THE SANGAM AGE

Author(s): V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar and V. R. Ramchandra Dikshitar

Source: Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 5 (1941), pp. 152-161
Published by: Indian History Congress
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 152

the great part which was played by the goddess in the Pancaratra theorjr
of creation. The particular form of Vaisnavism which was mainly based
on the earlier Pancaratra, and which was so ably expounded by the South-
Indian Vaisnavite teachers like Yamunacarya and Ramanuja came to be-
universally described as Sri-Vaisnavism. In fact, in the developed theology
of the Pancaratrins she is the direct agent of creation ; she flashes up by~
some independent resolve (kasmaccitsvatantryat) , with an infinitely small
part of herself , in her dual aspect of Kriya (acting) and Bhuti (becoming).
The Kriya-sakti is the Sudarsana portion of Laksmi, identical with Visnu's
4 'Will to-be' ' symbolised by the Sudarsana or discus, while the, Bhutisaktř
is but a myriadth part ( Koti-amsa ) of herself. Thus, Vasudeva-Visnu who
awakens Sri by her command, and she herself in her dual aspect of Kriya
and Bhuti, typify respectively the Causa efficiens, Causa instrumentalist
and Causa Materialis of the world (Shraeder, Introduction to the Panca-
ratra pp. 29-31). It is not meant here, however, that all the philosophical
speculations underlying the above theory of creation must have existed
when her image was being enshrined in a Pancaratra shrine at Besnagar.
But her close association with the cult picture of the system can be pre-
sumed to be as early as the Maurya-Sunga period, if not earlier, and the
discovery of her image as well as the other Pancaratra emblems at Bes-
nagar fully prove that Besnagar was one of the earliest seats of the
Pancaratra cult.

THE SANGAM AGE

By

Mr. V . R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, M. A.,

University of Madras .

Much has been written and is being written on the Sangam Age of the
Tamil literature and in spite of the professed new light thrown by recent
writers on the subject, still we have not reached the final conclusion. This
is due not because of any inherent difficulty in tackling the problem but
certainly because of obsession by certain writers to cling to their views at
any cost. Feeble arguments and uncritical statements are made to buttress
their position but with no positive result. I have examined this question
in extenso in my " Studies in Tamil Literature and History", first printed
in 1930 and reprinted in 1936, and I shall re-examine the same here.

The term Sangam is the Tamil form of the Sanskrit expression Sangha.
Sancha is any from of assocation or a group of peoples wedded to one pursuit.
We hear of the Buddhist and Jaina Sanghas. These Sanghas were religious
in character. But this has nothing to do with the Tamil Sangam, whose
purpose was entirely different. It is not again an adaptation of the
Sanskrit variant Sanghata interpreted in Tamil as tokainÜai or simply
tokaL Sanghata is a variety of poetical composition from the pen of a single
author on a certain chosen topic. Therefore there is not even a remote
connection between the Tamil Sangam and the Sanskrit Sanghata.

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 153

The expression Sangam in Tamil literature stands for an academy of

arts and letters started and patronised by all the three crowned kings of the
Tamil land, Pandya, Cola and Cera, and especially the Pandyan. The
seat of this academy was always as known to tradition and history, in the
Pandyan capital, Old Madura, Korkai or Kavatapuram, and the modern
Madura in the Madura District. This academy was an expert body of
literary censors before whom any book was to be submitted before publi-
cation, whether the author be a prince or a peasant. Unless the new book
won the approval of this august body of censors, it could not be accepted as
authoritative. This had an healthy influence in that the trash could be
eschewed, and only books of sterling merit were allowed, to be published
for the benefit of the public. The academy was actuated by certain standards
and conventions, and if the book did not come to that level, it was rejected,
it is said that even that excellent treatise of Tiruvalluvar-the Kural-had to
be submitted to the academy, and tradition avers that it was at first not
countenanced by the members of the academy, but was subsequently
accepted. This only shows how the Academy subjected such works even of
value to critical examination. Again, the story goes that such a reputed
work as the Tolkappiyam, got approved after a searching examination of
the royal academy. If we attach any significance to the payiram or the pre-
face to the Tolkappiyam, we are told that the Pandyan king Nilandaru Tiru-
vira Pandya appointed a certain Adangodu Brahman to criticise the Tolkap-
piyam, but Tolkappiyanar was a match even to the acute critic (See
also Puram, 224, 11. 9.11). These two instances are enough to point
out the importance and value of the Tamil Sangam. It acted as a literarv
censor. It did not allow worthless books to see the light of the day. It
was composed of the shining literary lights of the land and even princes of
blood royal who had a literary bend of mind, found a place in that academy.
It resembled to some extent the literary Parisads of north India presided
over by such eminent persons like king Janaka of Mithila. The Academy
was, then, in the nature of a modern University and the heart-centre of
higher learning in all Tamil India. Though it was located at the Pandyan
capital, the contribution of the Cola monarchs and the Cera kings to its
growth and development was substantial and generous as can be seen from
an informing line in Puram, 58.

