In this episode, we listen to a curious incident that unfolded one night, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Kalithogai 65, penned by Kabilar. The verse is situated in the ‘Kurinji’ or ‘Mountains landscape’ and attempts to convey the gravity of the situation in an indirect manner.

திருந்திழாய்! கேளாய், நம் ஊர்க்கு எல்லாம் சாலும்
பெரு நகை! அல்கல் நிகழ்ந்தது: ஒருநிலையே
மன்பதை எல்லாம் மடிந்த இருங் கங்குல்,
அம் துகில் போர்வை அணிபெறத் தைஇ், நம்
இன் சாயல் மார்பன் குறி நின்றேன் யான் ஆக

தீரத் தறைந்த தலையும், தன் கம்பலும்,
காரக் குறைந்து, கறைப்பட்டு வந்து, நம்
சேரியின் போகா முட முதிர் பார்ப்பானை,
தோழி! நீ போற்றுதி என்றி அவன் ஆங்கே,
பாரா, குறழா, பணியா, ‘பொழுது அன்றி
யார் இவண் நின்றீர்?’ எனக் கூறி, பையென,
வை காண் முது பகட்டின் பக்கத்தின் போகாது
‘தையால்! தம்பலம் தின்றியோ?’ என்று, தன்
பக்கு அழித்து ‘கொண்டீ’ எனத் தரலும் யாது ஒன்றும்
வாய்வாளேன் நிற்ப, கடிது அகன்று கைமாறி,
‘கைப்படுக்கப்பட்டாய், சிறுமி! நீ மற்று யான்
ஏனைப் பிசாசு; அருள்; என்னை நலிதரின்,
இவ் ஊர்ப் பலி நீ பெறாஅமல் கொள்வேன்’

எனப் பலவும் தாங்காது வாய் பாடி நிற்ப
முது பார்ப்பான் அஞ்சினன் ஆதல் அறிந்து, யான் எஞ்சாது,
ஒரு கை மணல் கொண்டு மேல் தூவக் கண்டே,
கடிது அரற்றிப் பூசல் தொடங்கினன் ஆங்கே,
ஒடுங்கா வயத்தின், கொடுங் கேழ், கடுங்கண்,
இரும் புலி கொண்மார் நிறுத்த வலையுள் ஓர்
ஏதில் குறு நரி பட்டற்றால்! காதலன்
காட்சி அழுங்க, நம் ஊர்க்கு எலாஅம்
ஆகுலம் ஆகி விளைந்ததை என்றும் தன்
வாழ்க்கை அதுவாகக் கொண்ட முது பார்ப்பான்
வீழ்க்கைப் பெருங் கருங் கூத்து.

In this verse, formats we have seen before are eschewed and a simple story narrative is employed. The words can be translated as follows:

“O maiden wearing well-etched ornaments, listen! This is something that will evoke a lot of laughter around town. It happened last night. At a time when it appeared as if all humanity had perished, in the darkness of the night, wrapping myself in a beautiful blanket, I was waiting at the trysting spot to meet with my man, the one with a handsome chest.

Just then, there appeared that old and lame priest, having a head bereft of hair and wearing tattered and stained clothes, the one who does not leave from our community. He’s the one whom you have warned me about, many times. He caught a glimpse of me, bent his head and asked, ‘Who are you standing here, at this late hour? Just like how an old bull when spotting a stack of hay, doesn’t budge from the spot, he stood there, so still. He then said to me, ‘O young maiden! Do you want some betel leaves to chew?’, offering his pouch and pressing me to take it. I just stood there speechless. Then, he quickly changed tactics and shouted, ‘You have got yourself trapped, O little girl! You seem like a spirit that has descended in this form. As for me, I’m your mate. So, render your grace. If you don’t and decide to distress me, I will steal away the offerings given to you by this town’.

In this manner, he was blabbering words many mindlessly. I understood that the old priest was scared and deciding to make use of his fear, I grasped a fistful of sand and sprinkled it on him. At that time, he started shouting aloud and created an uproar. To me, it seemed as if in a net that was spread by hunters to trap a huge tiger with boundless strength, curving stripes and fierce eyes, a cunning little fox was caught instead. All this made me miss seeing my lover; Such seems to be the story of that old priest’s life, always stirring up a roaring ruckus and bringing about great distress to lovers in our town!”

Let’s explore the details. The verse is situated in the context of the man’s love relationship with the lady prior to marriage and speaks in the voice of the lady to her confidante, as the man listens nearby. The lady starts by narrating an incident to her friend saying this is going to make everyone in town laugh aloud. She goes on to talk about how this was late last night. It seemed to her that all the people of the town had gone and died, for so still it was. Wearing a blanket around her, she was walking to the trysting spot to meet the man. At this time, out of the blue, there came an old priest with a bald head and tattered clothes, who had stuck to their town and wouldn’t leave from it. The lady pauses the story to remark how the confidante had told her about this old priest many times asking her to beware.

Continuing the story, the lady tells us how that old priest had spotted the lady and asked who was it roaming at that deadly hour? To comment on his stance, the lady talks about the scene where an old bull has caught sight of a stack of hay. It won’t budge even a bit and that’s how the old priest was behaving too, she says. The old priest first tries to befriend the lady offering her betel leaves to chew. When the lady says nothing in response and she stands there so quietly, the old priest declares aloud to the lady, ‘O little girl, you are in my trap. I know that you are a female spirit who has taken on this form. Don’t you recognise me? I’m your good mate! If you don’t render your grace, I’ll steal the offerings given to you by these townspeople’. The lady talks about how the old man was blabbering so, but somehow she could sense there was some fear in him. So, she decides to shock him by throwing a handful of sand at him. This makes the old priest scream in terror and wake up the whole town.

To sum up the situation, the lady yet again brings an apt simile of a fox caught in a net laid for a tiger, implying her disappointment in not seeing the man but having to deal with the antics of this old priest! The lady concludes saying the old priest seems to have no other work other than spoil the joy of trysting lovers in their town.

Interpreters believe that the whole story is a figment of the lady’s imagination and she has cooked up this tall tale to tell the listening man what dangers she might face, if the man persists in his path of temporary trysting. She indirectly nudges him to let go of these visits and instead, seek the path to permanent happiness by marrying her. Even as the lady talks about the tiger trap and the fox, her words are a hidden trap for the man! It’s a case of ‘Marry me, marry me’ but showcased in a rather different style of building a believable story.

Thus far, the dangers we have seen in trysting were some wild animals roving the path, the challenging road in the darkness and the danger of discovery. In this verse, a new danger is outlined, that of being cornered by a stranger, and no doubt this will push the man to avoid putting the lady in such a precarious situation. Reminds me of the stories we sometimes say to nudge someone to give up their wrong ways!

With this verse, we come to the end of Kalithogai verses situated in the ‘Kurinji’ or ‘Mountains landscape’. In these set of verses, we have seen a wide variety of situations such as love blooming, winning the confidence of the confidante, revealing relationship to relatives and trysting as well. The gamut of emotions in the early stages of love has been captured with dialogue and story in these past verses. Now, it’s time to bid bye to these young lovers in the lush mountainside and journey on to yet another landscape!