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Thamizh Is Not

Just A Language - The Valour


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iii

Thamizh Is Not Just

A Language

The Valour

Ki. Madhan Kumar

EDUCREATION PUBLISHING (Since 2011)

www.educreation.in


iv


v

குடிதழீஇக் க ோக ோச்சும் மோநி மன்னன்

அடிதழீஇ நிற்கும் உ கு.

The world clings to the ruler’s feet

Whose sceptre clasps the people’s heart.

THIRUKURAL, 554,

GODLY POET THIRUVALLUVAR (200 B.C.E.)


vi

RAJA RAJA CHOZHAN (947 C.E. – 1014 C.E.)

CHOZHAN DYNASTY

FIRST INDIAN KING TO HAVE THE NAVAL FORCE


vii

PULI THEVAN

NERKAATTUM SEVVAL (1715 A.D. – 1767 A.D.)

FIRST EVER KING OF INDIA TO FIGHT AGAINST

BRITISH


viii

MAVEERAN AZHAGU MUTHU KONE

ETTAYAPURAM (1710 A.D. - 1759 A.D.)

FREEDOM FIGHTER


ix

KING MARUTHU PANDIYAR

SIVAGANGAI DYNASTY

WARRIORS AGAINST BRITISH


x

MAVEERAN DHEERAN CHINNAMALAI

CHENNIMALAI, ERODE (1756 C.E. – 1805 C.E.)

WARRIOR AGAINST BRITISH COLONIALS


xi

THIRUVENGADA VELUPILLAI PRABHAKARAN

THAMIZH NATIONAL LEADER - THAMIZH EEZHAM

BORN 1964, VALVETTITHURAI.


xii

KANNAGI

(2ND

CENTURY C.E.)

ICON OF CHASTITY


xiii

RANI VELU NACHIYAR

SIVAGANGAI DYNASTY (1730 C.E. – 1796 C.E.)

FIRST EVER QUEEN IN INDIAN HISTORY TO FORM A

WOMEN ARMY & FIGHT AGAINST BRITISH COLONIALS

AND RECAPTURED HER DYNASTY.


xiv

THALAPATHY KUYILI

CAPTAIN OF RANI VELUNACHIYAR’S WOMEN ARMY –

UDAYAL PADAI

FIRST EVER WARRIOR WHO TURNED AS HUMAN BOMB

AND SACRIFICED HER LIFE FOR THE SAKE OF HER

MOTHER LAND.


xv

Introduction

In general histories of India, the part of the country with

which we are concerned figures only in a small way.

Vincent Smith rightly observed „most historians of

ancient India have written as if the South did not exist‟

and explained this neglect of the South in two ways.

„The historian of India,‟ he said, „is bound by the nature

of things to direct his attention to the North, and is able

to give only a secondary place to the story of Deccan

Plateau and the far south. „South India and northern

Ceylone are the one of the oldest inhabited regions of the

world and its prehistoric archaeology and contacts with

neighbouring lands, so far as traceable, constitutes an

important chapter in the history of world‟s civilizations.

The Marathas of the western Deccan are the southern

most of indo Aryan speaking people and all the country

to the east and south of them speaks languages which

fall into a single group with Thamizh as the source

which is the Classical living language & exists the

ethnicity called Thamizhan, with its own individuality

and unique, unconquerable potency in both Politics,

culture, sport, worship, art, agriculture and valour. They

had a wide spread life in now called India with

Himalayas as their border in North and Kanyakumari in

South. They defeated enemies and won the dynasties

with their audacity, courage and gallantry; made the non

fertile land into cultivable with their knowledge on

farming. This was the life of thousands of years ago.

Still in North India its heritage is been rested under the

earth.

There are many researches which proved the

antiquities of Thamizh language. Recent research

conducted by sixteen scientist led by Prof. Martin P.

Richards and Tony Joseph of University of

Huddersfield., concluded the fact that Aryan settlement


xvi

came from central Asia with the Indo Aryan languages

before 2000 B.C. to 1500 B.C. when the Indus Valley

Civilization was in the decline stage, which proved that

the Indus Valley Civilization is been in existence long

before Aryan settlement and it has been mentioned it as

the Dravidian people who are the owners of it, where

that period there was no other Dravidian language other

than Thamizh which implies Indus Valley Civilization is

nothing but the Thamizh People Civilization. These

Thamizh people lived with their own language, culture,

literature, music, worship and games existed all over

India. To add credit to this research there were some

important excavations carried out in Korkai and

Adichanallur near in Thoothukudi District Thamizh

Nadu led by Archaeologist T. Sathyamurthy discovered

the artefacts mentioned "People generally think that

megalithic culture is the earliest culture in South India,

especially in Thamizh Nadu. In our excavation [at

Adichanallur], we have come across a culture earlier

than the megalithic period. The megalithic period in

South India ranges from 3rd century B.C. to 3rd century

A.D” in an interview and Keezhadi which is 15kms from

Madurai, Thamizh Nadu by Archaeological Survey of

India, and team lead by Archaeologist Mr. Amarnath

Ramakrishna. There were found over 5,300 artefacts

aging in the same period, also was the first ever evidence

of an urban civilization of Sangam Era, which is widely

as crowning point of Thamizh culture and Literature.

