Tag Archives: Tiruvalluvar

Canonisation of the Divya Prabandhams through Maṇipravāḷam: A Double-Edged Sword?

The canonisation of the Āḻvār hymns as the Nālāyira Divya Prabandham preserved an extraordinary body of Tamil devotional poetry, sustained its temple life, and generated the sophisticated bilingual tradition of Maṇipravāḷam.

Yet the same process also placed the hymns within a specialised theological interpretive grammar, limiting their wider circulation as literature.

This essay examines that double-edged legacy and asks how the Divya Prabandham might be restored to the broader Tamil literary imagination without diminishing its Śrīvaiṣṇava identity.

Arvindan Neelakandan applies broad-brush stroke on Tiruvalluvar

https://open.substack.com/pub/sharpbyswarajya/p/yajnopavitam-across-thiruvalluvars?r=xbjdy&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email QUOTE: “The honest reclamation is available, and far more powerful. Tamil tradition holds that Valluvar belonged to the Paraiyar community, and that Valluvar itself designated the priestly and astrological lineage within it. Gustav Oppert documented in 1893 that the Valluvar Purohits wore the yajnopavitam by right, performed Sanskrit ceremonies at Paraiyar and Pallar weddings, and were respectfully consultedContinue reading “Arvindan Neelakandan applies broad-brush stroke on Tiruvalluvar”

In a conflict between King and Sage, to whom should the subject defer more?: Somber Tirukkural thoughts

In the ongoing tussle between the Rulers and the Sankaracharyas, not to mention other Sadhus at the Ayodhya temple , one wonders to which of the following 2 Tirukkural couplets should a humble and loyal subject of the land lend greater credence and deference : Kural 895 : Kural 900: Sudarshan Madabushi

Lord Rama and Saint Tiruvalluvar are not equal citizens in Chennai city?

IF THE MUDICHUR RAMAR TEMPLE DEMOLISHED YESTERDAY (December 10, 2022) WAS AN UNAUTHORISED ENCROACHMENT ON A CITY WATERBODY, PERHAPS ONE MAY ASK IF THE VALLUVAR KOTTAM, A TOURISTIC PUBLIC SPOT NOW BUT ERECTED BACK IN 1975-76 RIGHT IN THE HEART OF THE CITY WAS AUTHORISED ENCROACHMENT? I came across this interesting and rather nostalgic blogpostedContinue reading “Lord Rama and Saint Tiruvalluvar are not equal citizens in Chennai city?”