Sangam literature

{{Short description|Historic period of Tamil literature}} {{Use Indian English|date=October 2021}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}} [[File:WLA lacma 12th century Maharishi Agastya.jpg|thumb| Sculpture of the Ancient Tamil Siddhar [[Agastya]]r who is traditionally believed to have chaired the first [[Tamil Sangam]] in [[Madurai]] ]] The '''Sangam literature''' ([[Tamil language|Tamil]]: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam''), historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' ([[Tamil language|Tamil]]: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ''),<ref name="Kailas">{{cite book|author=K Kailasapathy|title=Tamil Heroic Poetry|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kF9kAAAAMAAJ |year=1968|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=9780198154341|pages=1}}</ref> connotes the early classical [[Tamil literature]] and is the earliest known literature of [[South India]]. The Tamil tradition and legends link it to [[Legendary Tamil Sangams|three legendary literary gatherings]] around [[Madurai]] and [[Kuadam|Kapāṭapuram]]: the first lasted over 4,440 years, the second over 3,700 years, and the third over 1,850 years.<ref name="Singh2008p27">{{cite book|author=Upinder Singh|title=A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3lUIIYxWkEC&pg=PA27 |year=2008|publisher=Pearson Education India|isbn=978-81-317-1120-0|pages=27–28}}</ref><ref name="Zvelebil1973p46">{{harvnb|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pages=45–49 with footnotes}}</ref> Scholars consider this Tamil tradition-based chronology as ahistorical and mythical.<ref>{{cite book |editor= Roma Chatterjee | title = India: Society, Religion and Literature in Ancient and Medieval Periods | publisher = Government of India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting | series = | volume = | edition = 1st| date = 2021 | location = New Delhi| language = |isbn = 978-93-5409-122-3 |page=73}}</ref> Most scholars suggest the historical Sangam literature era, also called the '''Sangam period''', spanned from {{circa|300 BCE}} to 300 CE,<ref name="Singh2008p27"/><ref>{{Cite book|last=Nadarajah|first=Devapoopathy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IZ7b6msS3kgC&q=info:Q1h0NSIwwIEJ:scholar.google.com/&pg=PR9|title=Love in Sanskrit and Tamil Literature: A Study of Characters and Nature, 200 B.C.-A.D. 500|date=1994|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publ.|isbn=978-81-208-1215-4|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=University|first=Vijaya Ramaswamy, Jawaharlal Nehru|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ALUvDwAAQBAJ&q=info:YtwrhAmuSNIJ:scholar.google.com/&pg=PR9|title=Historical Dictionary of the Tamils|date=2017-08-25|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-5381-0686-0|language=en}}</ref> while others variously place this early classical Tamil literature period a bit later and more narrowly but all before 300 CE.<ref name="Scharfe1977p178">{{cite book|author=Hartmut Scharfe|title=Grammatical Literature|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=2_VbnWkZ-SYC&pg=PA178|year=1977|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3-447-01706-0|pages=178–179}}</ref><ref name="Zvelebil1992p12">{{cite book|author=Kamil Zvelebil|title=Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qAPtq49DZfoC |year=1992|publisher=BRILL Academic|isbn=90-04-09365-6|pages=12–13}}</ref><ref name="Sastri1958p110">{{cite book|author=Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri|title=A history of South India from prehistoric times to the fall of Vijayanagar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ae6AAAAAIAAJ|year=1958 |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=110–112}}</ref> According to [[Kamil Zvelebil]], a Tamil literature and history scholar, the most acceptable range for the Sangam literature is 100 BCE to 250 CE, based on the linguistic, [[prosodic]] and quasi-historic allusions within the texts and the [[colophon (publishing)|colophon]]s.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=9–10 with footnotes}} and recent archaeological interpretations, particularly from the [[Keezhadi|Keeladi]] excavations, have suggested an earlier date of around 600 BCE, however, this proposal is based largely on [[radiocarbon dating]] and remains disputed, with no scholarly consensus.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2025-06-13 |title=India’s second urbanisation: It’s confirmed, Keeladi is as old as the Gangetic plains; radiocarbon dating traces site’s origins to 580BCE |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/indias-second-urbanisation-its-confirmed-keeladi-is-as-old-as-the-gangetic-plains-radiocarbon-dating-traces-sites-origins-to-580bce/articleshow/121817657.cms |access-date=2026-01-29 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>

The Sangam literature had fallen into oblivion for much of the second millennium of the common era, but were preserved by and rediscovered in the [[matha|monasteries]] of [[Hinduism]], near [[Kumbakonam]], by colonial-era scholars in the late nineteenth century.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=7–8 with footnotes}}<ref name=takahashi1>{{cite book|author=Takanobu Takahashi|title=Tamil Love Poetry and Poetics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wgCHuVGyZoEC|year=1995|publisher=BRILL Academic |isbn=90-04-10042-3|pages=1–3 with footnotes}}</ref> The rediscovered Sangam classical collection is largely a bardic corpus. It comprises an ''Urtext'' of oldest surviving Tamil grammar (Tolkappiyam), the Ettuttokai anthology (the "Eight Collections"), the Pathuppaattu anthology (the "Ten Songs").{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=9–10}} The Tamil literature that followed the Sangam period – that is, after {{circa|250 CE}} but before {{circa|600 CE}} – is generally called the "post-Sangam" literature.<ref name="Zvelebil1992p12"/>

This collection contains 2381 poems in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] composed by 473 poets, some 102 anonymous.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=9–10}}<ref>George L. Hart III, ''The Poems of Ancient Tamil,'' U of California P, 1975.</ref> Of these, 16 poets account for about 50% of the known Sangam literature,{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=9–10}} with [[Kapilar]] – the most prolific poet – alone contributing just little less than 10% of the entire corpus.<ref name=Shelby/> These poems vary between 3 and 782 lines long.<ref name=takahashi1/> The bardic poetry of the Sangam era is largely about love (''akam'') and war (''puram''), with the exception of the shorter poems such as in ''[[Paripaatal]]'' which is more religious and praise [[Vishnu]] and [[Murugan]].<ref name="Singh2008p27"/><ref>{{cite book|author=Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri|title=A history of South India from prehistoric times to the fall of Vijayanagar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ae6AAAAAIAAJ|year=1958 |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=110–119, 330–335}}</ref><ref name=britsangam>[https://www.britannica.com/art/shangam-literature Sangam Literature], Encyclopaedia Britannica (2011)</ref> The Sangam literature also includes [[Buddhist]] and [[Jainist]] epics.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}{{Sangam literature}}