Tamil Kein Kudarrankol vende

Once we accept the existence, growth and work of the Tamil Sangam,
then the works approved by this institution became known as the Sangam
works. We shall presently examine what books will come under the cate-
gory of the Sangam works. Why are those alone called Sangam works
It is because they are all written in what we call the Sangattamil or th
Sangam style of composition. It has its peculiar syntax, metre and
grammar. It has its own etymology and interpretation. We usually speak
of such composition as classics.

There are still critics who do not seriously believe in the Tamil Sangam
and its manifold activity. By itself the Sangam may be a foreign word but
the institution, call it what you will, can be indigenous and native to the
soil. If we dive deep into the literary tradition of the Tamils as embedded
in their literature and in the valuable commentaries of the great

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 154

commentators we have numerous evidences of the existence of an Academy

and its work. Already mention has been made of the fact that
Tolkappiyanar, the celebrated grammarian had to present his grammar to
the Academy and get its imprimatur. This means that there was an
Academy in the days of Tolkappiyanar, and it also means that the Academy
must have been an old institution, and it was the usual practice of authors
to get the willing assent of the Sangam for their publication. Thus the
Sangam was a pre-Tolkappiyam institution.

What exactly was the starting point of the history of the Tamil Sangam,
like the landing of Hengist and Horsa in England, we cannot definitely say.
But we are on a firm ground if we come to the epoch of the third Sangam.
As we have no information about the other Sangams we may conveniently
style the age of the extant classical works as the Sangam Age.

The lower limit of the Sangam age cannot be later than 400 A.D. From
the end of the fifth century A.D. a new era opens in Tamil literature.
The classsical style takes leave of the Tamil writers who take entirely
a new outlook on life. Religious impulses begin to play and men begin
to think more of the other world and salvation. The compositions of
this period are no more exploits of heroes and heroines and of lovers in
distress and love. Devotional songs, Saiva and Vaisnava were the
order of theday. The word Sangam occurs for the first time in the
Manimekalai in the sense of an academy.

Later, Tirumangai Alvar refers to Sangattamil and Sangamukattamil

as different from the current Tamil. Added to this the Velvikudi plates
place Mudukudumi, presumably a Pandyan king of the Sangam Age, before
the Kalabhra occupation which may be roughly put down as 400 A.D. With
the Kalabhra occupation of the Tamil land, there must have been a set-back
in the literary activities of the Tamils. And this must have been revived
with the founding of a new dynasty by Kadunkon about 600 A.D. The
Pandyan Kingdom, pp. 22-3). Before I proceed with the subject, I must
make clear that the Sangam did not die but only the classical age came to
an end. As an institution, the Sangam continued to patronise literature
and literary men, for we hear Poyyimolji - Pulavar of the 9th century A.D.
getting the approval of the Sangam for his composition. So when we
speak of the later date of the Sangam age, we mean only the last date of
the classical period of Tamil literature.

