Wrong Tamil-exclusive separatist culture

Wrong Tamil-exclusive separatist culture

 

In these day, people wrongly understand that Tamil tradition is different from the Vedic culture, and therefore whenever possible they try to link any good matter in the early Tamil kingdoms, or good people to the Tamil clan and imply no connection to the Vedic culture—this seems to be an intentional act. Even well educated and research minded scholars, writers of books try in this manner to depict that there was a separate Tamil culture, and in that Dravidian country there was a culture which was greater than the Vedic culture! However, when we see the stone inscriptions, or the books written and sung by the poets and scholars of those day, there is no evidence whatsoever for this theory. On one side it is funny, and on the other side it is a matter of concern. I will tell you what the joke and concerns are. Thinking that the Vedic tradition is different from Dravidian culture is firmly rooted in people's mind, in order to earn their support some of the intellectuals among Brahmins are writing and talking in support of this alleged difference. They write and speak that in the Tamil kingdom, the three kings who ruled in the past, including the pallavas, made special support to the Tamil culture – hiding all the great charities that they have done in support of the Vedic education, rituals and to Brahmins. What worries is me is that several of those who write stories using historical facts, as well as those who write history books, and Tamil literary history, and those writing commentaries of ancient Tamil books, write in this manner. Because of doing so, they give more strength to the different thinking that did not exist so far.

 

There are differences here and there in the general bharatha culture and tradition. This is merely a regional difference and not at all a racial difference. For example, among the Tamils the habits and speaking dialects varied between the regions – southern, chola, konkans, north arcot, south arcot, the old central region including chengleput, tondai region – there were several variations between each. The Chennai city is unique as it does not belong to any, and it is a total mix of everything, and even comprises some thing more. Just because the sarees tying style of the traditional ladies has 3 or 4 types, would it imply that there are 3 or 4 races? There is only one bharatha culture will covers all these. Inside that culture, there were (and are) variations in language, music, sculpture styles, and habits. This has a special taste and beauty of diversity.

 

The colonial whites smartly called these differences for their convenience to divide and rule, to mean individual races, i.e. Vedic north and nonVedic south. Unfortunately, our people believed these opinions and some of our south Indians eschew the Vedic traditions, and think that the Tamil people should not be exposed to the Vedic tradition!

 

These people may not like the Vedic tradition; they may not want to do any good to the Vedas and the Vedic scholars. That is their choice. But while the Vedic institutions have been given grants and endowments, and the ancient kings have left behind various support systems for them, it is not correct that these are not told without concealing the facts. And it is more incorrect to spread false truths that the ancient kings made special efforts to promote the Tamil culture.

 

Several inscriptions on the stone statues, and more half copper inscriptions tell in more than half of them about the royal grants provided to the Brahmins and the Vedic institutions. Infact there is not so much about the victories in wars. In these inscriptions recording the grants, their victories in wars are also mentioned. They recorded on stone and copper inscriptions, mainly their contribution to the temple and the Brahmins.

 

The ancient Tamil kings have granted a lot of land to Brahmins in the name "piramadeyam". Sky (akasa) is called akayam in Tamil, vasam is called vayam, and similar desa (region) is called deyam. The land donated to Brahmins is called piramadeyam. Deyam in Sanskrit is called "that which is given as grant". For Brahmins who have completed the Vedic schools, kings donated several villages called "srotriya villages". There are several places which end with the names "chaturvedi mangalam". These are all lands that Tamil kings donated to the scholars who had studied the four Vedas. Many places end with the name "akaram" – agraharam in short form became akaram. These are also villages donated to Brahmins.

 

In the royal records of those days, either in stone carvings of copper inscriptions there is no such record to say that the any king (be it chola or chera or pandya) or a king of a smaller kingdom had specially nurtured the Tamil culture, Tamil tradtion, and Tamil caste. To the extent I could I search with curiosity, but could not find any. Those kings had recorded that they had helped the various projects to support the "Vedic Brahmins, and that their tradition is not disturbed".