== Legendary Tamil Sangams == {{Main|Tamil Sangams}}

''Sangam'' literally means "gathering, meeting, fraternity, academy". According to David Shulman, a scholar of Tamil language and literature, the Tamil tradition believes that the Sangam literature arose in distant antiquity over three periods, each stretching over many millennia.{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=27–28}} The first has roots in the Hindu deity [[Shiva]], his son [[Murugan]], [[Kubera]] as well as 545 sages including the famed [[Rigveda|Rigvedic]] poet [[Agastya]]. The first academy, states the legend, extended over four millennia and was located far to the south of modern city of Madurai, a location later "swallowed up by the sea", states Shulman.{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=27–28}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xlwoDwAAQBAJ&q=sangam|title=A Brief History of India|last=Daniélou|first=Alain|date=2003-02-11|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=9781594777943|language=en}}</ref> The second academy, also chaired by a very long-lived Agastya, was near the eastern seaside Kapāṭapuram and lasted three millennia. This was swallowed by floods. From the second Sangam, states the legend, the ''[[Akattiyam]]'' and the ''[[Tolkāppiyam]]'' survived and guided the third Sangam scholars.{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=27–28}}<ref name=":0" />

A prose commentary by Nakkiranar – likely about the eighth century CE – describes this legend.{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=25–28}} The earliest known mention of the Sangam legend, however, appears in ''Tirupputtur Tantakam'' by Appar in about the seventh century CE, while an extended version appears in the twelfth-century ''Tiruvilaiyatal puranam'' by Perumparrap Nampi.<ref name="Zvelebil1973p46"/> The legend states that the third Sangam of 449 poet scholars worked over 1,850 years in northern Madurai (Pandyan kingdom). He lists six anthologies of Tamil poems (later a part of ''Ettuttokai''):{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=25–28}} *''Netuntokai nanuru'' (400 long poems) *''Kuruntokai anuru'' (400 short poems) *''Narrinai'' (400 Tinai landscape poems) *''Purananuru'' (400 Outer poems) *''Ainkurunuru'' (500 very short poems) *''Patirruppattu'' (Ten Tens)

These claims of the Sangams and the description of sunken land masses [[Kumari Kandam]] have been dismissed as frivolous by historiographers. Noted historians like Kamil Zvelebil have stressed that the use of 'Sangam literature' to describe this corpus of literature is a misnomer and ''Classical'' literature should be used instead.<ref name="Zvelebil1973p46"/> According to Shulman, "there is not the slightest shred of evidence that any such [Sangam] literary academies ever existed", though there are many Pandya inscriptions that mention an academy of scholars. Of particular note, states Shulman, is the tenth-century CE Sinnamanur inscription that mentions a Pandyan king who sponsored the "translation of the ''[[Mahabharata]]'' into Tamil" and established a "Madhurapuri (Madurai) Sangam".{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=28–29}}{{refn|group=note|This is, however, not the first inscription to support the sangam legend. According to Eva Wilden, the first inscription to hint the existence of a "sangam" legend is found in the Erukkankuti plates of 829 CE. A part of this inscription says, "the lord of excellent Alankuti that is praised in the worlds, on the firm big bench of stone in Kutal [Maturai] with cool Tamil great in words". While the context and the last part about Kutal echoes the existence of a Tamil scholar academy in Madurai, it does not presuppose or confirm the existence of a full-fledged three sangam periods legend by the ninth century CE, states Wilden.{{sfn|Wilden|2014|p=12 with footnote 25}}}}

According to Zvelebil, within the myth there is a kernel of reality, and all literary evidence leads one to conclude that "such an academy did exist in Madurai (Maturai) at the beginning of the Christian era". The homogeneity of the prosody, language and themes in these poems confirms that the Sangam literature was a community effort, a "group poetry".{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=10–11}}{{refn|group=note|According to Zvelebil, the hypothesis proposed by some that the first and second academy may have referred to the Buddhist and Jaina monk assemblies can "hardly" be true. Rather, states Zvelebil, it is more likely that the first academy of poets existed sometime about 400–300 BCE – which he adds, is also a "purely speculative" conjecture. The persistence of three gods – Siva, Murukavel [Murugan] and Kubera – in the legendary account and the classical Tamil literature, states Zvelebil, suggests that the beginnings of Tamil literature and civilization were "closely connected with the cults" of these three gods in ancient Tamil Nadu.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1975|pp=59–61 with footnotes}}}} The Sangam literature is also referred sometimes with terms such as ''caṅka ilakkiyam'' or "Sangam age poetry".<ref name="Zvelebil1973p46"/>

== Historical Sangam period == [[File:South India in Sangam Period.jpg|thumb|right|South India in Sangam Period]] In [[Old Tamil|Old Tamil language]], the term [[Tamilakam]] (''Tamiḻakam'', ''[[Purananuru]]'' 168. 18) referred to the whole of the ancient Tamil-speaking area,<ref group=web name="Saju_2019_ToI"/> corresponding roughly to the area known as [[South India|southern India]] today, consisting of the territories of the present-day Indian states of [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Kerala]], parts of [[Andhra Pradesh]] and [[Karnataka]]. [[Sri Lanka]] is distinguished from it and is known as Ilam or [[Eelam]],{{sfnp|Manguin|Mani|Wade||2011|p=138}} although also influenced by the Sangam Period.{{sfnp|Wilson|2000|p=14}}{{sfnp|Shinu|2003}}<ref group=web name="Tamil_Society"/>{{refn|group=note|{{harvnb|Wilson|2000|p=14}}: "They had earlier felt secure in the concept of the Tamilakam, a vast area of "Tamilness" from the south of Dekhan in India to the north of Sri Lanka..."}}

In Indian history, the Sangam period or age ({{indic | lang=ta | defaultipa= |indic=சங்ககாலம் | trans=caṅkakālam | indicipa=}}) is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu and Kerala (then known as [[Tamilakam]]), and parts of Sri Lanka from {{circa|300 BCE}} to 300 CE.<ref group=web name="Jesudasan_2019_The_Hindu"/> It was named after the literature of poets and scholars of the legendary [[Tamil Sangams|Sangam academies]] centered in the city of [[Madurai]].{{sfnp|Anjali|2017|p=123–136}}

In the period between 300 BCE and 300 CE, Tamilakam was ruled by the three Tamil dynasties of [[Pandya]], [[Chola dynasty|Chola]] and [[Chera dynasty|Chera]], and a few independent chieftains, the [[Velirs|Velir]]. The evidence on the early history of the Tamil kingdoms consists of the epigraphs of the region, the Sangam literature, and archaeological data.{{sfnp|Shinu|2003}}