We shall now proceed to examine the Sangam works with a view to

determine exactly the age of the Sangam. Though we have fragments of
the Agattiyam grammar, the Agattiyam as such is entirely lost to us. And
tradition avers that the Agattiyam was earlier than the Tolkappiyam. To
investigate the date of any work we must be guided by the tradition, the
language, style and the contents of the work itself. If we apply these
tests to the extant Tolkappiyam we are certainly on a firm ground to
assert that it is a work of the fourth century B. C. The Agattiyam was
already in existence when Tolkappiyanar wrote his illustrious book. And
tradition says that Tolkappiyanar was a disciple of Agattiyanar (Sanskrit-
Agastya),

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 îèB

There are several internal evidences to show the ancientness of Tolkap-

piyam. First of all the conception and nature of uriccol which is said to
denote isai, kurippu and panpu. The list of uriccol furnished by Tolkap-
piyanar including vartal, pokal testifies to the fact that uriccol maybe
taken as the nominal or verbal root. In this respect the Tolkappiyam seems
to follow the Nirukta of Yaska (Dr. P. S. Sastri, History of Grammatical
Theories in Tamil, pp. 199-203). So also the idaiyiyal- and uriyiyal
in the Solladikaram. Again ayatam according to the Tolkappiyam is
neither a vowel nor a consonant, suggesting perhaps a knowledge of
Panini 's rules by the author. While a case may be made out for the in-
debtedness of Tolkappiyanar to Sanskrit grammarians (see Dr. P. S.
Sastri: Ibid.), an equal case can be suggested to the indebtedness of Kat-
antra and others to Tolkappiyam. That both Katantra and Tolkappiyam
seem to copy each other in respect of topical arrangements and use of
technical terms was pointed out by Dr. Burnell long ago to infer Tolkap-
piyam 's borrowing from Katantra. Our chronological examination shows
Tolkappiyam was the earlier, and Katantra posterior to it.

Another significant point in this connection is the mention of Yuktis.

The earliest reference to Tantrayukti is in the Arthasastra of Kautalya.
The yuktis mentioned in this celebrated treatise are thirty-two and these
mark a definite period in the history of the principles of exposition adopted
in ancient treatises. Vatsyayana, the author of the Nyaya Bhashya repeats
the Kautaliyan dictum under the head anumata (See Nyayadarsana, p. 70
Chowkhamba series, Ar. Sast. p. 429 Mysore ed.). While Caraka would
make the yuktis thirty-six, Tolkappiyanar sticks to thirty-two like the
Kautaliya. I have given the thirty-two principles as seen in the Kautaliya
and Tolkappiyam (Poruladikaram) and their correspondences elsewhere
(JOR, 1930, pp. 85-89), and 'there is no point in repeating them here.
Of the 32 yuktis, as many as 22 are word for word with the Kautaliyan
definition. The rest ten are due to the genius of the grammarian who
adopted those which suited his purpose and formulated others to fit in with
the plan of his work. From the examination oí the yuktis mentioned in
literature, belonging to different periods, one has to conclude that Tolkap-
piyanar was a younger contemporary of Kautalya and flourished long be-
fore Caraka. Judged again by this test Tolkappiyam must be ranked
among very ancient treatises.

There has been recently some endeavour to bring down the date of the
Tolkappiyam (K. N. Sivaraja Pillai, The Chronology of the Early Tamils).
However the arguments advanced in favour of this theory will not stand
a critical examination. Among them the explanation given to the Tolkap-
piyam hora is ingenious. The critic takes hora to mean astrology and con-
nects it with the Greek term and shows Tolkappiyanar 's acquaintance with
Greek astrology. This is no argument because the interpretation advanced
is wrong. The expression occurring in the sutra is a clear reference to the
pastime of girls, peculiar to the days of Tolkappiyanar. It has nothing to
do with astrology or Greeks ior the matter of that.

The linguistic and philological evidence, and the evidence of the picture
of social life coxiveyed by the treatise indulging in several themes of
priaaitive low and marriage customs, as also the picture of the division of

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 íôé
land according to the natural regions Kurininrallai, neydal and marudam
with indications of different cultures in every such regionall these point to
the fact that the Tolkappiyam precedes in point of time to the extant San-
gam works, especially Purananuru and Ahananuru.

