A few months ago, when the theme song authored by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi for the World Classical Tamil Conference to be held in Coimbatore in June was made public, a controversy arose in certain circles over the fact that the song did not have any mention of the Tamil poet Kamban, or his work, Kamba Ramayanam. Scholars, including Indira Parthasarathy, had argued why Kamban ought to be mentioned.
Respecting the sentiments of such scholars, Mr. Karunanidhi had a relook at the song and included a reference to the poet. On May 15, the revised theme song, scored by A.R. Rahman and filmed by Gautham Vasudev Menon, was launched at a function here.
Some may wonder why there was so much fuss about the omission of Kamban. They may also say one can always find fault with the theme song on the basis of the argument that this or that literary figure was left out. But Kamban is no ordinary persona. He is hailed as Kavi Chakravarthi. Subramania Bharati (1882-1921), the celebrated Tamil poet, wrote that Tamil Nadu owes its fame to Kamban. There are several aphorisms associated with him. To quote one, even the peg in Kamban's house can compose poems.
Bharati consistently gave pre-eminence to Kamban even as he identified Kamban, Thiruvalluvar and Ilango Adigal as the trinity of Tamil poets.
K.A. Nilakanta Sastri (1892-1975), historian and author of the seminal work, A History of South India , described Kamba Ramayanam as the greatest epic in Tamil literature.
Shone like a star
“In the Tamil literary firmament, Kampar shone like a star, inaccessible to others,” M. Varadarajan (1912-1974), known as Mu.Va and widely regarded as an authority in Tamil studies, wrote in A History of Tamil Literature , an English version of which was published by the Sahitya Akademi in 1988.
Both Mu.Va and Nilakanta Sastri did not accord much value to other works of the poet. In fact, Mu. Va wrote that Kamba Ramayanam was the only work that upheld Kamban's fame as a poet. Nilakanta Sastri dismissed Kamban's other works as mediocre.
In regard to the Kamban period, there are differences among scholars. While some of them theorise that he belonged to the ninth century, others put it much later — the 12th century or even the 13th — Mu. Va, who stated that Kamban belonged to the medieval period, did not fix the period precisely. But, according to Nilakanta Sastri, Kamban flourished during the reign of Kulottunga III (1178-1218). He said in his book that few authentic details of the poet's life were forthcoming.
However, the Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature (Volume III), published by the Sahitya Akademi first in 1989, categorically stated Kamban's period as the ninth century. While acknowledging differences of opinion over the period, the document cited two reasons for having reached the conclusion.
The release of Kamba Ramayanam was made in an assembly of scholars in the Srirangam temple in A.D. 885 after Kamban had composed Satakopar Anthati in praise of Nammazhvar, regarded as the greatest Azhvar.
This account, considered along with the fact that Kamba Ramayanam contains analogues to the songs of the Azhvars, particularly Thirumangai Azhvar of the 8{+t}{+h} century, may be taken as a factor corroborating the theory that Kamban's period was the ninth century.
But, what is more important is the quality of the literary work produced by Kamban. On this point, both Mu. Va and Nilakanta Sastri were emphatic in saying that though Valmiki Ramayanam was the basis of the work, Kamba Ramayanam was neither a translation nor a prototype of the original.
Mu.Va clearly brought out the difference in the treatment of Lord Rama by the two authors and stated that while Valmiki depicted Rama and Sita as the noble hero and heroine respectively, Kamban transformed them into gods and gave that impression to those who heard and read his epic.
He had also recorded the position of some scholars that it was only due to Kamban the cult of Rama spread to the whole of the country.
Besides, Kamban's work is characterised not just by the beauty of the language, magnificent descriptions and embellishments but also the poet's insight into human nature.
It is no wonder that Kamba Ramayanam has captured the imagination of people over the ages. Leading public figures of Tamil Nadu, including V.V.S. Iyer and T.K. Chidambaranatha Mudaliar, have brought out powerful commentaries and rendered the work into English. It is for all these reasons that the epic has stood the test of time.