The fourfold Vedic system of caste hierarchy did not exist during the Sangam period. The society was organised by occupational groups living apart from each other.{{sfnp|Nath sen|1999|p=205}}

==Corpus== [[File:Puhar-ILango.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ilango Adigal]] is the author of ''[[Silappatikaram]],'' one of the [[The Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature|five great epics]] of [[Tamil literature]].{{sfnp|Rosen|1975}}]] {{Main|Sources of ancient Tamil history|Sangam literature|The Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature|Tamil history from Sangam literature}}

===Authors=== The Sangam literature was composed by 473 poets, some 102 anonymous.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=9–10}} According to Nilakanta Sastri, the poets came from diverse backgrounds: some were from a royal family, some merchants, some farmers.<ref name=sastri43/> At least 27 of the poets were women. These poets emerged, states Nilakanta Sastri, in a milieu where the Tamil society had already interacted and inseparably amalgamated with north Indians (Indo-Aryan) and both sides had shared mythology, values and literary conventions.<ref name=sastri43>{{cite journal|title= Sanskrit Elements in Early Tamil Literature| author = K. A. Nilakanta Sastri| journal= Proceedings of the Indian History Congress| volume= 13| year=1950| pages= 43–45| jstor=44140886}}</ref>

=== Compilations === {{Main|Sangam landscape}}

The available literature from this period was categorised and compiled in the tenth century CE into two categories based roughly on chronology. The categories are the ''[[Eighteen Greater Texts|Patiṉeṇmēlkaṇakku]]'' ("Eighteen Greater Texts") comprising ''[[Eight Anthologies|Ettuthogai]]'' (or ''Ettuttokai'', "Eight Anthologies") and the ''[[Ten Idylls|Pattuppāṭṭu]]'' ("Ten Idylls") and ''[[Eighteen Lesser Texts|Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku]]'' ("Eighteen Lesser Texts"). According to [[Takanobu Takahashi]], the compilation of Patiṉeṇmēlkaṇakku poems are as follows:<ref name=takahashi1/>

{| class="wikitable" align=center style = " background: transparent; " |+ ''Ettuttokai''<ref name=takahashi1/> |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px style="background: #ffad66;" | Name | width=40px | Extant poems | width=40px | Original poems | width= 50px | Lines in poems | width= 50px | Number of poets |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Natrrinai'' | width=40px | 400 | width=40px | 400 | width= 50px | 9–12 | width= 50px | 175 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Kuruntokai'' | width=40px | 402 | width=40px | 400 | width= 50px | 4–8 | width= 50px | 205 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Ainkurunuru'' | width=40px | 499 | width=40px | 500 | width= 50px | 3–6 | width= 50px | 5 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px |''Patirruppattu'' | width=40px | 86 | width=40px | 10x10 | width= 50px | varies | width= 50px | 8 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Paripatal'' | width=40px | 33 | width=40px | 70 | width= 50px | varies | width= 50px | 13 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Kalittokai'' | width=40px | 150 | width=40px | 150 | width= 60px | varies | width= 50px | 5 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Akananuru'' | width=40px | 401 | width=40px | 400 | width= 60px | 12–31 | width= 50px | 145 |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Purananuru'' | width=40px | 398 | width=40px | 400 | width= 60px | varies | width= 50px | 157 |}

{| class="wikitable" align=center style = " background: transparent; " |+ ''Pattuppattu''<ref name=takahashi1/> |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px style="background: #ffad66;" | Name | width= 50px | Lines | width= 50px | Author |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Tirumurukarruppatai'' | width= 50px | 317 | width= 50px | Nakkirar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Porunararruppatai'' | width= 50px | 234 | width= 50px | Mutattamakkanniyar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Cirupanarruppatai'' | width= 50px | 296 | width= 50px | Nattattanar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Perumpanarruppatai'' | width= 50px | 500 | width= 50px | Uruttirankannaiyar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Mullaippattu'' | width= 50px | 103 | width= 50px | Napputanar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Maturaikkanci'' | width= 50px | 782 | width= 50px | Mankuti Marutanar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Netunalvatai'' | width= 50px | 188 | width= 50px | Nakkirar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Kurincippattu'' | width= 50px | 261 | width= 50px | Kapilar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Pattinappalai'' | width= 50px | 301 | width= 50px | Uruttirankannanar |-style="text-align: center;" | width=120px | ''Malaipatukatam'' | width= 50px | 583 | width= 50px | Perunkaucikanar |}

The compilation of poems from Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku are as follows:

* ''[[Nālaṭiyār]]'' * ''[[Nāṉmaṇikkaṭikai]]'' * ''[[Iṉṉā Nāṟpatu]]'' * ''[[Iṉiyavai Nāṟpatu]]'' * ''[[Kār Nāṟpatu]]'' * ''[[Kaḷavaḻi Nāṟpatu]]'' * ''[[Aintiṇai Aimpatu]]'' * ''[[Tiṉaimoḻi Aimpatu]]'' * ''[[Aintinai Eḻupatu]]'' * ''[[Tiṉaimalai Nūṟṟu Aimpatu]]'' * ''[[Tirukkuṛaḷ]]'' * ''[[Tirikaṭukam]]'' * ''[[Ācārakkōvai]]'' * ''[[Paḻamoḻi Nāṉūṟu]]'' * ''[[Ciṟupañcamūlam]]'' * ''[[Mutumoḻikkānci]]'' * ''[[Elāti]]'' * ''[[Kainnilai]]''

=== Classification === Sangam literature is broadly classified into '''akam''' ({{lang|ta|அகம்}}, inner), and '''puram''' ({{lang|ta|புறம்}}, outer).<ref name="Manninezhath1993p78"/> The ''akam'' poetry is about emotions and feelings in the context of romantic love, sexual union and eroticism. The ''puram'' poetry is about exploits and heroic deeds in the context of war and public life.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|pp=10–11}}<ref name="Manninezhath1993p78">{{cite book|author=Thomas Manninezhath|title=Harmony of Religions: Vedānta Siddhānta Samarasam of Tāyumānavar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uE4-veDrY7AC&pg=PA78 |year=1993|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1001-3|pages=78–79}}</ref> Approximately three-fourths of the Sangam poetry is ''akam'' themed, and about one fourth is ''puram''.<ref name=takahashi2>{{cite book|author=Takanobu Takahashi|title=Tamil Love Poetry and Poetics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wgCHuVGyZoEC|year=1995|publisher=BRILL Academic |isbn=90-04-10042-3|pages=3–5 with footnotes}}</ref>

