In this episode, we listen to a lament, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Puranaanooru 112, penned about the Velir King Vel Paari by the king’s daughters. The verse is situated in the category of ‘Pothuviyal Thinai’ or ‘miscellaneous matters’ and details the changes in the lives of these maiden.

அற்றைத் திங்கள் அவ் வெண் நிலவின்,
எந்தையும் உடையேம்; எம் குன்றும் பிறர் கொளார்;
இற்றைத் திங்கள் இவ் வெண் நிலவின்,
வென்று எறி முரசின் வேந்தர் எம்
குன்றும் கொண்டார்; யாம் எந்தையும் இலமே!

A simple and direct song expressing a deep emotion. The words of these royals can be translated as follows:

“In the past month, when the white moon blazed away, our father was with us and our peak was not seized by others; In this month, when the white moon blazes away, with drums proclaiming their so-called victory, those kings have seized our peak; And, our father is no longer with us too!”

Let’s delve into the thought expressed here. King Paari’s daughters reflect back on the full moon night a month ago, when their father was with them and they mention how their land was theirs. Now, within a period of one month, everything had changed in their lives, for those three kings had claimed their peak and their father was no longer with them too, they conclude.

Between two moons, these women seem to have lost their land and their father. A terrible loss brought about by the treachery of those three kings, no doubt! This we know, because we saw in song after song the truth about how no one could claim Paari’s peak so easily. So, it had to be by some devious means that those three kings won their victory. Scholars indicate that Poet Kabilar had taken Paari’s girls to safety when Parambu fell. It’s when these girls look at the same moon from a different place that their sense of loss comes back to them so strongly. That piercing agony of the loss of a parent is etched in the quiet words of this verse!