Tirukkuṟaḷ

The Kural text is the work of a single author because it has a consistent "language, formal structure and content-structure", states Zvelebil.[68] Neither is the Kural an anthology nor is there any later additions to the text.[68] The division into three parts (muppāl) is probably the author's work. However, the subdivisions beyond these three, known as iyals, 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.[69][70] For example, the following subdivisions or iyals are found in Parimelalhagar's version, which greatly varies from that of Manakkudavar's:[71]

Tamil Wisdom, by Edward Jewitt Robinson, 1873,[72] with the traditional portrait of Valluvar

• Chapters 1–4: Introduction
• Chapters 5–24: Domestic virtue
• Chapters 25–38: Ascetic virtue
• Chapters 39–63: Royalty, the qualities of the leader of men
• Chapters 64–73: The subject and the ruler
• Chapters 74–96: Essential parts of state, shrewdness in public life
• Chapters 97–108: Reaching perfection in social life
• Chapters 109–115: Concealed love
• Chapters 116–133: Wedded love

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.[68][71] 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.[73] 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.[73]

Like the three-part division, and unlike the iyal subdivisions, the grouping of the couplets into chapters is the author's. 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.[74] 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.[74] Here again, the titles of all the chapters of the Kural text are given by Valluvar himself.[75] According to S. N. Kandasamy, the naming of the first chapter of the Kural text is in accord with the convention used in the Tolkappiyam.[76]

According to Zvelebil, the content of the Kural text is "undoubtedly patterned" and "very carefully structured."[77] There are no structural gaps in the text, with every couplet indispensable for the structured whole.[69] There are two distinct meanings for every couplet, namely, a structural one and a proverbial one.[69] 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.[69] In isolation, a couplet is "a perfect form, possessing, in varying degree, the prosodic and rhetoric qualities of gnomic poetry."[69] Within the chapter-structure, the couplets acquire their structural meaning and reveal the more complete teaching of the author.[69] 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.[69] 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.[78]

In poetic terms, it fuses verse and aphoristic form in diction in a "pithy, vigorous, forceful and terse" manner. It is an ethics text that expounds a universal, moral and practical approach to life. Throughout the work, Valluvar is more considerate about the substance than the linguistic appeal of his writing.[79]

The Kural text is marked by pragmatic idealism,[80] focused on "man in the totality of his relationships".[81] According to Zvelebil, the text does not feature "true and great poetry" throughout the work, except, notably, in the third book, which deals with love and pleasure.[82] This emphasis on substance rather than poetry 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.[82]

The Kural text begins with an invocation of God and then praises the rain for being the vitalizer of all life forms on earth. It proceeds to describe the qualities of a righteous person, before concluding the introduction by emphasizing the value of aṟam or virtue.[83] 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 Valluvar asserts as the most important economic activity later in Book II of the Kural text.[83][84]

The three books of the Kural base aṟam or dharma (virtue) as its cornerstone,[86][87] which resulted in the Kural being referred to simply as Aṟam.[74][88][89][90] Contrary to what other contemporary works say, Valluvar holds that aṟam is common for all, irrespective of whether the person is a bearer of palanquin or the rider in it.[91][92] According to Albert Schweitzer, the idea that good must be done for its own sake comes from various couplets across the Kural text.[93] The text is a comprehensive pragmatic work that presents philosophy in the first part, political science in the second and poetics in the third.[94][95] 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.[96] In the 700 couplets on poruḷ (53 percent of the text), Valluvar mostly discusses statecraft and warfare.[97]

According to Schweitzer, the Kural "stands for the commandment not to kill and not to damage."[93] The greatest of personal virtues according to the Kural text is non-killing, followed by veracity,[98][99][100] and the two greatest sins that Valluvar feels very strongly are ingratitude and meat-eating.[99][101][102] As observed by P. 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."[103] The Kural differs from every other work on morality in that it follows ethics, surprisingly a divine one, even in its Book of Love.[104] In the words of Gopalkrishna 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.[105] 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.[11][106][107]

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.[97] Valluvar presents his theory of state using six elements: army (patai), subjects (kuti), treasure (kul), ministers (amaiccu), allies (natpu), and forts (aran).[97] Valluvar also recommends forts and other infrastructure, supplies and food storage in preparation for siege.[97][108] 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 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.[109]