Sangam literature, both ''akam'' and ''puram'', can be subclassified into seven minor genre called ''tiṇai'' (திணை). This minor genre is based on the location or landscape in which the poetry is set.<ref name=takahashi2/> These are: ''kuṟiñci'' (குறிஞ்சி), mountainous regions; ''mullai'' (முல்லை), pastoral forests; ''marutam'' (மருதம்), riverine agricultural land; ''neytal'' (நெய்தல்) coastal regions; ''pālai'' (பாலை) arid.<ref name=takahashi2/>{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=50–56}} In addition to the landscape based ''tiṇai''s, for ''akam'' poetry, ''ain-tinai'' (well matched, mutual love), ''kaikkilai'' (ill matched, one sided), and ''perunthinai'' (unsuited, big genre) categories are used.<ref name=takahashi2/> The ''Ainkurunuru'' – 500 short poems anthology – is an example of mutual love poetry.<ref name=Shelby>{{cite book | editor-last=Selby | editor-first=Martha Ann | title=Tamil Love Poetry | publisher=Columbia University Press | location=New York Chichester, West Sussex | date=2011-01-31 | isbn=978-0-231-52158-1 | doi=10.7312/selb15064 }}</ref>

Similar ''tiṇai''s pertain to ''puram'' poems as well, categories are sometimes based on activity: ''vetchi'' (cattle raid), ''vanchi'' (invasion, preparation for war), ''kanchi'' (tragedy), ''ulinai'' (siege), ''tumpai'' (battle), ''vakai'' (victory), ''paataan'' (elegy and praise), ''karanthai'' , and ''pothuviyal''.<ref name=takahashi2/> The ''akam'' poetry uses metaphors and imagery to set the mood, never uses names of person or places, often leaves the context as well that the community will fill in and understand given their [[oral tradition]]. The ''puram'' poetry is more direct, uses names and places, states Takanobu Takahashi.<ref>{{cite book|author=Takanobu Takahashi|title=Tamil Love Poetry and Poetics|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=wgCHuVGyZoEC| year=1995|publisher= BRILL Academic |isbn=90-04-10042-3|pages=5–9 with footnotes}}</ref>

===Style and prosody=== The early Sangam poetry diligently follows two meters, while the later Sangam poetry is a bit more diverse.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=65–71 with footnotes}}<ref>{{cite book|author=Kamil Zvelebil|title=Classical Tamil Prosody: An Introduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wYAOAAAAYAAJ|year=1989|publisher=New Era Publications|pages=1–7, 50–55|isbn=9780836424591 }}</ref> The two meters found in the early poetry are ''akaval'' and ''vanci''.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=65–68}} The fundamental metrical unit in these is the ''acai'' (metreme<ref name="Niklas1988p165"/>), itself of two types – ''ner'' and ''nirai''. The ''ner'' is the stressed/long syllable in European prosody tradition, while the ''nirai'' is the unstressed/short syllable combination ([[pyrrhic]] (dibrach) and [[Iamb (poetry)|iambic]]) metrical feet, with similar equivalents in the Sanskrit prosody tradition.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=65–68}} The ''acai'' in the Sangam poems are combined to form a ''cir'' (foot), while the ''cir'' are connected to form a ''talai'', while the line is referred to as the ''ati''.<ref name="Mariaselvam1988">{{cite book|author=Abraham Mariaselvam|title=The Song of Songs and Ancient Tamil Love Poems: Poetry and Symbolism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9TULZX3SY18C&pg=PA124 |year=1988 |publisher=Gregorian |isbn=978-88-7653-118-7 |pages=124–127 with footnotes}}</ref> The ''[[sutra]]s'' of the ''Tolkappiyam'' – particularly after ''sutra'' 315 – state the prosody rules, enumerating the 34 component parts of ancient Tamil poetry.<ref name="Mariaselvam1988"/>

The prosody of an example early Sangam poem is illustrated by ''Kuruntokai'':{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=66–67}}

{{Hinduism|state=autocollapse}}{{Jainism|state=autocollapse}}{{Quote| <poem> ''ciṟuveḷ ḷaravi ṉavvarik kuruḷai'' ''kāṉa yāṉai aṇaṅki yāaṅ'' ''kiḷaiyaṇ muḷaivā ḷeyiṟṟaḷ '' ''vaḷaiyuṭaik kaiyaḷem maṇaṅki yōḷē'' :– ''Kuruntokai 119'', Author: Catti Nataanr </poem> }}

The prosodic pattern in this poem follows the 4-4-3-4 feet per line, according to ''akaval'', also called ''aciriyam'', Sangam meter rule:{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=66–67}} {{Quote| <poem> = – / = – / – = / = – – – / – – / = – / – – = – / = – / = – = = / – = / = – / – –<br> Note: "=" is a ''ner'', while "–" is a ''nirai'' in Tamil terminology. </poem> }} A literal translation of ''Kuruntokai 119'':{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=66–67}} {{Quote| <poem> :little-white-snake of lovely-striped young-body :jungle elephant troubling like :the young-girl sprouts-brightness toothed-female :bangle(s) possessing hand(s)-female" ::– Translator: Kamil Zvelebil </poem> }} English interpretation and translation of ''Kuruntokai 119'':{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=66–67}} {{Quote| <poem> :As a little white snake :with lovely stripes on its young body :troubles the jungle elephant ::this slip of a girl ::her teeth like sprouts of new rice ::her wrists stacked with bangles ::troubles me. :::– Creative translator: A.K. Ramanujan (1967) </poem> }}

This metrical pattern, states Zvelebil, gives the Sangam poetry a "wonderful conciseness, terseness, pithiness", then an inner tension that is resolved at the end of the stanza.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=71–72}} The metrical patterns within the ''akaval'' meter in early Sangam poetry has minor variations.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=67–72}} The later Sangam era poems follow the same general meter rules, but sometimes feature 5 lines (4-4-4-3-4).<ref name="Niklas1988p165">{{cite journal | last=Niklas | first=Ulrike | title=Introduction to Tamil Prosody | journal=Bulletin de l'École française d'Extrême-Orient | publisher=PERSEE, France | volume=77 | issue=1 | year=1988 | issn=0336-1519 | doi=10.3406/befeo.1988.1744 | pages=165–227 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Tschacher | first=Thorsten | title=Method and Theory in the Study of Caṅkam (Sangam) Literature | journal=Orientalistische Literaturzeitung | publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH | volume=106 | issue=1 | year=2011 | pages=4–14 | doi=10.1524/olzg.2011.0002 | s2cid=163609253 }}</ref>{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=83–84}} The later Sangam age texts employ other meters as well, such as the Kali meter in ''Kalittokai'' and the mixed Paripatal meter in ''Paripatal''.{{sfn|Wilden|2014|pp=13–15 with footnotes}}

