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Book Review
TAMIL
Anthology of essays
V. N. VEDANTA DESIKAN
BHARATHIYIN KANNAN PAATTU — A Study of the Krishna Cult in Indian Literature: Edited by A. Pitchai, A.P. Ananda Kumar; Faculty of Tamil, Indian Languages, and Rural Arts, Gandhigram Rural University, Gandhigram-624302.
Rs. 140.
SUBRAMANIA BHARATI was a greatly inspired soul. His vast and expansive genius has blossomed into a variety of poetic flowers, one of which is conveniently compartmentalised as Kannan Paattu. The name Kannan is a name very much cherished in most Tamil homes. To Bharati, Kannan or Krishna is a great God, who gave the Bhagavad Gita and saved Draupadi in a moment of crisis.
Though Periazhwar had sung Pillaithamizh poetry on Kannan, his daughter Andal had sung love poetry on him and some other Azhwars are wont to sing in Nayaki-bhava, sporting a bridal posture, Bharati looked at Kannan from the Upanishadic and hymnal standpoint, so as to address Him as “mother, father, brother, friend and everything.” To him, therefore, a posture, as bride as well as bridegroom, became natural. He has sung, in addition, of Kannan as a servant, master, preceptor and as a personal God to whom he surrenders in a popular song. When he treats his God as a female, he calls her Kannamma. Azhwars could not, however, resort to such a “reversal of bridal mysticism.”
This is a collection of seminar papers on the possible impact of various literary forces of different languages, including Tamil, on shaping the poet as a Kannan-admirer. Quite a number of papers are naturally in English. Had not Bharati declared that “even a master of a thousand literatures can hardly discern a poetic heart’s thinking?” Nevertheless one must admit that this thin, but, content-rich book will delight every lover of Bharati’s poetry.
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