In this episode, we listen to an outpouring of suffering, as depicted in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 71, penned by Anthi Ilankeeranaar. Set in the ‘Paalai’ or ‘Drylands landscape’, the verse presents nuanced similes to etch the sorrow in a heart.

நிறைந்தோர்த் தேரும் நெஞ்சமொடு, குறைந்தோர்
பயன் இன்மையின் பற்று விட்டு, ஒரூஉம்
நயன் இல் மாக்கள் போல, வண்டினம்
சுனைப் பூ நீத்து, சினைப் பூப் படர,
மை இல் மான் இனம் மருள, பையென
வெந்து ஆறு பொன்னின் அந்தி பூப்ப,
ஐயறிவு அகற்றும் கையறு படரோடு
அகல் இரு வானம் அம் மஞ்சு ஈன,
பகல் ஆற்றுப்படுத்த பழங்கண் மாலை,
காதலர்ப் பிரிந்த புலம்பின் நோதக,
ஆர் அஞர் உறுநர் அரு நிறம் சுட்டிக்
கூர் எஃகு எறிஞரின் அலைத்தல் ஆனாது,
எள் அற இயற்றிய நிழல் காண் மண்டிலத்து
உள் ஊது ஆவியின் பைப்பய நுணுகி,
மதுகை மாய்தல் வேண்டும் பெரிது அழிந்து,
இது கொல் வாழி, தோழி! என் உயிர்
விலங்கு வெங் கடு வளி எடுப்பத்
துளங்கு மரப் புள்ளின் துறக்கும் பொழுதே?

In this trip to the drylands, it’s a conversation between two friends, and there are different views as to whether the speaker is the lady or the confidante. Considering the content, I’m choosing to see these lines as words said by the lady to her confidante:

“Akin to those people without goodness, who have a heart that seeks out only those who have plenty and forsakes those who are less affluent, thinking they are of no use, bees have abandoned flowers in the spring pools and flown towards flowers on the branches; Making herds of flawless deer baffled, slowly the dusk blooms in the hue of hot, molten gold, cooling down; Accompanied by a helpless pain that destroys intelligence, yielding to the beautiful clouds in the wide, dark sky, the day gives way to the suffering-filled evening, which arrives akin to one, who throws a sharp iron spear, pointing to the precious heart of the person, already in a deep angst, lamenting about the parting away of their beloved. Akin to how breath, blown out on a perfectly etched round mirror, diminishes little by little, my strength breaks down, suffering greatly. My friend, may you live long, it appears as if my life shall desert me, akin to how birds flutter away from a swaying tree, assailed by a swirling gale!”

Let’s bask in the time of dusk and listen to this tale! The lady starts with a unique simile about certain lowly people, who prefer the company of those who are rich and abandon the friendship of those who have less. She places the actions of such people in parallel to those of bees, which have given up the flowers in the spring pools and are rushing towards the flower-clad branches of trees around. Could this be a metaphor for the man leaving the lady behind and seeking wealth? While that we cannot be sure about, perhaps this scene of bee migration is to indicate the season of spring, when flowers bloom aplenty on trees, to bring to fore, this was the man’s promised season of return. However, there was no sign of him yet!

The lady continues by adding as if the arrival of spring wasn’t enough, the sky was turning into the hue of hot gold, cooling down, sending out waves of confusion among grazing deer, heralding the arrival of evening. This evening is one, which causes so much blinding pain that dulls the mind, the lady says, and describes the act of the evening arriving when the man is away, as the act of a person, who aims a spear at a lamenting heart. Then, she talks about a relatable simile of blowing breath on a reflective surface and how it would diminish with time, and connects it with her own strength, slowly shattering down. As the final thought, the lady confides to her confidante that owing to this angst-ridden situation, she feels her life may part away from her, akin to how birds flutter away, when a storm attacks the tree they were resting on.

From the flight of those bees to these birds, the lady draws a perfect trajectory of her pain. The highlight of this verse is the thoughtful stacking up of similes to build the perfect image of the lady’s heart. Perhaps this crystal clear expression of emotions will help the lady in handling the swirling storm of separation!