silappathikaram in english by Prof. A.S.R

[Subbaier Ramasami]

PROF . A.SRINIVASA RAGHAVAN  has translated Silappathikaram ein english. I happenned to get a part of it today.  I will post here what all I got in my hand.

 

First, the story in a short form

Kovalan a merchant prince of puhar, is wedded to a charming wife Kannaki. Theey live happily for a time. But , Kovalan loses his heart to a dancer , Madhavi , and deserting his wife squanders on her all his wealth.
In a voluptuous evening by the sea a misunderstanding arises beteen the lovers . Kovalan comes home in a huff , finds that Kannaki offers no word of reproach , but loves him with all her heart.

There is reunion and quickly they plan a better future. They steal awy that night from the city of puhar to seek their fortune anew in far off Madurai.  After a few minor adventures they reach the outskirts of that city.

Kannaki gives Kovalan a golden anklet of hers to sell in the city. Kovalan falls to the evil portents that appear. In the city’s thoroghfare he meets the King’s goldsmith coming with a retinue and Kovalan offers him the jewel for sale. The deceitful goldsmith who had embezzeled the queen’s anklet asks Kovalan to stay there and goes and reports to the king that the thief who stole the queen’s anklet has been found. In thoughtless anger the King cries” Kill the thief and bring the anklet here. “  Kovalan protests his innocence , but is cut down by a drunken trooper.

Kannaki hears of the foul murder and is distracted with grief. She rises up like an angry Goddess and seeks audience with the king. She demonstrates before him Kovalan’s innocence.

The King is horror-stricken and dies of shock . The queen swoons away. But Kannaki whose anger is not appeased plucks off her breast fiercely and flings it at the city with a curse. By the fire of her chastity the city is burnt down. She then ascends to heaven with her husband in a celestial car

 

  POETIC TRANSLATION WILL FOLLOW

S.RAMASAMI

29-12-2023

[Swaminathan Sankaran]

Wow!

Eagerly look forward to a.sri.raa's translation.

During the last 2 to 3 years I embarked on a project to read at least one epic in the original 

with the help of commentaries. I completed 'silappadhikaaram' with na.mu. vEnaktasaami naattaar's

Thamizh commentary, simultaneously with V.Ramachandra Dikshitar's English commentary and translation. 

I consider Dikshitar's translation as the 'gold standard.' I also completed Valmiki Ramayana IIT Kharagpur edition, except for

the Uttara kanda (because I couldn't get an edition with the original text and English translation). I now have the Gita Press edition of

 the Sundara, Yuddha/Lanka and Uttara kandas. I am reading the Uttara kanda now. I also completed reading Dante Aligheri's Divine Comedy,

but not in the original Italian, but only in an excellent English verse translation with superb commentary by John Ciasrdi, as well as

Virgil's Aeneid, not in the original Latin, but in an excellent verse translation and commentary by the poet Robert Fitzgerald.

I look forward to a.sri.raa's translation.

Sankaran

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 Swaminathan Sankaran

[Siva Siva]

Nice.

V. Subramanian

On Fri, Dec 29, 2023 at 7:34 AM Subbaier Ramasami <kavim...@gmail.com> wrote:

PROF . A.SRINIVASA RAGHAVAN  has translated Silappathikaram ein english. I happenned to get a part of it today.  I will post here what all I got in my hand.

 ....

[Subbaier Ramasami]

FIRST CANTO

THE BENEDICTORY SONG

Let’s praise the Moon
Let’s praise the Moon
Since like the parasol , cool and white
of the Chola King
over whose garland
Fragrant pollen spreads
It is bounteous to the earth
So wide and so far!

Let’s praise the Sun
Let’s praise the Sun
Since like the wheel of soverignity
of the Lord of Kaviri land
It revolves around Meru
The golden crested hill

Let’s praise the CLOUD
So dark  and so large
Let’s praise the CLOUD
So dark and so large

Since Like his kindly grace
It stands upon high
And bestows teeming foison
Upon the earth encomposed
By the awe-inspiring sea

Let us praise Puhar
The city beautiful
Let us praise Puhar
The city beautiful
Since with his royal line
Its renown spreads
And increasath evermore

Upon the earh encompassed
By the swollen waters of the sea

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[Anand Ramanujam]

“over whose garland 

Fragrant pollen spreads”

Nice translation of “கொங்கு அலர் தார் சென்னி” 

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[Siva Siva]

Does the book mention the English meters of the various songs?

Are these using any rhyming scheme?

Or, are these considered to be free verse?

V. Subramanian

On Fri, Dec 29, 2023 at 7:34 PM Subbaier Ramasami <kavim...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Subbaier Ramasami]

THERE IS NO BOOK   After ASR'S DEATH I went to his house at thoothukudi  in 1980s and asked his daughter in law to handover to me all his manuscripts..  Without knowing the value of his manuscripts most of them had been discarded and a bunch was there  dumped in a sack I went through the papers and collected  whaterver possible  This silappathikaram translation(only two cantos were there. the paper was brittle and browned. somehow I have managed to type the contents and posting them here Still some manuscripts of his thiruppaavai lectures and kambaramaayanam lectures are available I will  gradually type them and post them.  

the translation seems to be blank verse. 

He being an English professor  his handling of that language is wonderful.

Ramasami

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[Siva Siva]

Thank you for the additional information.

Glad you were able to salvage whatever was available when you visited Thoothukudi in the 1980s..