Again in connection with invocation to the deity, Tolkappiyanar refers

to three deities as such, Kodinilai, Kandali and Valli identified respectively
with Siva and Murugan (Sutra 33, Porul). This is also referred to in
Purapporul-venbamalai (Padan Patalam), and also Ilakkanavilakkam
(Purattinai, 19 sutra). This invocation is significant as it represents a
state of primitive form of worship as against a multiplicity of gods and
shrines which are enumerated in the Tamil epic Silappadikaram. The
Tolkappiyam marks then an important stage in the evolution of Tamil
religion, and on this account claims an ancient date. But this date cannot
be as the orthodox tradition would put it in the second Sangam and long
before the two Sanskrit epics, the Ramaj^ana and the Mahabharata, nor
can it be as late as the eighth century A.D| as some of our modern savants
would have it. I think it is safe to conclude that it is a work of the 4th
century B. C. based on an earlier wrork Agattiyam which is perhaps a
composition of the fifth century B. C. And therefore it is a valid hypo-
thesis that the upper limit of the Sangam Age-call it the third or what you
will-should be fifth century B. C., and it would be irrational to bring it later.

If one proceeds to examine the early literature of the Tamils, which

goes by the name of the Sangam works, we find that all early literature is
poetry, and prose is still a thing of the distant future. This poetry is some-
thing realistic being the natural outburst tof Tamil poets who were prim-
arily children of the open air. There is no artificiality about it. What
is striking is that their description shows their closeness to nature and their
deep appreciation of their natural environment. Their description of the
seasons in relation to plants, trees and crops to birds and animals, and to
men and women of the locality is something arresting and vivid.

" The stork feeds from the tank and sleeps on the cornstalk. The far-
mers, who reap the beautiful fields where the lily grows, drink
from cups made of the lily leaves from whose opening bud the
petals have dropped off and dance keeping time to the roaring
waves of the clear sea. May I, eager for reward not return,
after praising you, lord of these lands, empty handed and dis-
appointed as do the birds that fly high in the sky and desiring the
jackfruit, go so that the mountain caves resound with the noise of
their flight and find that the tree has ceased to bear fruit.
Puram, 209.

In the Mullai region, 'the darkness of the midnight when, like the sky
with stars, the musundi with folded leaves has put forth its white flowers
en the sides of the hills from whose tops drips the honey. The shepherd
who gathers together the kids and carries the mat made of palm leaves,
wears the garland, from which water is dripping, made of the cool sweet
smelling mullai flowers mixed with the November flowers on which bees are
falling. He utters a long-drawn cry to drive off the jackals : while is gltrvfr-

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 tôt

íng in his hand a slender, burning brand. This sound and the sound of
the long horn which is blown by the watchmen of the milletfield for driving
away the large herd of small-eyed pigs, are characteristic of the dry land
of the forest tract" (Agam, 94).

The ancient Tamils looked about themselves for healthier body and
spirit and enjoyed their life. They were shrewd observers of nature. The
main themes described in the very early poetry now extant consist of two
things, love and war. They were a ' ' warlike and heroic people while they
were quite alive to the pursuits of peace. The various love themes accom-
panied by meat eating and liquor and drinking and consequently merry-
making prove that they enjoyed peace as much as they loved war. It
is also evident that the martiol spirit was not exclusively the monopoly
of men but it extended to the women of the land. If a Tamil mother
heard that her son had retreated fromthe field of battle she flew into a
towering rage and was prepared to cut off her breasts that fed that
wretched coward. But her heart was filled with indescribable joy if she
would hear that her son fell dead heroically fighting in the field (Puram,
2781.)

Add to this, the fewness of the influences of Aryan culture. Though

we find traces of the Aryan legends and beliefs, they are not yet pro-
nounced. Though the Vedic Brahman is enobled and respected, and
though there are here and there references to Vedic sacrifices, still they
are so little that one cannot say that it is the normal life oí the people.
Primitive modes of worship continue to prevail though Siva and Rama
find mention in a few anthologies. Neither do we see astronomical and
astrological notions widely prevalent. The old superstitions of the
country are found in plenty and there are invocations of protection from
the devils in which they had full belief.

If we turn to the pp^ges of the Narrinai and Kuruntogai, all Sangam

works, we meet with the same state of affairs. Examining as we do these
four anthologies, we are astonished to see that a good number of the poems
in the Narrinai and Kuruntogai are very old, perhaps older than those
in the Puram. Comparing the Ahananuru with the Purananuru, one
clearly sees that most of the poems in the Ahananuru which entirely deal
with the subject of love are older than those in the Puram which deals
with eulogies of kings, especially their exploits in war. The fact is that
in these anthologies are included poems of poets who flourished in different
centuries but all of whom belonged to the common Sangam Age. That
is why we see some slight differences both in style and ideas among the
poems of the Puram or Aham collection.