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.[112] The king in the text, states K. V. Nagarajan, is assigned the "role of producing, acquiring, conserving, and dispensing wealth".[97][112] 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 of poruḷ, but does so only after emphasizing non-killing as every individual's personal virtue in the book of aṟam.[112] 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.[113]

Valluvar remained a generalist rather than a specialist in any particular field.[114] He never indulged in specifics but always stressed on the basic principles of morality.[114] This can be seen across the Kural text: while Valluvar talks about worshipping God, he refrains from mentioning the way of worshipping; 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 suggesting any proportion of collection.[114]

The author seldom shows any concern as to what similes and superlatives he used earlier while writing on other subjects, purposely allowing for some repetition and mild contradictions in ideas one can find in the Kural text.[115] Despite knowing its seemingly contradictory nature from a purist point of view, Valluvar employs this method to emphasise the importance of the given code of ethic.[115][116] Following are some of the instances where Valluvar employs contradictions to expound the virtues.[117]

• While in Chapter 93 Valluvar writes on the evils of intoxication,[118] in Chapter 109 he uses the same to show the sweetness of love by saying love is sweeter than wine.[119]
• To the question "What is wealth of all wealth?" Valluvar points out to two different things, namely, grace (Kural 241) and hearing (Kural 411).[115]
• In regard to the virtues one should follow dearly even at the expense of other virtues, Valluvar points to veracity (Kural 297), not coveting another's wife (Kural 150), and not being called a slanderer (Kural 181). In essence, however, in Chapter 33 he crowns non-killing as the foremost of all virtues, pushing even the virtue of veracity to the second place (Kural 323).[120]
• Whereas he says that one can eject what is natural or inborn in him (Kural 376),[121][122] he indicates that one can overcome the inherent natural flaws by getting rid of laziness (Kural 609).[123]
• While in Chapter 7 he asserts that the greatest gain men can obtain is by their learned children (Kural 61),[124][125] in Chapter 13 he says that it is that which is obtained by self-control (Kural 122).[126]

The ethical connections between these apparent contradictions are widely elucidated ever since the medieval commentaries. For example, Parimelalhagar cogently explains the ethical connections between couplets 380 and 620, 481 and 1028, 373 and 396, and 383 and 672 in his commentary.[127]

Palm leaf manuscript of the Tirukkural

The Kural is one of the most reviewed of all works in Tamil literature, and almost every notable scholar has written exegesis or commentaries (explanation in prose or verse), known in Tamil as urai, on it.[128]^[i] Some of the Tamil literature that was composed after the Kural quote or borrow its couplets in their own texts.[129] According to Aravindan, these texts may be considered as the early commentaries to the Kural text.[128]

Dedicated commentaries on the Kural text 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. The ten medieval commentators include Manakkudavar, Dharumar, Dhamatthar, Nacchar, Paridhiyar, Thirumalaiyar, Mallar, Pari Perumal, Kaalingar, and Parimelalhagar, 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.[16][128][130] 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.[131]

The best known and influential historic commentary on the Kural text is the Parimelalhakiyar virutti. It was written by Parimelalhagar – a Vaishnava Brahmin, likely based in Kanchipuram, who lived about or before 1272 CE.[132] Along with the Kural text, this commentary has been widely published and is in itself a Tamil classic.[133] 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.[132] 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.[133]

Besides the ten medieval commentaries, there are at least three more commentaries written by unknown medieval authors.[134] One of them was published under the title "Palhaiya Urai" (meaning ancient commentary), while the second one was based on Paridhiyar's commentary.[134] The third one was published in 1991 under the title "Jaina Urai" (meaning Jaina commentary) by Saraswathi Mahal Library in Thanjavur.[135] Following these medieval commentaries, there are at least 21 venpa 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.[136][137]

