book of Porul, and Chapter 117 in the Book of Inbam, where the words used in title of the chapters are not found anywhere in the chapter's couplets.[122] Here again, the titles of all the chapters of the Kural text are given by Valluvar himself.[122] According to S. N. Kandasamy, the naming of the first chapter of the Kural text is in accord with the conventions used in theTolkappiyam.[123]
According to Zvelebil, the content of the Kural text is "undoubtedly patterned" and "very carefully structured."[124] There are no structural gaps in the text, with every couplet indispensable for the structured whole.[106] There are two distinct meanings for every couplet, namely, a structural one and a proverbial one.[106] In their isolated form, that is, when removed from the context of the 10-couplet chapter, the couplets lose their structural meaning but retain the "wise saying, moral maxim" sense.[106] In isolation, a couplet is "a perfect form, possessing, in varying degree, the prosodic and rhetoric qualities of gnomic poetry."[106] Within the chapter-structure, the couplets acquire their structural meaning and reveal the more complete teaching of the author.[106] This, Zvelebil states, is the higher pattern in the Kural text, and finally, in relation to the entire work, they acquire perfection in the totality of their structure.[106] In terms of structural flow, the text journeys the reader from "the imperfect, incomplete" state of man implicit in the early chapters to the "physically, morally, intellectually and emotionally perfect" state of man living as a husband and citizen, states Zvelebil.[125] In poetic terms, it fuses verse and aphoristic form in diction in a "pithy, vigorous, forceful and terse" manner. Zvelebil calls it an ethics text that expounds a universal, moral and practical approach to life. According to Mahadevan, Valluvar is more considerate about the substance than the linguistic appeal of his writing throughout the work.[126]
The Kural text is marked bypragmatic idealism,[8][127] focused on "man in the totality of his relationships".[128] Despite being a classic, the work has little scope for any poetic excellence.[129] According to Zvelebil, the text does not feature "true and great poetry" throughout the work, except, notably, in thethird book, which deals with love and pleasure.[130] This emphasis on substance rather than poetry, according to scholars, suggests that Valluvar's main aim was not to produce a work of art, but rather an instructive text focused on wisdom, justice, and ethics.[130]
The Kural text begins with an invocation of God and then praises the rain for being the vitalizer of all life forms on earth.[131][132] It proceeds to describe the qualities of a righteous person, before concluding the introduction by emphasizing the value ofaṟam or virtue.[131][133] It continues to treataṟam in every action in life, supplementing it with a chapter on predestination.[98] Valluvar extols rain next only to God for it provides food and serves as the basis of a stable economic life by aiding in agriculture, which the author asserts as the most important economic activity later in Book II of the Kural text.[131][134]
"The greatest virtue of all is non-killing; truthfulness cometh only next."
The three books of the Kural baseaṟam ordharma (virtue) as their cornerstone,[136][137] resulting in the work being collectively referred to simply asAṟam.[121][138][139][140] Valluvar holds thataṟam is common for all, irrespective of whether the person is a bearer ofpalanquin or the rider in it.[141][142] According toAlbert Schweitzer, the idea that good must be done for its own sake comes from various couplets across the Kural text.[143] In his 1999 work, JapaneseIndologistTakanobu Takahashi noted that Valluvar dealt with virtues in terms of good rather than in terms of caste-based duties and when he discussed politics he addressed simply a man rather than a king.[144] The text is a comprehensive pragmatic work that presents philosophy in the first part, political science in the second and poetics in the third.[145][146] Of the three books of the Kural literature, the second one on politics and kingdom (poruḷ) is about twice the size of the first, and three times that of the third.[147] In the 700 couplets onporuḷ (53 percent of the text), Valluvar mostly discusses statecraft and warfare.[148] While otherSangam texts approved of, and even glorified,[149] the four immoral deeds ofmeat-eating,alcohol consumption,polygamy, andprostitution, the Kural literature strongly condemns these as crimes,[150][151] reportedly for the first time in the history of theTamil land.[27][152][153] In addition to these, the Kural also strongly proscribes gambling.[154]
The Kural is based on the doctrine ofahimsa.[12][13][14][15][16] According to Schweitzer, the Kural "stands for the commandment not to kill and not to damage."[143] Accordingly, Valluvar dictates the householder to renounce the eating of meat "in order that he may become a man of grace."[155] While theBible and otherAbrahamic texts condemns only the taking away of human life, the Kural is cited for unequivocally and exclusively condemning the "literal taking away of life,"[65] regardless of whether it is human or animal.[65][156][157] The greatest of personal virtues according to the Kural text isnon-killing, followed byveracity,[158][159][160] and the two greatest sins that Valluvar feels very strongly are ingratitude andmeat-eating.[20][159][161][i] According to J. M. Nallaswamy Pillai, the Kural differs from every other work on morality in that it follows ethics, surprisingly a divine one, even in its Book of Love.[162] In the words ofGopalkrishna Gandhi, Valluvar maintains his views on personal morality even in the Book of Love, where one can normally expect greater poetic leniency, by describing the hero as "a one-woman man" without concubines.[163] In a social and political context, the Kural text glorifies valour and victory during war and recommends a death sentence for the wicked only as a means of justice.[18][164][165]
According to Kaushik Roy, the Kural text in substance is a classic on realism and pragmatism, and it is not a mystic, purely philosophical document.[148] Valluvar presents his theory of state using six elements: army (patai), subjects (kuti), treasure (kul), ministers (amaiccu), allies (natpu), and forts (aran).[148] Valluvar also recommends forts and other infrastructure, supplies and food storage in preparation for siege.[148][166] A king and his army must always be ready for war, and should launch a violent offensive, at the right place and right time, when the situation so demands and particularly against morally weak and corrupt kingdoms. A good and strong kingdom must be protected with forts made of thick, high and impenetrable walls. The text recommends a hierarchical military organization staffed with fearless soldiers who are willing to die in war,[167] drawing from the Hindu concepts of non-mystic realism and readiness for war.[168]
"The sceptre of the king is the firm support of the Vedas of the Brahmin, and of all virtues therein described."