An important milestone is reached when we come to the epoch of

Turuvalluvar. Like so many poets of his day, the date of the author or
his life are not known to us. Various legends have grown around this
notable figure and one claims him to be a weaver in Mylapore. The
latest writer who has examined this question, the learned Rao Sahib M. Rag-
liava Aiyangar (Prof. Rangaswami Aiyangar Commemoration Volume re-
gards him as a Vallabha or a ministerial officer of a certain king. This agrees
with the tradition of Elela as we shall see soon. One things is certain from
his writings, viz. he was well versed in Sanskrit lore and considering the

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 158

conditions which would have prevailed duruing his age, he should have
been probably a dvija. Whatever this be, the story goes that he had to
get the imprimatur of the Sangam. On submitting his immortal work,
the Sangam dictators refused recognition. But our author boldly placed
the manuscript on the floating raft-Sangappalakai. The result was that
the poets drowned and the manuscript alone remained on. Wonderstruck
the drowned critics began to bestow their laurels of praise on Valluvar and
these laudatory stanzas become the Tiruvalluvamalai. Some of the
eminent Sangam poets like Kapilar and Idaikkadar have belauded the
work. This work alone is proof positive of the love and respect with
which the Sangam age treated Valluvar. In its chronoligical setting, the
Tirukkural occupies a place between the old Sangam works like the
anthologies of the Puram and Aham, and later Sangam works like the
twin epics, the Manimekalai and Silappadikaram. The character of the
poem and the theme of simple virtues inculcated have a universal appeal
and the intense value of a classic. Its comprehensiveness and univer
sality ¡have made the followers of all sects and cults to claim him as one
of their own. Most of the couplets definitely mark him out as a Hindu
of the orthodox type. As H. A. Popley rightly points out that .in his
treatment of the subjects, aram and porul the poet follows the general lines
oí Aryan ethics (p. 22 The Sacred Rural).

The Kural which consists of 1330 Kuralvenbas or terse couplets,

bearing th^ sutra style of Sanskritists, easy to memorise and quote.
Tiruvalluvar inaugurated this style in the history of Tamil letters. The
author should have lived either when the sutra style of composition came
to be In vogue or just after it. Por it is natural that he should have been
profoundly influenced by it as is evident from his immortal work. His
writings do not betray any sign of the sectarian spirit that entered the
Tamil firmament from the 5th century onwards. He does not refer to
the Paliavas nor has epigraphy any reference to him. He was already
popular with the famous authors of the epics Silappadikaram and
Manimekalai, who actually quote him. Both these epics have been
assigned on unassailable grounds to the second century A.D. The influence
of the Kural has been felt by others, besides the authors of the twin epics.

The quotations from the Kural in the epics and Puram ballads show
what an acknowledged authority Tiruvalluvar was in the middle of the
second century A.D. For an author to attain such celebrity and eminence,
at least two centuries and more should elapse, and therefore I am inclined
to put Tiruvalluvar in the first century B.C. ; I put this down in my first
edition of Studies in Tamil Literature and History (1930), and I see no
reason to alter it since no tangible proof has been put forward to lead to
its alteration. While this is the position of the literature of post-
Tiru valluvar epoch, there is the bght-shed by the literature prior to
Valluvar. Normally speaking two < c three centuries should have elapsed
after the Tolakappiyam to get thę rich and varied culture of which the
Tirukkural is the prototype. The geography and history of the Tamil
land as envisaged by the Tolkappiyam-four regions and types of cultures
peculiar to each of them, and the large place given to themes of war and
love and the little or no place to religion and ethics hare all dis^pp'e&reti

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 159

by the time of Tiruvalluvar. In his writings there is a considerable pro-

gress in the march of culture. Morals and ethics, healthy conventions
of society have come to stay and the whole outlook onlife and things in
general has transformed. That is why at least three centuries should have
elapsed to bring about this transformation.