 

When the books like silapathikaram speak about the victories of chenguttavan over the arya kings, they do not imply the "arya" race. When the Tamil kings from the three regions fought with each other, we refer to the war against pandya king or chola king. Similarly we also refer to the war against the Telugu and Kannada kings though these kingdoms are within the Dravidian region. In the same manner, the warm against the (arya) north Indian kings who ruled most of northern India is referred to the war against the arya kings. Those north Indian kings should have been rivals for our south Indian kings. If we take the arguments of these proponents of modern Tamil culture, it seems that the Brahmins should have been bigger rivals to these kings than the arya kings. But if we look at silapathikaram, it says that chera king chenguttuvan waged a war and won over the arya kings, but confirms also that he ensured that Brahmins in that kingdom were not harmed. Among the deva rishis – there is a name – visumbu munivar - before his name there is mention about Vedic Brahmins in the himalaya kingdoms, and it states that the obligation of the king is the take care of them. (Text of silapathikaram). The records not only say that the he did not harm them, he had also instructed to his army to take care of the Brahmins so that their yagna fire does not get put off, because these Brahmins are living a great spiritual life, and they should be protected well.

 

In the silapatikaram, there are vivid descriptions that king chenguttuvan did yagas after winning over the north Indian kings, and picking the stone from Himalayas to carve the statue of kannagi, and bringing that stone on the heads of the defeated kings to the chera kingdom. It records that he sincerely listened to the advice of a Brahmin (named madala maraiyon) to perform the yaga. The text says, "the Brahmin planted in the field (which the king's ear) the seeds (which was his idea), and ploughed it with the plough (which was his tongue) well. When the plant (which is the presence in heaven or moksha) would grow, the king desired keenly to harvest it. Therefore, he called the Brahmins who are skilled in yagas of the four Vedas to perform the necessary procedures.

 

What is surprising in this is that the person who wrote the silapatikaram is a Jain monk who gnanasambandar highly criticizes, as the "corrupt ones that attack Vedic rituals".

 

 

Later, when he describes the installation of the Kannagi statue:

 

In these days, people ask "do we need to say Vedic mantras to install statues? Will not the divine vibrations enter if we lovingly say in Tamil?" However, when the kannaki (who these people call as the exclusive Tamil goddess) statue was installed by senguttuvan, the author of silappatikaram, Ilango says that the king brought the "arakallatu andanarai" to do the rituals. The phrase arakalattu andanar is very beautiful in its use. War was waged in the "marakalam" (in Tamil). After winning the war displaying his valor the king brought the stone for the statue and made the defeated kings carry the stone on their heads. Now the stone should become a divine statue. In this the "marakalam" flighting skills of the king will not be help. Only the Brahmins skilled in the Vedic rituals can do these properly – this is what is conveyed beautifully in that phrase, "arkalattu andanar". The author says that the king invited such Brahmins, his preceptor, astrologer, and the sculptor to install the statue.

 

We should note that the person who wrote silapatikaram was a jain monk who did not belong to the Vedic tradition. Whereas nowadays, the poets, researchers, and writers who were born of Vedic culture hide the keen support displayed in the activties of the kings of those times, and even to go the extent to highlight that those kings showed a special interest for a special Tamil culture. It is very wrong to hide and distort truth. When narrating history it is not fair to black-out what was actually present in those times, and project the priniciples of current times with a vested interest.

 

There will be ofcourse differences here and there in the form of regional cultures. Because of the language spoken, life styles, climatic conditions, several branches of traditions would have definitely evolved from the truck of the based of the tree of the generic bharata culture. The regional differences are superficial.

 

However, in the various conferences and seminars that people conduct in these days on the illustrating the glory of our traditional culture, generally disregard the Vedic culture, which is the root and the fundamental basis of our culture. Projecting the regional cultures as distinct ones, they tell and write stories to support claims that the "Dravidian" culture is superior to the "Aryan" culture, adding fuel to the current the Aryan-dravidian tension.

 

Those who write fiction stories that attract the audience, while using the ancient personalities and events in their stories, do not use the facts as they are. Most of the writers who are targeting "mass appeal" are in this category. Nowadays, the public are tempted to discard the epics, ancient poems as myth, and only believe as sources of the evidence, the "well research stories" in the modern writings. Consequently, it is a pity that the majority of them are led to the distorted beliefs that the ancient history was false. In my view, what ever may be our current view on various issues, it is important that when we present the historic facts, we should present them as they were – without distorting them by imposing our current views on those facts. I find it difficult to accept that the modern authors do not understand the justice behind this argument.

