About twenty-five years ago, at the invitation of Nanjilnadan, I went to Courtallam for a three-day stay. At that time, my friends ‘Marapin Mainthan’ Muthiah, Sudeshamithran, and Ravindran had come with me from Coimbatore. The season was coming to an end in Courtallam. The family of Rasikamani T.K. Chidambaranatha Mudaliar celebrated his birthday at the T.K.C. memorial in Courtallam. That was the purpose of our trip.
Marapin Mainthan Muthiah kept reciting verses from Tamil traditional literature during our three-day stay in the pleasant atmosphere of Courtallam. I was able to combine those traditional poems with that atmosphere. Therefore, echoing Bharathi’s words, I said to Muthaiya, ‘Sing Tamil,our Bard!’ We were listening to him recite poems from different periods of Tamil literary tradition. He kept on chanting them without getting tired.
At that time, the thought arose that it would be beneficial if he took classes on Tamil traditional literature. We were able to arrange classes on Tamil traditional literature after 25 years and the founding of the Unified Wisdom movement.
Most people are interested in learning our traditional literature. We can only understand our tradition and religion through our traditional literature, which serves as a vital link to our cultural identity and values. The taste of traditional literature is, in a way, the taste of our culture.
We all have Tamil pride, but very few people know Tamil literature. The reason is that it is difficult to learn Tamil at school today, which leads to a lack of engagement with its rich literary heritage. The truth is that all the ways to enter the Tamil tradition are blocked, making it difficult for individuals to connect with the culture and language in a meaningful way, which ultimately hinders the transmission of cultural values and the appreciation of its rich literary heritage.
Books can only provide limited assistance in understanding Tamil traditional literature. Through books, we cannot grasp the rhythm of traditional poetry or experience its pronunciation. With the rhythm, only when recited in a rhythmic manner do traditional songs acquire beauty. After that, what to enjoy in them and how one is in the tradition becomes clear only when a good teacher teaches. That is why we organize classes where students sit with the teacher and learn.
We aim to create an introduction based on traditional poems for those who are at the very beginning. Historically, we need to bring tradition from Sangam literature to contemporary literature. But we cannot learn that way. We need to introduce that taste through contemporary traditional poets like Kannadasan’s songs and then slowly take it back to the Sangam period, allowing readers to appreciate the evolution of themes and styles from ancient to modern poetry. That will be a sweet beginning. This approach reflects the teaching style of Marapin Mainthan.
Marapin Mainthan is conducting that class again for the fourth time next April.
Dates APRIL 3, 4 and 5
For contact [email protected]