V. Subramanian

[Lalitha & Suryanarayanan]

மங்கலம் தங்கும் திங்கள் முகம்கவி

பொங்கு மாக்கடல் இலந்தையைப் போற்றுதும்!

இலந்தையைப் போற்றுதும் நலந்தரு தம்குரு

ஆங்கில மொழியில் ஆக்கிய சிலம்பை

ஈங்குநம் இடையே இட்டத னாலே!

ஓங்குயர் புகழினை உடையவர் சீனி

பாங்குடன் பண்ணிய மொழிபெயர்ப் பினையே

சிந்தையை ஈர்க்கச் சந்தமா மன்றில்

தந்தநம் அன்புத் தலைவரைப் போற்றுதும்!

மீதமும் கிடைக்க மேதினி வாழ்த்தும்!

காதமும் கடந்து தேடிட முயன்றால்

போதமும் கிடைக்கும், புண்ணியம் சேரும்,

ஆதலால் ஈசனார் அருளைப் பெய்திட

வேண்டுகின் றேனே ஈண்டடி யேனே!

சிவசூரி.

[Subbaier Ramasami]

Hence it is,
That masters of learning
who all things know
Never would say
of pothiyil hill
of the Himalayan Range
Nor ever of Puhar
of grandier unparalelled
Where dwells for aye
Many an ancient clan
Which hath never known
Flight from the city
That it hath an end
But that it will endure
Firm and unshakable
Since there abide the illustrious

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[Subbaier Ramasami]

So,

In the city of Puhar
Where joy abounds
As in the country of the Nagas
and endless Fame abides
As in the spaceous city of Heaven
Lived a fair maid
Almost twice six years old
A spring of the line
Of a captain of a great fleet
Whose hands were as generous
As the clouds of the Sky
And who seemed
Like a streak of golden lightning
And verily, she
Was adored by all the women
who extolled her crying
“Lo, She has the glorious form
Of the lovely Goddess
Who pervades the Lotus FlowerS
She has the virtue
Of the immaculately pure
Star of the north
She passionately loved
Those noble virtues
Kannaki was she named

[Subbaier Ramasami]

There in dwelt one

Who in abounding wealth

was higher far

Than any of the peerless citizens

Of whom the great king

The ruler over the whole

Of the spacious earth

was counted as the foremost.

Sumptuously he gave to the needy

All his incoming treasure.

His name was Masathuvan

Lord of stupendous wealth

He had a son

Almost twice eight years old

And verily, he

In compare with whose fame

The earth was as naught

And whom moon-faced maidens

In compare with whose voice

Music was as naught

Praised among their set

spreading his renown

Far and wide crying

“let he be the red warrior God

in visible form adorable

And infatuated with love

Extoled his virtues

Kovalan was he named

[Subbaier Ramasami]

Them

Both their noble sires

On an eventful day

Longed to see

In bridal garb arrayed

And greatly rejoicing

They set jewelled maidens

Upon the backs of elephants

And announced the marriage tidings

to the great city

Ther upon

The big drums rolled

The double drums rattled

The conches blared in regular swell

A host of white parasoles rose up

As when kings on processions go

The wedding string was taken round

The circuit of the city.

[Swaminathan Sankaran]

Thereupon (ther upon - spelling error?)

Sankaran

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 Swaminathan Sankaran

[Subbaier Ramasami]

thank you for the correction

On Fri, Jan 5, 2024 at 8:46 PM Swaminathan Sankaran <swamina...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thereupon (ther upon - spelling error?)

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[Subbaier Ramasami]

Within a hall  enclosed
By diamond studded columns
From where capitals
Garlands hung low
The lovely  bower of  pearl
Beneath a canopy of blue silk
When the moon
Which traverses the sky
came nigh the Hyader
Kovalan
Guided in the Vedic path
By the old and venerable priest
Led around the fire
Her who was like Arundhadhi
The unique star of the sky*
How fortunate were they
Who saw the sight
With their own eyes
Some maids with flashing limbs
Bore sweet perfumes
And some bore flowers
And some did speak
And some did sing
Or looked with side long glances
Maids with youthful Upstanding breasts
Bore sandal paste
And smoking incense
Or aromic powder well – pounded
And some maids with gentle smiles
Bore shining lamps
While others jewels bare
And some held vessels|
From which unfurled
Fresh- budding sprouts
Of auspicious grain
* what virtue was theirs

[Subbaier Ramasami]

And some bore water pots
Row on row
And some maids who seemed
Like fragrant golden creepers
With blossomed flowers
In their flowing tresses
Prayed thus

“Mayest thou never be parted
From thy beloved
May his clinging arms
Never relax in their close embrace
May harm never befall thee”
And strewed flowers
upon the bridal pair

And they set her who was like Arunthathi
Of the earth so wide and fair
Upon the auspicious bridal couch
Exclaiming
May the shining tiger emblem
Blazened on this side
Or the eternal Himalayan range
May it manifest itself
Upon the golden crest beyond
And may king Chola
Of the angry lance
Who hath been victorious
In many a war
Roll his wheel of sovereignity
Unigue and unchallengd
Eeverywhere

[Swaminathan Sankaran]

I think that the following changes may make the intended meaning clearer.

Like fragrant golden creepers,    (cooma at the end of the line)

With blossomed flowers

Unigue and unchallengd

Unique and unchallengd (spelling changed to unique)

Sankaran

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 Swaminathan Sankaran