The Kural text does not recommend democracy; rather it accepts a royalty with ministers bound to a code of ethics and a system of justice.[171] The king in the text, states K. V. Nagarajan, is assigned the "role of producing, acquiring, conserving, and dispensing wealth".[148][171] The king's duty is to provide a just rule, be impartial and have courage in protecting his subjects and in meting out justice and punishment. The text supports death penalty for the wicked in the book ofporuḷ, but does so only after emphasizing non-killing as every individual's personal virtue in the book ofaṟam.[171] The Kural cautions against tyranny, appeasement and oppression, with the suggestion that such royal behavior causes natural disasters, depletes the state's wealth and ultimately results in the loss of power and prosperity.[172] In the sphere of business, a study employinghermeneutics concludes that the Kural advocates a consciousness and spirit-centered approach to the subject of business ethics on the basis of eternal values and moral principles that should govern the conduct of business leaders.[173]
Valluvar remained a generalist rather than a specialist in any particular field.[86] He never indulged in specifics but always stressed on the basic principles of morality.[86] This can be seen across the Kural text: while Valluvar talks about worshiping God, he refrains from mentioning the way of worshiping; he refers to God as an "ultimate reality" without calling him by any name; he talks about land, village, country, kingdom, and king but never refers them by any name; though he mentions about the value of reading and reciting scriptures, he never names them; he talks about the values of charity without laying down the rules for it; though he repeatedly emphasizes about the importance of learning, he never says what is to be learnt; he recommends taxation in governance but does not suggest any proportion of collection.[86]
Scholars claim that Valluvar seldom shows any concern as to whatsimiles andsuperlatives he used earlier while writing later chapters, purposely allowing for some repetitions and apparent contradictions in ideas one can find in the Kural text.[175] Despite knowing its seemingly contradictory nature from a purist point of view, the author is said to employ this method to emphasise the importance of the given code of ethic.[175][176] Following are some of the instances where Valluvar is quoted as employing pseudo-contradictions to expound the virtues.[93]
The ethical connections between these verses are widely elucidated ever since the medieval commentaries. For example, Parimelalhagar elucidates the ethical connections between couplets 380 and 620, 481 and 1028, 373 and 396, and 383 and 672 in his commentary.[186]
The Kural is one of the most reviewed of all works inTamil literature, and almost every notable scholar of Tamil has writtenexegesis or commentaries (explanation in prose or verse), known in Tamil asurai, on it.[187][j] Some of the Tamil literature that was composed after the Kural quote or borrow its couplets in their own texts.[188] According to Aravindan, these texts may be considered as the earliest commentaries to the Kural text.[187]
Dedicated commentaries on the Kural text began to appear about and after the 10th century CE. There were at least ten medieval commentaries of which only six have survived into the modern era. Theten medieval commentators includeManakkudavar,Dharumar,Dhamatthar,Nacchar,Paridhiyar,Thirumalaiyar,Mallar,Pari Perumal,Kaalingar, andParimelalhagar, all of whom lived between the 10th and the 13th centuries CE. Of these, only the works of Manakkudavar, Paridhi, Kaalingar, Pari Perumal, and Parimelalhagar are available today. The works of Dharumar, Dhaamatthar, and Nacchar are only partially available. The commentaries by Thirumalaiyar and Mallar are lost completely. The best known among these are the commentaries by Parimelalhagar, Kaalingar, and Manakkudavar.[26][187][189] Among the ten medieval commentaries, scholars have found spelling, homophonic, and other minor textual variations in a total of 900 couplets, including 217 couplets in Book I, 487 couplets in Book II, and 196 couplets in Book III.[190]
"Valluvar is a cunning technician, who, by prodigious self-restraint and artistic vigilance, super-charges his words with meaning and achieves an incredible terseness and an irreducible density. His commentators have, therefore, to squeeze every word and persuade it to yield its last drop of meaning."
The best known and influential historic commentary on the Kural text is theParimelalhakiyar virutti. It was written byParimelalhagar – aVaishnava Brahmin, likely based inKanchipuram, who is the last of the ten medieval commentators and who lived about or before 1272 CE.[192] Along with the Kural text, this commentary has been widely published and is in itself a Tamil classic.[193] Parimelalhagar's commentary has survived over the centuries in many folk and scholarly versions. A more scholarly version of this commentary was published by Krisnamachariyar in 1965.[192] According to Norman Cutler, Parimelalhagar's commentary interprets and maneuvers the Kural text within his own context, grounded in the concepts and theological premises of Hinduism. His commentary closely follows the Kural's teachings, while reflecting both the cultural values and textual values of the 13th- and 14th-century Tamil Nadu. Valluvar's text can be interpreted and maneuvered in other ways, states Cutler.[193]
Besides the ten medieval commentaries, there are at least three more commentaries written by unknown medieval authors.[194] One of them was published under the title "Palhaiya Urai" (meaning ancient commentary), while the second one was based on Paridhiyar's commentary.[194] The third one was published in 1991 under the title "Jaina Urai" (meaning Jaina commentary) bySaraswathi Mahal Library inThanjavur.[195] Following these medieval commentaries, there are at least 21venpa commentaries to the Kural, including Somesar Mudumoli Venba, Murugesar Muduneri Venba, Sivasiva Venba, Irangesa Venba, Vadamalai Venba, Dhinakara Venba, and Jinendra Venba, all of which are considered commentaries in verse form.[196][197][198] The 16th-century commentary byThirumeni Rathna Kavirayar,[199] and the 19th-century commentaries byRamanuja Kavirayar[199] andThanigai Saravanaperumalaiyar[200] are some of the well-known scholarly commentaries on the Kural text before the 20th century.
