Villi Bharatham Tamil Book Pdf

[Adriana Gowen]

Thefirst edition of Nallapillai Bharatham was published in 1888 by Swaminatha Iyer. Second edition came out in 1911 published by Sundharanatha Pillai. [1]Professor Ra. Srinivasan republished it in 2007.[2]

Nallapillai was born in a hamlet called Mudhalamebedu near Kavaraipettai, a suburb in North Chennai. He belonged to a caste called Karuneegar. Sengadu Veeraraghava Reddy supported his Tamil literary work.

In Tamil literature, Mahabharata references have started to appear since the Sangam period. They also appear in Purananuru texts. The poet who wrote the Payiram (preface) for Sangam songs was called Bharadham Paadiya Perundhevanar' (Perundevanar who sang Mahabharata). This text is mostly unavailable. Chinnamanur copper inscription reveals that the Pandias translated the Mahabharata into Tamil at the Madurapuri Sangam, which hasn't been found as well.[3] In the fifteenth century, Villiputhurar composed the Villibharatham.

In the eighteenth century, as learning and lecturing on Mahabharata became popular in Tamil Nadu, Villibharatham, being concise, was widely used. It was shorter than Vyasa Bharatham and had only 10 of the 18 chapters.

Nallappillai, who wanted to sing the entire Mahabharata in Tamil, composed 14000 verses,132 chapters and eighteen books as in the original Vyasa Mahabharata. Murugappa Upadhyay also co-authored the book, that was later called Nallappillai Bharatham[4].

He retains most of the verses from Villibharatham in his book, details the portions not covered by Villiputhurar and expands on the parts that are little bit condensed in Villibharatham. Therefore all of the 4300 verses of Villibharatham feature in this text. After it was completed, he was accompanied by Veeraraghava Reddy to go and present his completed Mahabharata at the Varadharaja Perumal temple at Kanchipuram.

In classical language Tamil, the earliest references to Mahabharata traces back to Sangam literature. Like Mahabharata, there are various contentions about the period of Sangam literature, but it has been widely accepted that Sangam period lasted between 300 BCE and 300 CE. Eminent historian Nilakanda Sastri,7 revered Tamil scholar Kamil Veith Zvelebi8l and historian and Professor Dr.Upinder Singh9 of Delhi University have dated Sangam literature before 320 BCE

Dr.A.K.Ramanujan, who spent his life time in teaching at University of Chicago and at other American universities including Harvard and whose academic research ranged across five languages ( English, Kannada, Tamil , Telugu and Sanskrit) has this to say about Sangam literature

If you translate it would read, Oh, greatness , who gave unlimited rice until those hundred men (wearing golden thumbai flower garlands) had seized the land and perished in the field fighting furiously against the five (whose horses wore swaying plumes)

Learned Tamil scholars, R. Raghava Iyengar, Va. Suba. Manickam and Mylai. Seeni Venkatasamy have given different interpretations to this poem, but have concurred on three points. 1. The term hundred men refers to Kaurava princes 2. The five refers to Pandava princes and 3.The Chera Kings participated in the war.

அவ்வய் வளர்பற சடச் சவ்வய்

அந்த வனத்த ஆடமழ கடப்ப

வண்கட்ட இரம்பணம் கரத ஈர்ப்ப

ஈர் ஐம் பதன்மரம் பரத களத்த அவய

பர் அமர்க் கடந்த கடஞ்ச நடந்தர்

ஆரச் சரவன் ஐவர் பல

அடங்கத் தனயட உடன்ற மல்வந்த

ஒன்னத் தவ்வர் உலவடத்த ஆர்த்த

கச்சயன கவண் தன்றல்

If translated into English it would read as : He is protection to those who seek the charitable scion of Kanji, who routed his enemies in battlefields like the five men owning chariots with decorations, who have won great battles, never lost, who destroyed hundreds, the flood of blood carrying dead bodies of elephants with white tusks, appearing like clouds that roam in the red-coloured, wide sky adorned with a crescent moon.

Sirupanarrupadai is a part of the Sangam anthology Pathupattu ( the ten idylls) composed by poet Nallur Nathathanar . It is a 269 line poem that guides the bards to benevolent kings. While relishing the delicacies of the palace, the poet recalls Bhima, the master of culinary. He presumes the recipes must be from the cookbook of Bhima. The poet goes beyond mentioning Bhima and recounts an episode in Mahabharata

க எரயட்டய கவர் கணத் தணப்

ப வர கச்சப் பகழன் தன் மன்

பன வர மர்பன் பயந்த நண் பரள்

பனவலன் வழஅப் பல் வற அடசல் 14

Much later around the middle of 9th Century CE, another Perundevanar compiled Mahabharatha, which is known as Bharatha Venba. Venba is a form of poetry with strict grammar. Though this 9th-century work is called Bharatha Venba it is poetry in the firm metre are irregularly interspersed with connecting prose. In Tamil, we call it as Uraiyidai itta paattudai cheiyul. The poetic passages are in good chaste Tamil but in contrast, the ornate prose is heavily Sanskritised both lexically and syntactically.22

The text of this work too is not available in entirety. It is estimated that the work had 12000 stanzas but only 800 of them are available now. The surviving portions include half of Udyogaparvam, Bhishmaparvam and part of Dhronaparvam (up to the battle of the 13th day )

Many scholars have published Villi Bharatham and the earliest one was from Arumuga Navalar of Sri Lanka, followed by Komalapuram Rajagopal Pillai. Madurai Tamil Sangam, came out with a better edition in 1907 with explanatory notes. Best among the treatises is the work of V.M. Gopalakrishnamacharya in seven volumes

In the first half of 18th century, a Tamil poet by name Nalla Pillai came out with the full rendering of Mahabharata in 15,300 quatrains. His work was far more exhaustive and covered areas not recorded by his distinguished predecessor. He had filled in many details unsaid by Vyasa and Villi

Tamil scholars and nationalists like M.P. Sivagnam and P.Jeevandam had written that Bhrathi has symbolized Bharatha Mata in Draupati who is enslaved employing unfair tricks and tactics by those who seized power.

But another critic T.M. Chidambra Ragunathan, one of the recipients of Sahitya Akademi award, disagrees with them. He is of the opinion that it is not just about Bharata Mata, but a voice against oppression in general and atrocities on woman in particular.32

1. ச.கரஷ்ணமசரயர், .வ.ம.கபலகரஷ்ணமசரயர் [S.Krishnamachariya, V.M.Gopalakrishnamachariya] (p.3) in வல்லபரதம் மலமம் உரயம் [Villi Bharatham Verse and Text]

27. ச.கரஷ்ணமசரயர், .வ.ம.கபலகரஷ்ணமசரயர் [S.Krishnamachariya, V.M.Gopalakrishnamachariya] (p.3) in வல்லபரதம் மலமம் உரயம் [Villi Bharatham Verse and Text] P.12-13

28 வல்லபரதம் படல் 30 பதனன்கம் பர்ச் சரக்கம் தரணபர்வம் [ Villibhartam Verse #30, Chapter 14, Dhrona parvam]

Maalan, born in 1950 in Srivilliputhur, Tamil Nadu, emerged as a literary figure with a penchant for poetry. At the age of 16, he made his debut in the literary world through both poetry and prose. From 1970 to 1985, he contributed numerous short stories and poems in literary journals throughout Tamil Nadu.

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