 

Vedic culture was prevalent all over India in those days. Later regional cultures emerged from that. The Tamilians, who spoke Tamil and lived in Tamil kingdoms since the ancient times, also followed the Vedic cultures. However, these same Tamilians were also instrumental for introducing some special practices and artistic touches which are peculiar to Tamilian culture. in this light, it is appropriate to say that the three dynasties of kings who ruled since the ancient times supported the Tamilian culture, which they promoted only as a branch of the Vedic culture. They all consistently supported the Vedic culture as the basis for the Tamilian culture. The branch cannot grow breaking itself away from the trunk of the tree. The branch came naturally. The kings promoted them. They never thought of a separate Tamil culture.

 

However what surprises me is that current speakers and authors depict the three ancient kings as well as the subsequent pallava kings as those who promoted a special Tamil culture. though the three ancient kings called themselves belonging to the clans of the sun, moon and sibi (pigeon), their names were Tamil names -- netuncheralathan, seraman perumal, karikal valavan, killi valavan, netunchezhiyan, nedumaran, and so son. However the names of the pallava kings were all in Sanskrit – skanda sishyan, mahendran, narasimhan, parameswaran, nandivarma, dandivarma, and so on. The stone inscriptions of mahendra varma in kudumiya hills on music are all in Sanskrit. They have called themselves as "parama brahmanyar" in these records. They supported many Sanskrit colleges. As Brahmins are called sarma, kshatriyas are called varmas. Following this rule, pallava kings were called mahendra varma, narasimha varma, parameswara varma, nandi varma—with the varma suffix. They claimed to belong to the bharadvaja clan.

 

It is a fact that during the times of these kings, the divine Tamil songs of appar, sundarar and gnana sambandar and tirumangai azhvar were composed. However, the stalwarts who composed these songs also came to support the Vedic traditions. It is totally unfair to group these stalwarts and the Tamil kings as part of the Dravidian lobby, in this distasteful Aryan versus Dravidian debates.

 

I am not saying these to establish that the Vedic traditions are superior. I am saying these with the only desire that everyone should live harmoniously without differences based on the firm understanding that, whether Vedic, or something else, whatever it was, the entire country followed the same basic tradition. More than supporting Vedas, my desire is that we should not have any differences among us. We must eschew the "race theories" that the british colonizers spread wrongly in order to divide and rule over us, and should not criticize and compete with each other. In addition, we should not also spread that there was as a special Tamil culture, which is not true. We also do not need to think that the Tamil culture of those days was not illustrious and therefore was subsumed in the Vedic traditions. It is also not necessary to attempt to reinstate the glory of the Tamil culture by project it as a separate tradition. I am telling these with the sincere wish that all of us from kailash to rameswaram should live as children and brothers of the same god – pareswara. In this great Tamil nadu, which has produced, perhaps, the maximum number of temples, and spiritual literature in the world, we should live amicably as children of the same mother for the millennium, without any animosities. At the same time, my prayer is that we should we should accept the truth while accommodating the various opinions. When I pray that there should be unity and peace in the entire world, I particularly pray to lord chandramouleeswara that the condemnations in Tamil nadu should go away and "unity" should become the motto for action.

 

If my discourse so far comprised anything offensive to anyone, I withdraw those offending words. My exhortations are with the good intention to promote unity and discourage disunity. There is no need to say something untrue to promote unity, and it is also not necessary to hide any truth to achieve unity. We should tell the truth and promote unity at the same time. When some extreme things happen, our views are considered only when we exhort. Fundamentally my desire and intention is that all of us should be united with love as the children of the lord—"aran kudi mahan".

 

I started to say about the first son (vigneswarar) of the lord (aran). For all of us to be united, vigneswarar's blessings are very important. Without our knowledge, he is doing this of course. Why I say so is, so far no one has given him a stamp as a "Tamil god". But in Tamil nadu, no other god form has more temples than him. Further, no other state has more ganesh temples than Tamil nadu. He has held us all together in devotion, without giving room for any "racial" thoughts. I pray that he, as the lord of the intellect, show all of us the correct righteous path of unity to our research, with out leading to any undesirable outcomes.