Several modern commentaries started appearing in the 19th and 20th centuries. Of these, the commentaries byKaviraja Pandithar andU. V. Swaminatha Iyer are considered classic by modern scholars.[3] Some of the commentaries of the 20th century include those byK. Vadivelu Chettiar,[201] Krishnampet K. Kuppusamy Mudaliar,[202]Iyothee Thass,V. O. Chidambaram Pillai,Thiru Vi Ka,Bharathidasan,M. Varadarajan,Namakkal Kavignar,Thirukkuralar V. Munusamy,Devaneya Pavanar,M. Karunanithi, andSolomon Pappaiah, besides several hundred others. The commentary by M. Varadarajan entitledTirukkural Thelivurai (lit. Lucid commentary of the Kural), first published in 1949, remains the most published modern commentary, with more than 200 editions by the same publisher.[203]
According to K. Mohanraj, as of 2013[update], there were at least 497 Tamil language commentaries written by 382 scholars beginning with Manakkudavar from the Medieval era. Of these at least 277 scholars have written commentaries for the entire work.[204]
The Kural has been the most frequently translated ancient Tamil text. By 1975, its translations in at least 20 major languages had been published:[206]
The text was likely translated into Indian languages by Indian scholars over the centuries, but the palm leaf manuscripts of such translations have been rare. For example,S. R. Ranganathan, a librarian ofUniversity of Madras during theBritish rule, discovered a Malayalam translation copied in year 777 of the Malayalam calendar, a manuscript that Zvelebil dates to late 16th century.[207]
The text was translated into several European languages during the colonial era, particularly by theChristian missionaries.[208] The first European language translation was made inLatin byConstantius Joseph Beschi and was published in 1730. However, he translated only the first two books, viz., virtue and wealth, leaving out the book on love because its erotic and sexual nature was deemed by him to be inappropriate for a Christian missionary. The firstFrench translation was brought about by an unknown author by about 1767 that went unnoticed. The first available French version was byE. S. Ariel in 1848. Again, he did not translate the whole work but only parts of it. The firstGerman translation was made byKarl Graul, who published it in 1856 both atLondon andLeipzig.[205][209] Graul additionally translated the work into Latin in 1856.[29]
The first, and incomplete, English translations were made byN. E. Kindersley in 1794 and then byFrancis Whyte Ellis in 1812. While Kindersley translated a selection of the Kural text, Ellis translated 120 couplets in all—69 of them in verse and 51 in prose.[210][211]E. J. Robinson's translations of part of the Kural into English were published in 1873 in his bookThe Tamil Wisdom and its 1885 expanded edition titledThe Tales and Poems of South India, ultimately translating the first two books of the Kural text.[212][213]W. H. Drew translated the first two books of the Kural text in prose in 1840 and 1852, respectively. It contained the original Tamil text of the Kural, Parimelalhagar's commentary,Ramanuja Kavirayar's amplification of the commentary and Drew's English prose translation. However, Drew translated only 630 couplets, and the remaining were translated byJohn Lazarus, a native missionary, providing the first complete translation in English made by two translators. Like Beschi, Drew did not translate the third book on love.[214] The first complete English translation of the Kural by a single author was the one by the Christian missionaryGeorge Uglow Pope in 1886, which introduced the complete Kural to the western world.[215]
The translations of the Kural in Southeast Asian and East Asian languages were published in the 20th century. A few of these relied on re-translating the earlier English translations of the work.[207]
By the end of the 20th century, there were about 24 translations of the Kural in English alone, by both native and non-native scholars, including those byV. V. S. Aiyar,K. M. Balasubramaniam,Shuddhananda Bharati,A. Chakravarti,M. S. Purnalingam Pillai,C. Rajagopalachari,P. S. Sundaram,V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar,G. Vanmikanathan,Kasturi Srinivasan,S. N. Sriramadesikan, andK. R. Srinivasa Iyengar.[216] The work has also been translated intoVaagri Booli, the language of theNarikuravas, a tribal community in Tamil Nadu, by Kittu Sironmani.[217] In October 2021, theCentral Institute of Classical Tamil announced its translating the Kural text into 102 world languages.[218]
As of 2025, the Kural has been translated into 57 languages, with a total of 350 individual translations, of which 143 are in English.[219]
With a highly compressed prosodic form, the Kural text employs the intricately complexKural venbametre, known for its eminent suitability to gnomic poetry.[220] This form, which Zvelebil calls "a marvel of brevity and condensation," is closely connected with the structural properties of the Tamil language and has historically presented extreme difficulties to its translators.[221] Talking about translating the Kural into other languages,Herbert Arthur Popley observes, "it is impossible in any translation to do justice to the beauty and force of the original."[222] After translating a good portion of the Kural text, Karl Graul stated, "No translation can convey any idea of its charming effect. It is truly an apple of gold in a net-work of silver."[29] Zvelebil claims that it is impossible to truly appreciate the maxims found in the Kural couplets through a translation but rather that the Kural has to be read and understood in its original Tamil form.[40]