== Preservation and rediscovery == [[File:Palm-leaf manuscript, ancient and medieval Tamil literature (partly Sangam era), Languages in the manuscript Tamil Telugu Sanskrit, Scripts Grantha Telugu Tamil, Hindu Shaivism monastery, UVSL 589.jpg|thumb|upright=2.4|A [[palm-leaf manuscript]] (UVSL 589) with 100 folios, handwritten in miniature scripts by Shaiva Hindus. This multi-text manuscript includes many Tamil texts, including the Sangam era ''Tirumurukāṟṟuppaṭai''. The folio languages include mainly Tamil and Sanskrit, with some Telugu; scripts include Tamil, Grantha and Telugu. It is currently preserved in U.V. Swaminatha Aiyar library in Chennai.<ref>Jonas Buchholz and Giovanni Ciotti (2017), ''What a Multiple-text Manuscript Can Tell Us about the Tamil Scholarly Tradition: The Case of UVSL 589'', Manuscri[pt Cultures, Vol. 10, Editors: Michael Friedrich and Jorg Quenzer, Universitat Hamburg, pages 129–142</ref>{{refn|group=note|The private U.V. Swaminatha Aiyar library preserves the largest collection of Sangam era-related manuscripts. Other notable collections of Sangam literature manuscripts are found in the Saraswati Mahal library and the Tamil University manuscript library in [[Thanjavur]] (Tamil Nadu), the Oriental Research Institute and Manuscript library of [[Thiruvananthapuram]] (Kerala), as well as the private collections in old Hindu temples and monasteries. Less than 50% of all preserved palm leaf manuscripts, copied over the centuries over nearly 2,000 years, are in the Tamil language; the majority of these manuscripts preserved in Tamil Nadu and Kerala are in Sanskrit and Telugu (some Malayalam). Sangam literature manuscript collections typically include all three languages.{{sfn|Wilden|2014|pp=35–39}} A few thousand of the Sangam and post-Sangam era manuscripts in Tamil language are now preserved in various European and American collections.{{sfn|Wilden|2014|pp=35–39}}}}]] The works of Sangam literature were lost and forgotten for most of the 2nd millennium. They were rediscovered by colonial-era scholars such as [[Arumuka Navalar]] (1822–1879), [[C. W. Thamotharampillai|C.W. Damodaram Pillai]] (1832–1901) and [[U. V. Swaminatha Iyer|U. V. Swaminatha Aiyar]] (1855–1942).<ref>"Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature", Kamil V. Zvelebil</ref>

[[Arumuka Navalar]] from [[Jaffna]] first inaugurated the modern editions of Tamil classics, publishing a fine edition of [[Tirukkuṟaḷ]] by 1860.<ref>A.R. Venkatachalapathy, ''Enna Prayocanam?' Constructing the canon in colonial Tamilnadu'', Indian Economic Social History Review 2005 42:535, p544</ref> Navalar – who translated the Bible into Tamil while working as an assistant to a Methodist Christian missionary, chose to defend and popularize [[Shaivism|Shaiva Hinduism]] against missionary polemics, in part by bringing ancient Tamil and [[Shaivism|Shaiva]] literature to wider attention.<ref name="Hudson1996">{{cite book|author=Dennis Hudson|editor=Raymond Brady Williams|title=A Sacred Thread: Modern Transmission of Hindu Traditions in India and Abroad|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3VV0VntTpvMC |year=1996 |publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-10779-2|pages=23–37}}</ref> He brought the first Sangam text into print in 1851 (''[[Tirumurukāṟṟuppaṭai]]'', one of the [[Ten Idylls]]). In 1868, Navalar published an early commentary on ''Tolkappiyam''.{{sfn|Shulman|2016|pp=301–303}}

[[C. W. Thamotharampillai|C.W. Damodaram Pillai]], also from [[Jaffna]], was the earliest scholar to systematically hunt for long-lost manuscripts and publish them using modern tools of textual criticism.<ref>A.R. Venkatachalapathy, ''Enna Prayocanam?' Constructing the canon in colonial Tamilnadu'', Indian Economic Social History Review 2005 42:535, p544</ref> These included:

* Viracoliyam (1881) * [[Iraiyanar Akapporul]] (1883) * [[Tolkappiyam]]-Porulatikaram (1885) * [[Kalittokai]] (1887) - the first of the Eight Anthologies (''[[Eṭṭuttokai]]'').

[[U. V. Swaminatha Iyer|Aiyar]] – a Tamil scholar and a [[Shaivism|Shaiva]] pundit, in particular, is credited with his discovery of major collections of the Sangam literature in 1883. During his personal visit to the Thiruvavaduthurai Adhinam – a Shaiva matha about twenty kilometers northeast of [[Kumbhakonam]], he reached out to the monastery head Subrahmanya Desikar for access to its large library of preserved manuscripts. Desikar granted Aiyar permission to study and publish any manuscripts he wanted.<ref name=takahashi1/> There, Aiyar discovered a major source of preserved palm-leaf manuscripts of Sangam literature.<ref name=takahashi1/><ref>{{cite book|author=Kamil Zvelebil|author-link= Kamil Zvelebil|editor=Jan Gonda|title=Handbook of Oriental Studies: Tamil Literature|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Kx4uqyts2t4C |year=1975|publisher=BRILL Academic|isbn=90-04-04190-7|pages=108–109 with footnote 129|ref=none}}</ref> Aiyar published his first print of the [[Ten Idylls]] in 1889.

Together, these scholars printed and published ''[[Kalittokai]]'' (1887), ''[[Tholkappiyam]]'', ''Nachinarkiniyar Urai'' (1895), ''Tholkappiyam Senavariyar urai'' (1868), ''[[Manimekalai]]'' (1898), ''[[Silappatikaram]]'' (1889), ''[[Ten Idylls|Pattuppāṭṭu]]'' (1889), ''[[Patiṟṟuppattu]]'' (1889). ''[[Puṟanāṉūṟu]]'' (1894), ''[[Aiṅkurunūṟu]]'' (1903), ''[[Kuṟuntokai]]'' (1915), ''[[Naṟṟiṇai]]'' (1915), ''[[Paripāṭal]]'' (1918) and ''[[Akanāṉūṟu]]'' (1923) all with scholarly commentaries. They published more than 100 works in all, including minor poems.