Several modern commentaries started appearing in the 19th and 20th centuries. Of these, the commentaries by Kaviraja Pandithar and U. V. Swaminatha Iyer are considered classic by modern scholars.[3] Some of the commentaries of the 20th century include those by Thirumeni Rathina Kavirayar,[138] Ramanuja Kavirayar,[138] K. Vadivelu Chettiar,[139] Krishnampet K. Kuppusamy Mudaliar,[140] Iyothee Thass, V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, Thiru Vi Ka, Bharathidasan, M. Varadarajan, Namakkal Kavignar, Thirukkuralar V. Munusamy, Devaneya Pavanar, M. Karunanithi, and Solomon Pappaiah, besides several hundred others. The commentary by M. Varadarajan entitled Tirukkural 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.[141]

According to K. Mohanraj, as of 2013, 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.[142]

1856 CE Latin translation of Tirukkural by Karl Graul, with English notes by William Germann. Graul also published the first German translation.[143]

The Kural has been the most frequently translated ancient Tamil text. By 1975, its translations in at least 20 major languages had been published:[144]

• Indian languages: Sanskrit, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati, and Urdu
• Non-Indian languages: Burmese, Malay, Chinese, Fijian, Latin, French, German, Russian, Polish, Swedish, Thai, and English

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 of University of Madras during the British rule, discovered a Malayalam translation copied in year 777 of the Malayalam calendar, a manuscript that Zvelebil dates to late 16th century.[145] The text was translated into several European languages during the colonial era, particularly by the Christian missionaries.[146]

The first European language translation (Latin) was published by Constantius Joseph Beschi 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 first French translation was brought about by an unknown author by about 1767 that went unnoticed. The first available French version was by E. S. Ariel in 1848. Again, he did not translate the whole work but only parts of it. The first German translation was made by Karl Graul, who published it in 1856 both at London and Leipzig.[143][147]

The first, and incomplete, English translations were made by N. E. Kindersley in 1794 and then by Francis 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.[148][149] E. J. Robinson's translations of part of the Kural into English were the first to be published in 1873 in his book The Tamil Wisdom.[150] W. H. Drew translated the first two parts 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 by John Lazarus, a native missionary. Like Beschi, Drew did not translate the third book on love.[151] The first complete English translation of the Kural was the one by the Christian missionary George Uglow Pope in 1886, which introduced the complete Kural to the western world.[152]

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.[145]

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 by V. 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, and K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar.[153] The work has also been translated into Vaagri Booli, the language of the Narikuravas, a tribal community in Tamil Nadu, by Kittu Sironmani.[154]

The largest book of the Tirukkural on display

With a highly compressed prosodic form, the Kural text employs the intricately complex Kural venba metre, known for its eminent suitability to gnomic poetry.[155] 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.[156] 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."[157] 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.[27]

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 Latin translation by the Christian missionary Father Beshi, for instance, contains several such mistranslations. According to V. Ramasamy, "Beschi is purposely distorting the message of the original when he renders பிறவாழி as 'the sea of miserable life' and the phrase பிறவிப்பெருங்கடல் 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."[158]

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).[159] About 1300 CE, the Tamil scholar Parimelalhagar interpreted the text in Brahmanical premises and terms.[159] Just like Christian missionaries during the colonial era cast the work in their own Christian premises, phrases and concepts, some Dravidianists 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.[159][160]

Scholars compare the teachings in the Tirukkural with those in other ancient thoughts such as the Confucian sayings in Lun Yu, Hitopadesa, Panchatantra, Manusmriti, Tirumandiram, Book of Proverbs in the Bible, sayings of the Buddha in Dhammapada, and the ethical works of Persian origin such as Gulistan and Bustan, in addition to the holy books of various religions.[186]

The Kural text and the Confucian sayings recorded in the classic Analects of Chinese (called Lun Yu, meaning "Sacred Sayings") share some similarities. Both Valluvar and Confucius focused on the behaviors and moral conducts of a common person. Similar to Valluvar, Confucius advocated legal justice embracing human principles, courtesy, and filial piety, besides the virtues of benevolence, righteousness, loyalty and trustworthiness as foundations of life.[187] While ahimsa remains the fundamental virtue of the Valluvarean tradition, Zen remains the central theme in Confucian tradition.[188] Incidentally, Valluvar differed from Confucius in two respects. Firstly, unlike Confucius, Valluvar was also a poet. Secondly, Confucius did not deal with the subject of conjugal love, for which Valluvar devoted an entire division in his work.[189] 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."[190]^[j]