Besides these inherent difficulties in translating the Kural, some scholars have attempted to either read their own ideas into the Kural couplets or deliberately misinterpret the message to make it conform to their preconceived notions. The translations by the Christian missionaries since the colonial era are often criticized for misinterpreting the text in order to conform it to Christian principles and beliefs. The Latin translation by the Christian missionaryFather Beschi, for instance, contains several such mistranslations. According to V. Ramasamy, "Beschi is purposely distorting the message of the original when he rendersபிறவாழி as 'the sea of miserable life' and the phraseபிறவிப்பெருங்கடல் as 'sea of this birth' which has been translated by others as 'the sea of many births'. Beschi means thus 'those who swim the vast sea of miseries'. The concept of rebirth or many births for the same soul is contrary to Christian principle and belief."[223] In August 2022, the governor of Tamil Nadu,R. N. Ravi, criticizedAnglican Christian missionary G. U. Pope for "translating with the colonial objective to 'trivialise' the spiritual wisdom of India," resulting in a "de-spiritualised version" of the Kural text.[224]
According to Norman Cutler, both in the past and in the contemporary era, the Kural has been reinterpreted and fit to reflect the textual values in the text as well as the cultural values of the author(s).[225] About 1300 CE, the Tamil scholar Parimelalhagar interpreted the text inBrahmanical premises and terms.[225] Just like Christian missionaries during the colonial era cast the work in their own Christian premises, phrases and concepts, someDravidianists of the contemporary era reinterpret and cast the work to further their own goals and socio-political values. This has produced highly divergent interpretations of the original.[225][226]
TheTirukkuṟaḷ remained largely unknown outside India for over a millennium. As was the practice across the ancient Indian subcontinent, in addition topalm-leaf manuscripts, the Kural literature had been passed on asword of mouth from parents to their children and from preceptors to their students for generations within the Tamil-speaking regions ofSouth India.[227] According to Sanjeevi, the first translation of the work appeared inMalayalam (Kerala) in 1595.[228][229][k]
The first paper print of theTirukkuṟaḷ is traceable to 1812, credited to the efforts of Ñānapirakācar who used wooden blocks embossed from palm-leaf scripts to produce copies of theTirukkuṟaḷ along with those ofNalatiyar.[230] It was only in 1835 that Indians were permitted to establish printing press. The Kural was the first book to be published in Tamil,[231] followed by theNaladiyar.[232] It is said that whenFrancis Whyte Ellis, a British civil servant in theMadras Presidency and a scholar of Tamil and Sanskrit who had established a Tamilsangam (academy) inMadras in 1825, asked Tamil enthusiasts to "bring to him ancient Tamil manuscripts for publication,"[233] Kandappan, the butler of George Harrington, a European civil servant possibly in theMadurai district, and the grandfather ofIyothee Thass, handed in handwritten palm-leaf manuscripts of the Kural text as well as theTiruvalluva Maalai and theNaladiyar, which he found between 1825 and 1831 in a pile of leaves used for cooking. The books were finally printed in 1831 by Ellis with the help of his manager Muthusamy Pillai and Tamil scholar Tandavaraya Mudaliar.[233] Subsequent editions of theTirukkuṟaḷ appeared in 1833, 1838, 1840, and 1842.[30] Soon many commentaries followed, including those by Mahalinga Iyer, who published only the first 24 chapters.[234] The Kural has been continuously in print ever since.[30] By 1925, the Kural literature had already appeared in more than 65 editions[30] and by the turn of the 21st century, it had crossed 500 editions.[235]
The first critical edition of theTirukkaral based on manuscripts discovered in Hindu monasteries and private collections was published in 1861 byArumuka Navalar – theJaffna-born Tamil scholar andShaivism activist.[236][237] Navalar, states Zvelebil, was "probably the greatest and most influential among the forerunners" in studying numerous versions and bringing out an edited split-sandhi version for the scholarship of the Kurral and many other historic Tamil texts in the 19th century.[237]
Parimelalhagar's commentary on theTirukkuṟaḷ was published for the first time in 1840 and became the most widely published commentary ever since.[238] In 1850, the Kural was published with commentaries byVedagiri Mudaliar, who published a revised version later in 1853.[234] This is the first time that the entire Kural text was published with commentaries.[234] In 1917, Manakkudavar's commentary for thefirst book of the Kural text was published byV. O. Chidambaram Pillai.[111][239] Manakkudavar commentary for the entire Kural text was first published in 1925 byK. Ponnusami Nadar.[240] As of 2013, Perimelalhagar's commentary appeared in more than 200 editions by as many as 30 publishers.[203]
Since the 1970s, the Kural text has been transliterated into ancient Tamil scripts such as theTamil-Brahmi script,Pallava script,Vatteluttu script and others by Gift Siromoney of theInternational Institute of Tamil Studies at theMadras Christian College.[241][242]
The Kural text is a part of the ancient Tamil literary tradition, yet it is also a part of the "one great Indian ethical, didactic tradition", as a few of his verses are "undoubtedly" translations of the verses in Sanskrit classics.[41] The themes and ideas inTirukkuṟaḷ – sometimes with close similarities and sometimes with significant differences – are also found in Manu'sManusmriti,Kautilya'sArthashastra, Kamandaka'sNitisara, andVatsyayana'sKamasutra.[1] Some of the teachings in theTirukkuṟaḷ, states Zvelebil, are "undoubtedly" based on the then extant Sanskrit works such as the more ancientArthashastra andManusmriti.[39]
