In this episode, we perceive a woman’s fury, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 216, penned by Aiyoor Mudavanaar. The verse is situated amidst the lush river shores of the ‘Marutham’ or ‘Farmlands landscape’ and connects conflicts at home and battles in the warfront.

‘நாண் கொள் நுண் கோலின் மீன் கொள் பாண் மகள்
தான் புனல் அடைகரைப் படுத்த வராஅல்,
நார் அரி நறவு உண்டு இருந்த தந்தைக்கு,
வஞ்சி விறகின் சுட்டு, வாய் உறுக்கும்
தண் துறை ஊரன் பெண்டிர் எம்மைப்
பெட்டாங்கு மொழிப’ என்ப; அவ் அலர்ப்
பட்டனம்ஆயின், இனி எவன் ஆகியர்;
கடல் ஆடு மகளிர் கொய்த ஞாழலும்,
கழனி உழவர் குற்ற குவளையும்,
கடி மிளைப் புறவின் பூத்த முல்லையொடு,
பல் இளங் கோசர் கண்ணி அயரும்
மல்லல் யாணர்ச் செல்லிக் கோமான்
எறிவிடத்து உலையாச் செறி சுரை வெள் வேல்
ஆதன் எழினி அரு நிறத்து அழுத்திய
பெருங் களிற்று எவ்வம் போல,
வருந்துபமாது, அவர் சேரி யாம் செலினே.

In this trip to the farmlands, we get to explore the familiar theme of trouble involving a courtesan, as we hear the courtesan say these words to her friends, making sure the lady’s friends listening nearby, get to hear it:

“The bard’s daughter traps fish with a fine rod, tied with a thread, in the river shores. Taking the murrel fish thus captured, she roasts it on ‘Rattan’ firewood, and feeds her father, who had been relishing toddy, filtered by palm fibres, in the cool shores of the lord. They say that his woman has been speaking ill of me. If I’m to be subject to this slander, so be it! Screw-pine flowers plucked by maiden playing in the seas, blue-lilies picked by farmers ploughing the fields, along with wild jasmines that bloom in the well-protected forests, are worn by many young Kosars in the city of ‘Selli’, brimming with prosperity, ruled by King Aathan Ezhini. The white spear this king launches never fails to hit its target. Akin to the angst of the huge elephant, whose majestic chest is pierced by his spear, she will suffer too, if I were to go to the neighbourhood, where the lord’s wife lives!”

Let’s walk along the banks of the fertile fields and learn about the latest in town! The courtesan starts by talking about the lord’s town, and to capture it, she follows in the trail of a bard’s daughter, who seems to be good at fishing, for she nabs a murrel fish in the river shores, brings it home, roasts it atop rattan firewood and then takes it to her father, who has been making merry with toddy and feeds him. What a caring girl this bard has got! As if contrasting the good nature of the daughters in the man’s domain, the courtesan then talks about how the man’s wife has been backbiting her, saying whatever she wished, causing slander about the courtesan to spread. After saying this, the courtesan suddenly starts talking about flowers from diverse regions, such as the shore, the farm and the forest, namely screwpine, blue-lilies and wild jasmines respectively, to say all these are worn by the young men, who live in the region of ‘Selli’, perhaps talking about the extent of this city, ruled by Aathan Ezhini. The courtesan has mentioned this king only to refer to his unfailing spear and the way an enemy’s elephant would suffer when struck by the same. She concludes by talking about how the man’s wife and her friends, would feel the same suffering, if at all, she decided to go to where they lived. In essence, the courtesan has issued a warning to the man’s wife, expressing her confidence in the man’s affection for herself! Curious how a battle elephant is called as a witness to a cat fight in town!

In this episode, we observe an interesting technique of expressing dissent, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 215, penned by Irangukudi Kundra Naadan. Set in the ‘Paalai’ or ‘Drylands landscape’, the verse evokes a sense of ever-present danger in this domain.

விலங்கு இருஞ் சிமையக் குன்றத்து உம்பர்,
வேறு பல் மொழிய தேஎம் முன்னி,
வினை நசைஇப் பரிக்கும் உரன் மிகு நெஞ்சமொடு
புனை மாண் எஃகம் வல வயின் ஏந்தி,
செலல் மாண்பு உற்ற நும்வயின், ‘வல்லே,
வலன் ஆக!’ என்றலும் நன்றுமன் தில்ல
கடுத்தது பிழைக்குவதுஆயின், தொடுத்த
கை விரல் கவ்வும் கல்லாக் காட்சி,
கொடுமரம் பிடித்த கோடா வன்கண்,
வடி நவில் அம்பின் ஏவல் ஆடவர்,
ஆள் அழித்து உயர்த்த அஞ்சுவரு பதுக்கை,
கூர் நுதிச் செவ் வாய் எருவைச் சேவல்
படு பிணப் பைந் தலை தொடுவன குழீஇ,
மல்லல் மொசிவிரல் ஒற்றி, மணி கொண்டு,
வல் வாய்ப் பேடைக்குச் சொரியும் ஆங்கண்,
கழிந்தோர்க்கு இரங்கும் நெஞ்சமொடு
ஒழிந்து இவண் உறைதல் ஆற்றுவோர்க்கே.

In this trip to the drylands, we hear the confidante say these words to the man, in response to his request, asking the confidante to convey to the lady his wish to part away in search of wealth:

“Beyond the radiant, huge mountain peaks, wishing to go to lands, where many other languages are spoken, with a determined heart that nudges with a desire to earn wealth, holding a well-etched spear in your right hand, you wish to part away to the drylands, where live those uneducated men, who bite their finger, if the arrow they aimed hits not the target, have the harsh nature of holding on to their curving bows ceaselessly and killing people with their sharp arrows, and then covering those corpses in fearsome, shallow graves, from where a sharp-beaked, red-mouthed, red-headed, male vulture, digs up the fresh head of a corpse, with its sharp claws, plucks the eyes, and then carries it to its strong-mouthed mate. To say to you, ‘Go on and be victorious’ is only possible for those, who have the ability to live here, when their heart ceaselessly worries about the one who has parted thither!”

Time to explore the fearful paths again! The confidante starts by repeating the man’s wish to part away, wanting to go to a far away land, and earn wealth. She describes how he would tread on with a spear in his hand and leave to a place, filled with highway robbers, who think not one moment before killing others with their fierce arrows. Then she mentions how they would bury the dead in shallow, stone graves. A moment to pause and see how even these thieves seemed to have had a sense of honour. They don’t cast away the bodies and leave just like that. Even though they have the harshness to kill, they show their respect for the dead by burying them in whatever manner possible.

Returning, we now find the confidante telling us how their efforts have been in vain, for a red-headed vulture digs out the dead with its sharp claws, and chooses its favourite bit of the corpse’s eyeball and carries it to its mate devoutly. Ending this description of the unimaginable place the man wants to leave to, the confidante concludes by saying, there may be some who have the ability to live quietly, even as their heart worries incessantly about a person who has parted away to such a place, and only they could wish the man good luck and bid farewell on his mission, implying that the lady has no such ability. In a nutshell, the confidante is asking the man not to part away and leave on this mission, for it would be impossible for the lady to live here, in that state of anxiety about his welfare. The confidante’s way of ‘saying no, without saying no’, sketching in one stroke, the danger ahead, the man’s courage and the lady’s love!