==Significance== The Sangam literature is the historic evidence of indigenous literary developments in South India in parallel to [[Sanskrit]], and the classical status of the Tamil language. While there is no evidence for the first and second mythical Sangams, the surviving literature attests to a group of scholars centered around the ancient [[Madurai]] (Maturai) that shaped the "literary, academic, cultural and linguistic life of ancient Tamil Nadu", states Zvelebil.{{sfnm|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|1pp=45-46|Shulman|2016|2pp=28–30}} On their significance, Zvelebil quotes [[A. K. Ramanujan]], "In their antiquity and in their contemporaneity, there is not much else in any Indian literature equal to these quiet and dramatic Tamil poems. In their values and stances, they represent a mature classical poetry: passion is balanced by courtesy, transparency by ironies and nuances of design, impersonality by vivid detail, austerity of line by richness of implication. These poems are not just the earliest evidence of the Tamil genius."{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|p=47}}

The Sangam literature offers a window into some aspects of the ancient Tamil culture, secular and religious beliefs, and the people. For example, in the Sangam era ''Ainkurunuru'' poem 202 is one of the earliest mentions of "pigtail of [[Brahmin]] boys".{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|p=51}} These poems also allude to historical incidents, ancient Tamil kings, the effect of war on loved ones and households.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=51-56}} The ''Pattinappalai'' poem in the Ten Idylls group, for example, paints a description of the Chola capital, the king Karikal, the life in a harbor city with ships and merchandise for seafaring trade, the dance troupes, the bards and artists, the worship of the Hindu god [[Vishnu]], [[Murugan]] and the monasteries of Buddhism and Jainism. This Sangam era poem remained in the active memory and was significant to the Tamil people centuries later, as evidenced by its mention nearly 1,000 years later in the 11th- and 12th-century inscriptions and literary work.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=57-58}}

Sangam literature embeds evidence of loan words from Sanskrit, suggesting on-going linguistic and literary collaboration between ancient Tamil Nadu and other parts of the Indian subcontinent.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=5–8, 51-56}}{{refn|group=note|This collaboration was two way, and evidence for this is found in the earliest known Hindu scripture, the ''[[Rigveda]]'' (1500–1200 BCE). About 300 words in the ''Rigveda'' are neither Indo-Aryan nor Indo-European, states the Sanskrit and Vedic literature scholar [[Frits Staal]].<ref name="Staal2008p23"/> Of these 300, many – such as ''kapardin'', ''kumara'', ''kumari'', ''kikata'' – come from Munda or proto-Munda languages found in the eastern and northeastern (Assamese) region of India, with roots in Austro-Asiatic languages. The others in the list of 300 – such as ''mleccha'' and ''nir'' – have Dravidian (Tamil, Telugu) roots found in the southern region of India, or are of Tibeto-Burman origins.<ref name="Staal2008p23">{{cite book|author=Frits Staal|title=Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HcE23SjLX8sC|year=2008|publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-0-14-309986-4|pages=23–24}}</ref><ref name="HockBashir2016">{{cite book|author=Franklin C Southworth|editor1-last=Hock|editor1-first=Hans Henrich|editor1-link=Hans Henrich Hock|editor2-last=Bashir|editor2-first=Elena|editor2-link=Elena Bashir|title=The Languages and Linguistics of South Asia: A Comprehensive Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PSFBDAAAQBAJ |year=2016|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|isbn=978-3-11-042330-3|pages=252–255}}</ref> The linguistic sharing provide clear indications, states [[Michael Witzel]], that the people who spoke Rigvedic Sanskrit already knew and interacted with Munda and Dravidian speakers.<ref name="Erdosy2012p98">{{cite book|author=Michael Witzel|editor=George Erdosy|title=The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OZ0gAAAAQBAJ |year=2012|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|isbn=978-3-11-081643-3|pages=98–110 with footnotes}}, Quote (p. 99): "Although the Middle/Late Vedic periods are the earliest for which we can reconstruct a linguistic map, the situation even at the time of the Indus Civilisation and certainly during the time of the ''earliest texts of the Rigveda'', cannot have been very different. There are clear indications that the speakers of Rigvedic Sanskrit knew, and interacted with, Dravidian and Munda speakers."</ref>}} One of the early loan words, for example, is ''acarya–'' from Sanskrit for a "spiritual guide or teacher", which in Sangam literature appears as ''aciriyan'' (priest, teacher, scholar), ''aciriyam'' or ''akavar'' or ''akaval'' or ''akavu'' (a poetic meter).{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=13–14}}{{refn|group=note|According to George Hart, other than loan words, it is obvious to any scholar who has studied both classical Sanskrit and classical Tamil that the mid to late Sangam literature (1st to 3rd century CE) and ancient Sanskrit literature are related. However, adds Hart, the earliest layer of the Sangam literature "does not seem to be much influenced by Sanskrit".<ref>{{cite book|author=George L. Hart|title=The Relation Between Tamil and Classical Sanskrit Literature|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VqE5c4QAs9gC&pg=PA317|year=1976|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3-447-01785-5|pages=317–326}}</ref>}}

The Sangam poetry focuses on the culture and people. It is religious as well as non-religious, as there are several mentions of the Hindu gods and more substantial mentions of various gods in the shorter poems. The 33 surviving poems of ''Paripaatal'' in the "Eight Anthologies" group praises [[Vishnu]], [[Durga]] and [[Murugan]].<ref name="Singh2008p27"/><ref name=britsangam/>{{refn|group=note|Other Sangam poems mention gods and goddesses. For example, ''Purananuru 23'', ''Akananuru 22'', ''Tirumurukarruppatai 83–103'' and others mention god Murugan, his wife Valli, the iconographic peacock, and the Vedas; Murugan's mother – goddess Korravai (Amma, Uma, Parvati, Durga) is mentioned in ''Akananuru 345'', ''Kalittokai 89'', ''Perumpanarruppatai 459'' and elsewhere. She is both a mother goddess and the goddess of war and victory in Sangam poetry.<ref name="rf108">{{cite book|author=Ronald Ferenczi|editor=Róbert Válóczi|title=Goddess Woman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d3kyuwEACAAJ |year=2019|publisher=Museum of Fine Art Budapest, Hungarian National Gallery|isbn=978-615-5304-84-2|pages=108–111}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Hart III | first=George L. | title=Woman and the Sacred in Ancient Tamilnad | journal=The Journal of Asian Studies | publisher=Cambridge University Press | volume=32 | issue=2 | year=1973 | doi=10.2307/2052342 | pages=233–250| jstor=2052342 | s2cid=163785902 }}</ref>}} Similarly, the 150 poems of ''Kalittokai'' – also from the Eight Anthologies group – mention Krishna, Shiva, Murugan, various Pandava brothers of the ''Mahabharata'', Kama, goddesses such as Ganga, divine characters from classical love stories of India.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=123-128}} One of the poems also mentions the "merciful men of [[Varanasi|Benares]]", an evidence of interaction between the northern holy city of the Hindus with the Sangam poets.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=123-128}} Some of the ''Paripaatal'' love poems are set in the context of bathing festivals ([[Magh Mela]]) and various Hindu gods. They mention temples and shrines, confirming the significance of such cultural festivals and architectural practices to the Tamil culture.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=123-128}}