According to Zvelebil, theTirukkuṟaḷ borrows "a great number of lines" and phrases from earlier Tamil texts. For example, phrases found inKuruntokai (lit. "The Collection of Short [Poems]") and many lines inNarrinai (lit. "The Excellent Love Settings") which starts with an invocation toVishnu, appear in the laterTirukkuṟaḷ.[243] Authors who came after the composition of theTirukkuṟaḷ similarly extensively quoted and borrowed from theTirukkuṟaḷ. For example, the Prabandhas such as theTiruvalluvamalai probably from the 10th century CE are anthologies onTirukkuṟaḷ, and these extensively quote and embed it verses written in meters ascribed to gods, goddesses, and revered Tamil scholars.[244] Similarly, the love storyPerunkatai (lit. "The Great Story") probably composed in the 9th century quotes from theTirukkuṟaḷ and embeds similar teachings and morals.[245] Verse 22.59–61 of theManimekalai – a Buddhist-princess and later nun based love story epic, likely written about the 6th century CE, also quotes theTirukkuṟaḷ. This Buddhist epic ridicules Jainism while embedding morals and ideals similar to those in the Kural.[246]
TheTirukkuṟaḷ teachings are similar to those found inArthasastra but differ in some important aspects. In Valluvar's theory of state, unlike Kautilya, the army (patai) is the most important element. Valluvar recommends that a well kept and well-trained army (patai) led by an able commander and ready to go to war is necessary for a state.[148]
According to Hajela, thePorul of the Kural text is based on morality and benevolence as its cornerstones.[247] TheTirukkuṟaḷ teaches that the ministers and people who work in public office should lead an ethical and moral life.[145] Unlike theManusmriti, the Kural does not give women a lowly and dependent position but are rather idealised.[143] TheTirukkuṟaḷ also does not give importance to castes or any dynasty of rulers and ministers. The text states that one should call anyone with virtue and kindness aBrahmin.[248]
Scholars compare the teachings in theTirukkuṟaḷ with those in other ancient thoughts such as the Confucian sayings inLun Yu,Hitopadesa,Panchatantra,Manusmriti,Tirumandiram,Book of Proverbs in the Bible, sayings of theBuddha inDhammapada, and the ethical works of Persian origin such asGulistan andBustan, in addition to the holy books of various religions.[249]
The Kural text and theConfucian sayings recorded in the classicAnalects of Chinese (calledLun Yu, meaning "Sacred Sayings") share some similarities. Both Valluvar andConfucius focused on the behaviors and moral conducts of a common person. Similar to Valluvar, Confucius advocated legal justice embracing human principles, courtesy, andfilial piety, besides the virtues ofbenevolence,righteousness,loyalty andtrustworthiness as foundations of life.[250] While ahimsa or non-violence remains the fundamental virtue of the Valluvarean tradition,Zen remains the central theme in Confucian tradition.[16][251] Incidentally, Valluvar differed from Confucius in two respects. Firstly, unlike Confucius, Valluvar was also a poet. Secondly, Confucius did not deal with the subject ofconjugal love, for which Valluvar devoted an entire division in his work.[252] Child-rearing is central to the Confucian thought of procreation of humanity and the benevolence of society. The Lun Yu says, "Therefore an enlightened ruler will regulate his people's livelihood so as to ensure that, above they have enough to serve their parents and below they have enough to support their wives and children."[253][l]
The Kural text has historically received highly esteemed reception from virtually every section of the society. Many post-Sangam and medieval poets have sung in praise of the Kural text and its author.Avvaiyar praised Valluvar as the one who pierced an atom and injected seven seas into it and then compressed it and presented it in the form of his work, emphasizing on the work's succinctness.[26][254][255] The Kural remains the only work that has been honored with an exclusive work of compiled paeans known as theTiruvalluva Maalai in the Tamil literary corpus, attributed to 55 different poets, including legendary ones.[26] All major Indian religions and sects, includingShaivism,Vaishnavism,Jainism, andBuddhism, have greatly celebrated the Kural text, many of which incorporated Kural's teachings in both their religious and non-religious works, including theSilappathikaram,Manimekalai,Tirumurai,Periya Puranam, andKamba Ramayanam.[256]
The Kural has been widely acknowledged within and outside India for its universal, non-denominational values.[129][254] The Russian philosopherAlexander Piatigorsky called it chef d'oeuvre of both Indian and world literature "due not only to the great artistic merits of the work but also to the lofty humane ideas permeating it which are equally precious to the people all over the world, of all periods and countries."[257]G. U. Pope called its author "a bard of universal man" for being a generalist and universal.[86][258] According toAlbert Schweitzer, "there hardly exists in the literature of the world a collection of maxims in which we find so much of lofty wisdom."[254][259]Leo Tolstoy called it "the Hindu Kural" and recommended it toMahatma Gandhi.[260][261] Mahatma Gandhi called it "a textbook of indispensable authority on moral life" and went on to say, "The maxims of Valluvar have touched my soul. There is none who has given such a treasure of wisdom like him."[254]
"I wanted to learn Tamil, only to enable me to study Valluvar's Thirukkural through his mother tongue itself ... Only a few of us know the name of Thiruvalluvar. The North Indians do not know the name of the great saint. There is no one who has given such treasure of wisdom like him." ... "It is a text-book of indispensable authority on moral life. The maxims of Valluvar have touched my soul."