Add to this the factor of style, metre and language. Light also
comes from an unexpected quarter. It is the independent testimony
of the Ceylon chronicles, especially the Mahavamsa. Here it is
chronicled that one Alara (corrupt form of Tamil Elela) a noble of
the Cola kingdom invaded Ceylon and by vanquishing Asala, became
its king. It is said that he reigned for 44 years from 145 to 101
B. C. (Geiger, ed. Intro, p. 37). If we believe by a stretch of imagi-
nation that this Alara or Elela was a disciple and contemporary of
Valluvar, then there is the certain clue that Yalluvar flourished in the latter
half of the second century B C. Apart from these doubtful Ceylon
traditions, we cannot escape the fact that most of the poets who panegyrised
Valluvar as seen in the extant Tiruvalluvamalai were poets who flourished
in the century preceding and succeeding the Christian era. Most of them
like Mamulanar and Damodarnar are ancient authors and reputed Sangam
poets. The wonderful correspondence between the rules of the Arthasastra
of Kautalya and Valluvar shows the latter indebtedness to political theories
and statecraft. A dispassionate study of these evidences betrays the fact
that Valluvar must have flourished in the first century B. C. or a little ear-
lier, and certainly not after the first century B.C.

The next landmark is reached when we come to the epoch of the twin
epics. Notwithstanding positive historical facts, there are still doubts enter-
tained at certain quarters as to the place of these epics in the Sangam works.
Taking the Silappadikaram it is an excellent piece of Tamil poetry. It is
a representative of the early dramatic compositions. Ahavarpa or blank
verse is the metrical form frequently used. Tradition is unanimous that Para-
nar, Kapilar and Sittalai Sattanar were members of the Sangam. There
is enough evidence to show that Sittalai Sattanar was a contemporary of
Ilango Adigal. He was his friend and companion. Having heard of the
composition of Ilango, he enthusiastically wrote his Manimekalai If style
is the test, it points out that the time between this style and that of the Puram
and Aham anthologies should have been at least three centuries. Certainly
if the early pieces of Aham and Puram go to the third century B. C. it is
but natural that the epics should be assigned to the second century A. D.
Otherwise we have to dismiss Sattanar-Ilango contemporaneity as a fiction.
I do not think that any Tamil scholar of repute would view this in that light.

Apart from the elegant and terse style which is the ornate and polished
style of the later Sangam period, we have other reliable data to fix the date
once for all. First, the absolute silence of the mention of the Paliavas of
Kanci. Kanci largely figures in both the epics. Kings of the days in all
Tamil countries are mentioned. But no mention is made of the Paliavas.
On the other hand in the works of the Saiva and Vaishnava Samayacharyas
of the 6th to 9th century there is ample testimony to the Paliava rule and
their kings. The earliest of the Paliavas could be dated from A. D. 200
on the strength of the inscriptional evidence. Inference is irresistible
that the epic should have been composed before 200 A. D,

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 160

Not only this epic does not refer to the Paliavas, but it refers to the
Tirayar who preceded the Paliavas at Kanci and whose chief was Ham
Tiraiyan, vouchsafed to us also by Uruttiran Kannanar, author of the
Perumpanarruppadai. One certain test of the date of the Sangam works
is that these works are not aware of the Paliava dynasty, a south Indian
dynasty that began its sway from A.D. 200. Most of these works should
therefore be before 200 A. D.

A second fact from the historian's standpoint is the evidence of the

Mahavamsa which clinches the argument that Gajabahu was present at the
festivities held in honour of Pattinik-kadavul by Ceran Senguttuvan. We
are often told why it could not be the other Gajabahu who came later. It
could be ; but in the fifth century there was no Senguttuvan to celebrate the
victory which he legitimately earned by his prowess in North India.
Senguttuvan flourished in the second century if he were a brother of Ilango.
For Ilango was a contemporary of Settalai Sattanar. The latter was a
contemporary, to repeat, of Paranar and Kapilar. We must therefore
invent a Senguttuvan for the later date. This is surely putting the cart
before the horse. The fact was that Gajabahu was so much impressed with
the new cult that he took it home to Coylon and spread it through the length
of the land. Some view that the entire story is a romance and not history.
If it were unhistorical, how are we to explain the widespread cult of the
Pattini not only in Ceylon but in all South India. A romance would not
have developed into a cult even in the most superstitous of countries.