[[Religion in ancient Tamilakam|Religion in the Sangam age]] was an important reason for the increase in [[Tamil Literature]]. Ancient [[Tamils]] Primarily followed [[Vaishnavism]] (who consider Vishnu as the Supreme Deity) and [[Kaumaram]] (who worship Murugan as the Supreme god). According to [[Kamil Zvelebil]], [[Vishnu]] was considered ageless (The god who stays forever) and the Supreme god of [[Tamils]] whereas [[Kartikeya|Skanda]] was considered young and a personal god of [[Tamils]].<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OQ33i496MsIC&pg=PA48 | title=Tamil Literature | isbn=9783447015820 | last1=Zvelebil | first1=Kamil | date=22 October 1974 | publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag }}</ref><ref>A HISTORY OF INDIAN LITERATURE volume 10 TAMIL LITERATURE page number 49 written by Kamil Zvelebil</ref>

[[Perumal (deity)|Mayon]] is indicated to be the deity associated with the ''mullai tiṇai'' (pastoral landscape) in the [[Tolkāppiyam|Tolkappiyam]].<ref name="Hardy 156">{{Cite book |last=Hardy |first=Friedhelm |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XY42EAAAQBAJ&dq=mayon+mullai&pg=PA156 |title=Viraha Bhakti: The Early History of Krsna Devotion |date=2015-01-01 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-3816-1 |pages=156 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Clothey 34">{{Cite book |last=Clothey |first=Fred W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PC2aDwAAQBAJ&dq=Tirum%C4%81l&pg=PA34 |title=The Many Faces of Murukan: The History and Meaning of a South Indian God. With the Poem Prayers to Lord Murukan |date=2019-05-20 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=978-3-11-080410-2 |pages=34 |language=en}}</ref> Tolkappiyar mentions [[Vishnu|Mayon]] first when he made reference to deities in the different land divisions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ckrishnamurti.tripod.com/chap2a.html|title=2. The Sangam Period|author=Dr.C.R.Krishnamurti|work=tripod.com}}</ref> The ''Paripādal'' ({{langx|ta|பரிபாடல்}}, meaning ''the paripadal-metre anthology'') is a classical [[Tamil language|Tamil]] poetic work and traditionally the fifth of the [[Eight Anthologies]] (''Ettuthokai'') in the Sangam literature.{{CN|date=August 2023}} According to [[Tolkappiyam]], Paripadal is a kind of verse dealing only with love (''akapporul'') and does not fall under the general classification of verses. Sangam literature (200 BCE to 500 CE) mentions ''[[Vishnu|Mayon]]'' or the "dark one," as the Supreme deity who creates, sustains, and destroys the universe and was worshipped in the Plains and mountains of [[Tamilakam]].The Earliest verses of [[Paripāṭal|Paripadal]] describe the glory of Perumal in the most poetic of terms. Many Poems of the [[Paripāṭal|Paripadal]] consider [[Vishnu|Perumal]] as the Supreme god of [[Tamils]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/religion/in-praise-of-vishnu/article6245959.ece | title=In praise of Vishnu | newspaper=The Hindu | date=24 July 2014 }}</ref> He is regarded to be the only deity who enjoyed the status of ''Paramporul'' (achieving oneness with [[Paramatman|Paramatma]]) during the [[Sangam period|Sangam age]]. He is also known as Māyavan, Māmiyon, Netiyōn, and Māl in Sangam literature and considered as the most mentioned god in the Sangam literature.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Padmaja |first=T. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pzgaS1wRnl8C&dq=mayon+sangam&pg=PA27 |title=Temples of Kr̥ṣṇa in South India: History, Art, and Traditions in Tamilnāḍu |date=2002 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |isbn=978-81-7017-398-4 |pages=27 |language=en}}</ref>

''[[Muruga|Cēyōṉ]]'' "the red one", who is identified with [[Murugan]], whose name is literally ''Murukaṉ'' "the youth" in the ''[[Tolkāppiyam]]''; Extant Sangam literature works, dated between the third century BCE and the fifth century CE glorified Murugan, "the red god seated on the blue peacock, who is ever young and resplendent," as "the favoured god of the Tamils."<ref name="sangam">Kanchan Sinha, Kartikeya in Indian art and literature, Delhi: Sundeep Prakashan (1979).</ref> There are no mentions of [[Shaivism]] in [[Tolkāppiyam|Tolkappiyam]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjoRAAAAYAAJ&q=tolkappiyam+varuna |title=Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 1 |date=1969 |publisher=International Institute of Tamil Studies |page=131 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171113060321/https://books.google.no/books?id=ZjoRAAAAYAAJ&q=tolkappiyam+varuna&dq=tolkappiyam+varuna&hl=no&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiloMXV6bnXAhXiDZoKHXyuDMAQ6AEILTAB |archive-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all}}</ref> [[Shiva]] and [[Brahma]] are said to be forms Of [[Vishnu|Maha Vishnu]] and considers Vishnu as The Supreme god in [[Paripāṭal]].<ref>Paripāṭal Poem 1 Line 50 to 56 ஐந்தலை உயிரிய அணங்குடை அருந்திறல் மைந்துடை ஒருவனும்– you are the one with five heads who causes great fear and is one of great ability and strength – Sivan, மடங்கலும்நீ – one where all lives end, நலம் முழுது அளைஇய – with all benefits, புகர்அறு காட்சிப் புலமும்– faultless learning – Vēdās, பூவனும் – you are Brahman who appeared on a flower, நாற்றமும்நீ – you are creation created by Brahman, வலன் உயர் எழிலியும் – clouds that rise up with strength, ��ாக விசும்பும் – wide sky, நிலனும்– land, நீடிய இமயமும்– and the tall Himalayas, நீ– you, அதனால் – so, இன்னோர் அனையை– like so and so, இனையையால்– like somebody, என– thus, அன்னோர் – those, யாம் இவண் காணாமையின் – I have not seen here, பொன் அணி நேமி – wheels decorated with gold, வலம் கொண்டு ஏந்திய – lifting on your right side or lifting with strength, மன்னுயிர் முதல்வனை – you are supreme to all the living beings on the Earth.</ref>