Jesuit, Catholic and Protestant missionaries in colonial-era South India have highly praised the text, many of whom went on to translate the text into European languages. The Protestant missionaryEdward Jewitt Robinson said that the Kural contains all things and there is nothing which it does not contain.[254] The Anglican missionaryJohn Lazarus said, "No Tamil work can ever approach the purity of the Kural. It is a standing repute to modern Tamil."[254] According to the American Christian missionaryEmmons E. White, "Thirukkural is a synthesis of the best moral teachings of the world."[254]
The Kural has also been exalted by leaders of political, spiritual, social, ethical, religious and other domains of the society since ancient times.Rajaji commented, "It is the gospel of love and a code of soul-luminous life. The whole of human aspiration is epitomized in this immortal book, a book for all ages."[254] According toK. M. Munshi, "Thirukkural is a treatise par excellence on the art of living."[254] The Indian nationalist and Yoga guruSri Aurobindo stated, "Thirukkural is gnomic poetry, the greatest in planned conception and force of execution ever written in this kind."[254]E. S. Ariel, who translated and published the third part of the Kural to French in 1848, called it "a masterpiece of Tamil literature, one of the highest and purest expressions of human thought."[48]Zakir Hussain, formerPresident of India, said, "Thirukkural is a treasure house of worldly knowledge, ethical guidance and spiritual wisdom."[254]
TheTirukkuṟaḷ remained the chief administrative text of theKongu Nadu region of the medieval Tamil land.[263] Medieval Kural commentaries written by Paridhiyar, Pariperumal, Kaalingar, and Mallar have all been found in the Kongu Region.[264] Kural inscriptions and other historical records are found across Tamil Nadu. The 15th-century Jain inscriptions in thePonsorimalai nearMallur inSalem district bear couplet 251 from the "Shunning meat" chapter of the Kural text, indicating that the people of the Kongu Nadu region practiced ahimsa and non-killing as chief virtues.[265] Other inscriptions include the 1617 CE Poondurai Nattar scroll in Kongu Nadu, the 1798 CEPalladam Angala Parameshwari Kodai copper inscriptions inNaranapuram in Kongu Nadu, the 18th-century copper inscriptions found inKapilamalai near Kapilakkuricchi town inNamakkal district, Veeramudiyalar mutt copper inscriptions inPalani, Karaiyur copper inscription in Kongu Nadu, Palaiyakottai records, and the 1818 Periya Palayathamman temple inscriptions byFrancis Ellis atRoyapettah inChennai.[266]
Various portraits of Valluvar have been drawn and used by theShivaite andJain communities of Tamil Nadu since ancient times. These portraits appeared in various poses, with Valluvar's appearance varying from matted hair to fully shaven head. The portrait of Valluvar with matted hair and a flowing beard, as drawn by artist K. R. Venugopal Sharma in 1960, was accepted by the state and central governments as an official version.[267] It soon became a popular and the most ubiquitous modern portrait of the poet.[163] In 1964, the image was unveiled in theIndian Parliament by the then President of IndiaZakir Hussain. In 1967, the Tamil Nadu government passed an order stating that the image of Valluvar should be present in all government offices across the state of Tamil Nadu.[268][m]
The Kural does not appear to have been set in music by Valluvar. However, a number of musicians have set it to tune and several singers have rendered it in their concerts. Modern composers who have tuned the Kural couplets includeMayuram Viswanatha Sastri andBharadwaj. Singers who have performed full-fledgedTirukkuṟaḷ concerts includeM. M. Dandapani Desikar andChidambaram C. S. Jayaraman.[269]Madurai Somasundaram andSanjay Subramanian are other people who have given musical rendering of the Kural. Mayuram Vishwanatha Shastri set all the verses to music in the early 20th century.[270] In January 2016,Chitravina N. Ravikiran set the entire 1330 verses to music in a record time of 16 hours.[269][271]
In 1818, the then Collector of MadrasFrancis Whyte Ellis issued a gold coin bearing Valluvar's image.[272][n][o] In the late 19th century, the South Indian saint'Vallalar' Ramalinga Swamigal taught the Kural's message by conducting regular Kural classes to the masses.[234] In 1968, the Tamil Nadu government made it mandatory to display a Kural couplet in all government buses. The train running a distance of 2,921 kilometers between Kanyakumari andNew Delhi is named by the Indian Railways as theThirukural Express.[273]
The Kural is part of Tamil people's everyday life across the global Tamil diaspora.K. Balachander'sKavithalayaa Productions opened its films with the very first couplet of the Kural sung in the background.[269] Kural's phrases and ideas are found in numerous songs ofTamil movies.[274] SeveralTirukkuṟaḷ conferences were conducted in the twentieth century, such as those byTirukkural V. Munusamy in 1941[275] and byPeriyar E. V. Ramasamy in 1949.[276] These were attended by several scholars, celebrities and politicians.[277] The Kural's couplets and thoughts are also widely employed in visual arts,[278][279] music,[269] dance,[280] street shows,[281] recitals,[282][283] activities,[284] and puzzles and riddles.[285] The couplets are frequently quoted by various political leaders even in pan-Indian contexts outside the Tamil diaspora, includingRam Nath Kovind,[286]P. Chidambaram,[287] andNirmala Sitaraman.[287][288] WhenJallikattu aficionados claimed that the sport is only to demonstrate the "Tamil love for the bull", the then Indian Minister of Women and Child DevelopmentManeka Gandhi denied the claim citing that the Tirukkural does not sanctioncruelty to animals.[289][290] The Indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi has quoted the couplets on several occasions,[291] including his recital to theIndian armed forces in 2020.[292] The Kural literature is one of the ancient texts from which theEconomic Survey of India, the official annual report of the state of India's economy, draws heavy references.[293][294][295]