A Kural couplet on display inside a Chennai Metro train

The portrait of Tirukkural author 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 the standardised version.[195] It soon became a popular and the standard portrait of the poet.[105] In 1964, the image was unveiled in the Indian Parliament by the then President of India Zakir 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.[196]^[k]

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 include Mayuram Viswanatha Sastri and Ramani Bharadwaj. Singers who have performed full-fledged Tirukkural concerts include M. M. Dandapani Desikar and Chidambaram C. S. Jayaraman.[197] Madurai Somasundaram and Sanjay 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.[198] In January 2016, Chitravina N. Ravikiran set the entire 1330 verses to music in a record time of 16 hours.[197][199]

The Kural is part of Tamil people's everyday life and is used in all walks of life. K. Balachander's Kavithalayaa Productions opened its films with the very first couplet of the Kural sung in the background.[197] Kural's couplets are found in numerous songs of Tamil movies.[200] Several Tirukkural conferences were conducted in the twentieth century, such as those by Tirukkural V. Munusamy in 1941[201] and by Periyar E. V. Ramasamy in 1949.[202] These were attended by several scholars, celebrities and politicians.[203] The Kural's couplets are also found in music,[197] dance,[204] street shows,[205] recitals,[206] activities,[207] and puzzles and riddles.[208]

In 1818, the then Collector of Madras Francis Whyte Ellis issued a gold coin bearing Valluvar's image.[209]^[l][m] In the late 19th century, the South Indian saint Vallalar taught the Kural's message.[168] 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 and New Delhi is named by the Indian Railways as the Thirukural Express.[210]

Valluvar shrines and monuments styled after Hindu temples are found in various parts of Tamil Nadu. The Valluvar Kottam in Chennai (left) is modeled as a Hindu temple ceremonial chariot, with Valluvar sitting inside.[211] It is connected to a kalyana mandapa (wedding hall), and features all 1330 Thirukkural couplets inscribed on perimeter pillar walls (right).[211]

The Kural text and its author have been highly venerated over the centuries. In the early 16th century, the Shaiva Hindu community built a temple within the Ekambareeswara-Kamakshi (Shiva-Parvati) temple complex in Mylapore, Chennai, in honor of Tirukkuṛaḷ's author, Valluvar.[212] The locals believe that this is where Valluvar was born, underneath a tree within the shrines complex. A Valluvar statue in yoga position holding a palm leaf manuscript of Tirukurral sits under the tree.[212] In the shrine dedicated to him, Valluvar's wife Vasukiamma is patterned after the Hindu deity Kamakshi 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.[212] The sthala vriksham (holy tree of the temple) at the temple is the oil-nut or iluppai tree under which Valluvar is believed to have been born.[213] The temple was extensively renovated in the 1970s.[214]

Additional Valluvar shrines in South India are found at Tiruchuli,[215] Periya Kalayamputhur, Thondi, Kanjoor Thattanpady, Senapathy, and Vilvarani.[216] Many of these communities, including those in Mylapore and Tiruchuli, consider Valluvar as the 64th Nayanmar of the Saivite tradition and worship him as god and saint.[215]

In 1976, Valluvar Kottam, a monument to honor the Kural literature and its author, was constructed in Chennai.[211] The chief element of the monument includes a 39-metre-high (128 ft) chariot, a replica of the chariot in the temple town of Thiruvarur, and it contains a life-size statue of Valluvar. Around the chariot's perimeter are marble plates inscribed with Tirukkural couplets.[211] All the 1,330 verses of the Kural text are inscribed on bas-relief in the corridors in the main hall.[217]

Statues of Valluvar have been erected across the globe, including the ones at Kanyakumari, Chennai, Bengaluru, Pondicherry, Haridwar, Puttalam, Singapore, London and Taiwan.[218][219] The tallest of these is the 41-metre (133 ft) stone statue of Valluvar erected in 2000 atop a small island in the town of Kanyakumari on the southernmost tip of the Indian peninsula, at the confluence of the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, and the Indian Ocean.[220] 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 the Marina.[221]