A third point that is often overlooked is the authentic version of the

Padirruppattu. It canot be for a moment regarded as a work not within
the sacred precincts of the Sangam. Padirruppattu definitely records that
Senguttuvan was a son and successor of Imavavaramban. It anves the
duration of their rule 50 and 59 respectively. The account in the Padirrup-
pattu is clear and quite helpful. Even here some went to the length of
saying that the details found in the colophons could not be taken on their
face value, for they were written long after the composition of the Padirrup-
pattu. As against this, it may be said that there is no evidence to show
that the colophons were written subsequent to the texts, and also to show
that they are untrustworthy. If we examine the chronology of the Sangam
kings, we are made to feel that the colophons are in their proper setting, and
are part of the old text itself. In the Padirruppattu Paranar sings in
glory of the Cera Senguttuvan, especially of his notable achievements.
His other name is Velkelukuttuvan. Paranar has not mentioned his nor-
thern expedition and therefore an attempt is made that Velkelukuttuvan
was different from Senguttuvan. One asks about the identity of achieve-
ments whiah are as many as five attributed to Sanguttuvan. It is easy to
conjecture why Paranar had not mentioned this achievement of his hero.
As an elder contemporary, Paranar might have been dead when Senguttu-
van undertook the expedition in the evening of his life as could be gathered
from Madalan's speech. Ile told the king "You had all your life engaged
in the sacrifice of battle : but it is time you take to religious sacrifice, the
Vedic yajna". So by the time Senguttuvan came out of his expedition,
poor Paranar was no more to chronicle that event. It is no use therefore
to create further confusion when there is sufficient evidence to put the early
royal houses of the Tamils in proper chronological order,

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 161

Lastly, tibe political conditions of the time should be taken into account.
If Senguttuvan 's expedition to the north was a historical fact, could we
imagine even the remote possibility in the fifth century A.D., knowing the
history of the period in North India as we do. Where were the Nurruvar
Kannar or the Satakarnis in the fifth century to aid the Tamil monarch
Senguttuvan in crossing the Ganges? The invasion was undertaken at a
period when the Andhras were an imperial power holding their own from
the imperial Magadha throne. Surely this was long before the Guptas came
into power and carried thieir sword throughout the length and breadth of
India. So Senguttuvan must have flourished in Pre-Gupta period and when
the Andhras were in power in North India. It was an age of warring tribes
and kingdoms, and the imperial unity achieved by the Maurya was a thing
of the past and that of ťhe Guptas a thing of the future. If these conside-
rations have any value at all, these demonstrate unmistakably that the
SiJappadikaram should be fixed to the second half of the second century
A.D., and the Manimekalai being dovetailed to it should find a place in this
period. It is reasonable to assume that all the philosophical systems were
in vogue before this age and the Manimekalai has therefore its place in the
Sangam works.

Though the he y dey of the Sangam age was during the epoch of the
epics, still a decline set in. This period could be spread over three centuries
again when other Sangam works and especially several works coming under
the category of Padinenkilkanakku were composed. For in most of them
we still see the old hand of the Sangam poet. But with the commencement
of the sixth century, we are in an entirely new era in the world of Tamil
letters. The outlook on life underwent complete transformation. Religion
and philosophy became the main themes and to bring them to the door of
the masses a new style of composition was used and that with success.

SOME ASPECTS OF WAR AND PEACE CONDITIONS IN

ANCIENT TAMIL COUNTRY.

Summary
By
Mr. S. S. Santhanam, M.A.

A chronicle pertaining to the organisation in regard to the defence of

the realm and the aspect of comparative stages of war and peace conditions
of the people thereof, will form an integral part of the history of that coun-
try. That war has been a factor which attended and affected the fortunes
of a people throughout the long-drawn drama of human evolution is a matter
of truism in history. Even today when mankind has evolved to a stage of
finer sense of internationalism, wars have come to be fought, and at the mo-
ment itself there is a war going on that broke out wellnigh within a quarter
of a century after tne last Great War. At such a time it will hardly be
necessary to labour the point that the defence of a country is of utmost con-
cern. And a study of our ancient country in respect of its defence organi-
sation, its attitude towards war and tìie situation of the land during both
war and peace times, should afford instructive lessons which a true reading

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