The Kural text and its author have been highly venerated over the centuries. In the early 16th century, theShaiva Hindu community built a temple within theEkambareeswara-Kamakshi (Shiva-Parvati) temple complex inMylapore,Chennai, in honor of theTirukkuṟaḷ's author, Valluvar.[61] The locals believe that this is where Valluvar was born, underneath a tree within the shrine's complex. A Valluvar statue in yoga position holding a palm leaf manuscript of theTirukkuṟaḷ sits under the tree.[61] In the shrine dedicated to him, Valluvar's wifeVasukiamma is patterned after the Hindu deityKamakshi inside the sanctum. The temple shikhara (spire) above the sanctum shows scenes of Hindu life and deities, along with Valluvar reading his couplets to his wife.[61] Thesthala vriksham (holy tree of the temple) at the temple is theoil-nut oriluppai tree under which Valluvar is believed to have been born.[297] The temple was extensively renovated in the 1970s.[298]
Additional Valluvar shrines in South India are found atTiruchuli,[299][300]Periya Kalayamputhur,Thondi,Neduvasal,Kanjoor Thattanpady,Senapathy, andVilvarani.[301] Many of these communities, including those inMylapore andTiruchuli, consider Valluvar as the64th Nayanmar of theSaivite tradition and worship him as god and saint.[299][302] According to T. Dharmaraj, head of the folklore department atMadurai Kamaraj University, many people in the state ofTamil Nadu claim Valluvar to be their ancestor, along withAvvaiyar,Kapilar, andSage Agastya. He adds that people from the southern districts of Tamil Nadu worship Valluvar as god.[299]
In 1976,Valluvar Kottam, a monument to honor the Kural literature and its author, was constructed inChennai.[296] The chief element of the monument includes a 39-metre-high (128 ft) chariot, a replica of the chariot in the temple town ofThiruvarur, and it contains a life-size statue of Valluvar. Around the chariot's perimeter are marble plates inscribed withTirukkuṟaḷ couplets.[296] All the 1,330 verses of the Kural text are inscribed on bas-relief in the corridors in the main hall.[303]
Statues of Valluvar have been erected across the globe, including the ones atKanyakumari, Chennai,Bengaluru,Pondicherry,Vishakapatnam,Haridwar,Prayagraj,[304][305]Puttalam,Singapore,London andTaiwan.[306][307] The tallest of these is the 41-metre (133 ft) stonestatue of Valluvar erected in 2000 atop a small islet in the town of Kanyakumari on the southernmost tip of theIndian peninsula, at the confluence of theBay of Bengal, theArabian Sea, and theIndian Ocean.[308] This statue is currently India's 25th tallest. A life-size statue of Valluvar is one among an array of statues installed by the Tamil Nadu government on the stretch of theMarina Beach.[309]
The Kural remains one of the most influential Tamil texts admired by generations of scholars.[228] The work has inspired Tamil culture and people from all walks of life, generating parallels in the literature of various languages within the Indian subcontinent.[310] Its translations into European languages starting from the early 18th century made the work known globally.[311] Authors influenced by the Kural includeIlango Adigal,Seethalai Satthanar,Sekkilar,Kambar,Leo Tolstoy,Mahatma Gandhi,Albert Schweitzer,Ramalinga Swamigal,E. S. Ariel,Constantius Joseph Beschi,Karl Graul,August Friedrich Caemmerer,Nathaniel Edward Kindersley,Francis Whyte Ellis,Charles E. Gover,George Uglow Pope,Vinoba Bhave,Alexander Piatigorsky,A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, andYu Hsi. Many of these authors have translated the work into their languages.[311][312]
The Kural is an oft-quoted Tamil work.[29] Classical Tamil works such as thePurananuru,Manimekalai,Silappathikaram,Periya Puranam, andKamba Ramayanam all cite the Kural by various names, bestowing numerous titles to the work that was originally untitled by its author.[256] Kural couplets and thoughts are cited in 32 instances in the Purananuru, 35 inPurapporul Venba Maalai, 1 each inPathittrupatthu and theTen Idylls, 13 in the Silappathikaram, 91 in the Manimekalai, 20 inJivaka Chinthamani, 12 in Villi Bharatham, 7 inThiruvilaiyadal Puranam, and 4 inKanda Puranam.[313] In Kamba Ramayanam, poetKambar has used Kural ideas in as many as 600 instances.[314][315] The work is commonly quoted in vegetarian conferences, both in India and abroad,[316][317] and is frequently cited onsocial media and online forums involving discussions on the topics ofanimal rights,non-killing, and shunning meat.[318]
The Kural text was first included in the school syllabus by the colonial-eraBritish government.[319] However, only select 275 couplets had been taught to the schoolchildren from Standards III through XII.[320] Attempts to include the Kural literature as a compulsory subject in schools were ineffective in the decades followingIndian Independence.[321] On 26 April 2016, theMadras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu state government to include all the 108 chapters of theBooks of Aram andPorul of the Kural text in school syllabus for classes VI through XII from the academic year 2017–2018 "to build a nation with moral values."[321][322] The court further observed, "No other philosophical or religious work has such moral and intellectual approach to problems of life."[323]
The Kural is believed to have inspired many, including Mahatma Gandhi, to pursue the path of ahimsa or non-violence.[324]Leo Tolstoy was inspired by the concept ofnon-violence found in the Kural when he read aGerman version of the book, who in turn instilled the concept inMahatma Gandhi through hisA Letter to a Hindu when young Gandhi sought his guidance.[254][260][325] Gandhi then took to studying the Kural in prison, which eventually culminated in his starting thenon-violence movement to fight against the ruling British government.[26] The 19th-century poet-saint'Vallalar' Ramalinga Swamigal was inspired by the Kural at a young age, who then spent his life promoting compassion and non-violence, emphasizing on non-killing and meatless way of life.[312][326]