There are two poems depicted as example of [[Bhakti]] in Ancient [[Tamil Nadu]], one in the praise of [[Maha Vishnu]] and other of [[Murugan]]

To Tirumal ([[Vishnu|Maha Vishnu]]):

{{Verse translation|italicsoff=y| {{lang|ta|தீயினுள் தெறல் நீ; பூவினுள் நாற்றம் நீ; கல்லினுள் மணியும் நீ; சொல்லினுள் வாய்மை நீ; அறத்தினுள் அன்பு நீ; மறத்தினுள் மைந்து நீ; வேதத்து மறை நீ; பூதத்து முதலும் நீ; வெஞ் சுடர் ஒளியும் நீ; திங்களுள் அளியும் நீ; அனைத்தும் நீ; அனைத்தின் உட்பொருளும் நீ;}} |attr1=''Paripadal, iii: 63-68''| In fire, you are the heat; in blossoms, the fragrance; among the stones, you are the diamond; in speech, truth; among virtues, you are love; in valour—strength; in the Veda, you are the secret; among elements, the primordial; in the burning sun, the light; in moonshine, its sweetness; you are all, and you are the substance and meaning of all. |attr2=F Gros, K Zvelebil{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|p=49}}}}

To Seyyon ([[Murugan|Skandha]]): {{Quote| <poem> We pray you not for wealth, not for gold, not for pleasure; But for your grace, for love, for virtue, these three, O god with the rich garland of ''kaṭampu'' flowers with rolling clusters! </poem> – ''Pari. v.: 78–81''{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1974|p=49}} }}

The other gods also referred to in the ''[[Tolkāppiyam|Tolkappiyam]]'' are ''Vēntaṉ'' "the sovereign" (identified with [[Indra]]) and ''[[Korravai]]'' "the victorious" (identified with [[Durga]]) and [[Varuna|''Varunan'']] "the sea god".<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjoRAAAAYAAJ&q=tolkappiyam+varuna |title=Journal of Tamil Studies, Volume 1 |date=1969 |publisher=International Institute of Tamil Studies |page=131 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171113060321/https://books.google.no/books?id=ZjoRAAAAYAAJ&q=tolkappiyam+varuna&dq=tolkappiyam+varuna&hl=no&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiloMXV6bnXAhXiDZoKHXyuDMAQ6AEILTAB |archive-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

The Sangam literature also emphasized on fair governance by kings, who were often described as Sengol-valavan, the king who established just rule; the king was warned by priests that royal injustice would lead to divine punishment; and the handing over of a royal [[scepter]], the [[Sengol]], denoting a decree to rule fairly, finds mention in texts such as the Purananooru, Kurunthogai, Perumpaanatrupadai, and Kalithogai.<ref>{{cite book |last=Balasubrahmanyam |first= S |title=Middle Chola Temples Rajaraja I to Kulottunga I (A.D. 985-1070) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dufVAAAAMAAJ |year=1977|publisher=Oriental Press |isbn=9789060236079 | page=291}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Charan |first=Sai |date=2023-05-24 |title=The Sengol — A historic sceptre with a deep Tamil Nadu connection |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/sengol-a-historic-sceptre-with-a-deep-tamil-nadu-connection/article66888264.ece |website=thehindu.com }}</ref>

Further, the colophons of the ''Paripaatal'' poems mention music and tune, signifying the development and the importance of musical arts in ancient Tamil Nadu. According to Zvelebil, these poems were likely from the late Sangam era (2nd or 3rd century CE) and attest to a sophisticated and prosperous ancient civilization.{{sfn|Kamil Zvelebil|1973|pp=123-128}}

== Modern musical renditions == The first music album on Tamil Sangam poetry titled [[Sandham: Symphony Meets Classical Tamil]] by Composer [[Rajan Somasundaram|Raleigh Rajan]] in collaboration with Durham Symphony, featured in Amazon's Top#10 'International Music albums' category in July 2020 and was called "A Major event in the world of Music" by The Hindu Music review.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hindutamil.in/news/supplements/541792-sandham.html |title=A Major event in the world of Music- The Hindu Music Review |date=28 February 2020 |publisher=The Hindu Tamil |access-date=2020-03-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/for-this-us-based-music-composer-sangam-poetry-brings-a-full-circle-moment/article69234187.ece|access-date=2020-03-02}}</ref>

Sangam poems are often quoted and paraphrased in modern Tamil cinema.<ref>Sangam poems in contemporary songs https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2017/mar/26/sangam-poems-in-contemporary-songs-1586219.html</ref><ref>Narumugaiye - A.R.Rahman - Mirchi Unplugged Season 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QatLrdzalew</ref>

== See also == {{Portal|Literature}}

* [[Project Madurai]]: open access Tamil literature repository * [[List of historic Indian texts]] * [[Tamilakam|Tamiḻakam]] * [[First Sangam]] * [[Second Sangam]] * [[Tamil Sangams]] * [[List of Sangam poets]] * [[Vaishnavism in Ancient Tamilakam]]

== Notes == {{reflist|group=note}}

== References == {{reflist}}

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;Web-sources {{reflist|group=web|refs=   <ref group=web name="Jesudasan_2019_The_Hindu">{{Cite news|last=Jesudasan|first=Dennis S.|date=2019-09-20|title=Keezhadi excavations: Sangam era older than previously thought, finds study|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/keeladi-findings-traceable-to-6th-century-bc-report/article29461583.ece|access-date=2021-08-12|issn=0971-751X}}</ref>   <ref group=web name="Saju_2019_ToI">{{Cite web|date=September 20, 2019|first=M. T. |last=Saju |title=Carbon dating confirms Keeladi 3 centuries older |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/carbon-dating-confirms-keeladi-3-centuries-older/articleshow/71209468.cms|access-date=2021-02-08|website=The Times of India|language=en}}</ref>   <ref group=web name="Tamil_Society">{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P1naAAAAMAAJ&q=nagadipa+naga+nadu | title=Women, Transition, and Change: A Study of the Impact of Conflict and Displacement on Women in Traditional Tamil Society| year=1995}}</ref> }}

== External links == * [http://sangamtranslationsbyvaidehi.com sangamtranslationsbyvaidehi.com Sangam poetry with translation in English], [[Vaidehi Herbert]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sangam Literature}} [[Category:Sangam literature| ]] [[Category:Indian poetics]] [[Category:Cultural history of Tamil Nadu]] [[Category:Hindu literature]] [[Category:Jain literature]] [[Category:Dravidian languages]] [[Category:Indian poetry]]