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a.^ The Kural strictly insists on moral vegetarianism,[17][251] the doctrine that humans are morally obligated to refrain fromeating meat orharmingsentient beings,[21][327] which is equated to veganism of today.[17][328] The concept ofahimsa orஇன்னா செய்யாமை, which remains the moral foundation of vegetarianism and veganism, is described in the Kural chapter onnon-violence (Chapter 32).[21][329][330] For modern philosophers' take on this, see, for example,Engel's "The Immorality of Eating Meat" (2000).[327]
b.^ For examples of Sanskrit loan words, see Zvelebil'sThe Smile of Murugan.[331]
c.^ TheValluvar Year is obtained by adding 31 years to the presentGregorian year.[47][332]
d.^ Nallaswamy Pillai declares Pope's claim as "an absurd literary anachronism" and says that the first two books of the Kural in particular are "a stumbling block which can browbeat the most sublime ideas of Christian morality."[333]John Lazarus observes that, in stark contrast to the Bible's concept of killing, which refers only to the taking away of human life, the Kural's concept of killing "deals exclusively with the literal taking away of life"[65] and thus applies to both humans and animals.[156][157]
e.^ Quote: "Non-killing is an absolute virtue (aram) in theArattuppal (the glory of virtue section), but the army's duty is to kill in battle and the king has to execute a number of criminals in the process of justice. In these cases, the violations of thearam [in the earlier section] are justified [by Thiruvalluvar] in virtue of the special duties cast on the king and the justification is that 'a few wicked must be weeded out to save the general public' (TK 550)."[75]
f.^ The couplets are generally numbered in a linear fashion across the three books, covering all the 1,330 couplets. They can also be denoted by their chapter number and couplet number within the chapter. Thus, the third couplet in Chapter 104 (Agriculture), for instance, can be numbered either as 1033 or, less commonly, as 104:3. Since the medieval commentators have variously changed the chapter ordering within the books of the Kural text and couplet ordering within the chapters, the present numbering of the chapters and couplets is not the author's.[117]
g.^Avvaiyar'sGnanakural andUmapathi Shivachariyar'sTiruvarutpayan, both of which appeared centuries later, further the ideas of the Kural's chapters onveedu ormoksha and are considered asVeettuppāl (Books of Salvation).[334]
h.^ The doctrine ofnishkama karma in Hinduism states that the dharmic householder can achieve the same goals as the renouncing monk through "inner renunciation", that is "motiveless action."[335][336][337] Cf. kural 629: "He who never exulted in joy will not be depressed by sorrow."[338] This is recommended by theBhagavad Gita as well, which discusses and synthesizes the three dominant trends in Hinduism, namely, enlightenment-based renunciation, dharma-based householder life, and devotion-based theism, and this synthetic answer of the Gita recommends that one must resist the "either–or" view, and consider a "both–and" view.[339][340][341] Valluvar's insistance on renouncing worldly attachments can be noted in couplets 341 and 342.[104]
i.^ As observed byP. S. Sundaram in the introduction to his work, while "all other sins may be redeemed, but never ingratitude," Valluvar couldn't understand "how anyone could wish to fatten himself by feeding on the fat of others."[20]
j.^Commentary – sometimes referred to asbhashya orurai in the Indian tradition – refers to explanations and interpretations of aphoristic texts. These are written by various scholars to develop, comment on and expound the terse ideas such as akural or asutra or any text of significant significance (e.g. Jain, Hindu and Buddhist scriptures).[342][343][344]
k.^ This translation was published in the bulletin of the Rama Varma Research Institute, Vol. VI, Pt. II; Vol. VIII, Pt., Vol. IX, Pt. I in 1938, 1940, and 1941, respectively.[345]
l.^ Compare this with Chapter 7 of theTirukkuṟaḷ—the Kural chapter on bearing children.[346]
m.^Government of Tamil Nadu, G. O. Ms. 1193, dated 1967.[268]
n.^ A stone inscription found on the walls of a well at the Periya Palayathamman temple atRoyapettai indicates Ellis' regard for Valluvar. It is one of the 27 wells dug on the orders of Ellis in 1818, when Madras suffered a severe drinkingwater shortage. In the long inscription Ellis praises Valluvar and uses a couplet from theTirukkuṟaḷ to explain his actions during the drought. When he was in charge of the Madras treasury and mint, he also issued a gold coin bearing Valluvar's image. The Tamil inscription on his grave makes note of his commentary ofTirukkuṟaḷ.[347][348]
o.^ The original inscription in Tamil written in theasiriyapametre and first-person perspective: (The kural couplet he quotes is in italics)[348][349]
சயங்கொண்ட தொண்டிய சாணுறு நாடெனும் |ஆழியில் இழைத்த வழகுறு மாமணி |குணகடன் முதலாக குட கடலளவு |நெடுநிலம் தாழ நிமிர்ந்திடு சென்னப் |பட்டணத்து எல்லீசன் என்பவன் யானே |பண்டாரகாரிய பாரம் சுமக்கையில் |புலவர்கள் பெருமான் மயிலையம் பதியான் |தெய்வப் புலமைத் திருவள்ளுவனார் |திருக்குறள் தன்னில் திருவுளம் பற்றிய் |இருபுனலும் வாய்த்த மலையும் வருபுனலும் |வல்லரணும் நாட்டிற் குறுப்பு |என்பதின் பொருளை என்னுள் ஆய்ந்து |ஸ்வஸ்திஸ்ரீ சாலிவாகன சகாப்த வரு |..றாச் செல்லா நின்ற |இங்கிலிசு வரு 1818ம் ஆண்டில் |பிரபவாதி வருக்கு மேற் செல்லா நின்ற |பஹுதான்ய வரு த்தில் வார திதி |நக்ஷத்திர யோக கரணம் பார்த்து |சுப திநத்தி லிதனோ டிருபத்தேழு |துரவு கண்டு புண்ணியாஹவாசநம் |பண்ணுவித்தேன்.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)It is a work based on the doctrine of Ahimsa; and throughout, you have the praising of this Ahmisa dharma and the criticism of views opposed to this. (From A. Chakravarthy, Tirukkural, Madras: The Diocesan Press, 1953)
{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|url= (help)THE HINDU KURAL
Ahimsa is the ruling principle of Indian life from the very earliest times. ... This positive spiritual attitude is easily explained to the common man in a negative way as "ahimsa" and hence this way of denoting it. Tiruvalluvar speaks of this as "kollaamai" or "non-killing."
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