Ruled by number of courageous tripartite Kingdoms

Cheran, Chozhan and Pandian dynasty from Sangam

eras in most of the areas and by Pallavas at Eastern

coastal areas this glorious cultural heritage has been

sustained and still immortal in Thamizh Nadu and

Thamizh Eezham. Each and every ruler of these

dynasties has been very passionate towards the Thamizh

language, art and literature. They stood together in so


xvii

many instances with so much of courage in the battles to

save them from opponent kingdoms. They have been

very clear in transforming their valour as the lesson to

upcoming generation so they did their acts in the form of

poems, literatures and stone inscriptions that are found

in many places of Thamizh Nadu in modern era too,

literatures Tholkappiyam, Thirukural, Purananuru,

Agananuru, Silapathikaram, Kalingathuparani,

Pathitrupathu and still more available to explain their act

of valour and courage. Cheran Chenguttuvan, Nedun

Cheralathan, Karikal Chozhan, Raja Raja Chozhan,

Rajendhra Chozhan, Kulothunga Chozhan, Nedun

Chezhia Pandian, Kulasekara Pandian were some of the

incredible among the kings. Raja Rajan and Rajendhra

are the kings who were the owned the first ever Naval

invasions in South East Asia and made their flag waging

all over south East Asia. During their period Chozhan

empire is considered to be the 3rd

largest in the world. In

Sangam age the expectation of Mothers from son and

Wives from their pair was the same, as brave death in

the war field without showing their back cowardly to the

enemies; their reactions were explained in Purananuru

(Four Hundred Song of War and Wisdom). The bravery

was fed to the warrior right from his child hood by his

mother and sustained by his wife. All the sport played by

males those days were helped to build the skill,

strengthen mind and the grow valiance. Sports like

Yaeru Thazhuvuthal (Sallikattu), Silambattam, Vaal

Veechu etc., are still in practice of Thamizh Nadu.

In later centuries after British Invasions there were

many Kings like Azhagu Muthu Kon, Puli Thevar,

Maruthu Pandiyar and warriors like Veeran

Sundharalingam, Dheeran Chinnamalai who rose against

them to save our land. Also queen Velu Nachiyar who

was the first queen to build a women army and first

woman to swing the sword against English East India


xviii

Company and one of the few empires who recaptured

their kingdom, she did this a 85 years before Rani

Lakshmi Bhai of Jhansi, but somehow we have missed

to recognize it. Kuyili the captain of Velu Nachiyar‟s

women troop was the first ever human bomb in the

world during the war against British.

In the Modern Age its Thamizh National Leader

Velupillai Prabhakaran, who ruled Thamizh Eezham and

stood for the freedom of Thamizh Eezham. Started his

struggle at the age of 14, stepped out of the home,

initiated an armed rebel group with just 30 members,

then formed a revolution organisation named Liberation

Tigers Thamizh Eezham (LTTE). LTTE, the

organisation which was grown as the only revolution or

rebel organisation which owned all three military troops

Army, Naval and Air with women wing and suicide

attackers the Black Tigers with around 40000 brigades

strength. He formed a separate judicial government with

school, college, medical, banks and courts in Eezham. In

the final war he had lost all his family for the sake of his

mother land. His glory will always be remembered to

Centuries by Thamizhs.

This is what all about in this book, the valour,

courage and valiance of kings and warriors who existed

in Thamizh ethnics‟ right from the ancient era. Shown

with available referrals from the Thamizh epics and

literatures from Sangam era translated in English. Now

let us start our journey from Sangam age to the Mordern

age by visualizing all the battles, wars and prowess of

our ancestors.

W


Ki. Madhan Kumar

1

Chapter 1

Himalayan Invasions

P


Thamizh Is Not Just A Language - The Valour

2

Though Northern part was ruled by the migrants,

Thamizh kings didn‟t want to lose their supreme

ownership of Mount Himalayas. Most of the Thamizh

Kings invaded north, proved their supremacy and won

many dynasties. The tripartite Cheran, Chozhan and

Pandian Dynasties have a major role in these invasions,

where all three had their unique symbols as Bow &

Arrow, Tiger, and Fish in their flags. To their glory all

three had established their flags in Himalayas in

remembrance of their victory. All of Ancient Thamizh

Literatures like Pathitrupathu, Silapathikaram,

Agananuru, Purananuru etc. poems without singing their

glory.

Nedun Cheralathan

“Long live with boundaries Podhigai in south and

Himalayas in North” praised the poets and scholars of

Chera Dynasty and greeted their new king Nedun

Cheralathan who succeeded his father Udhiyan

Cheralathan during his swearing ceremony at Manthai

fort. After the ceremony the sentence praised by scholars

kept striking in his mind often and made him unsettled,

“There is a close relation between Southern

Podighai hills and Cheras as this belongs to our

dynasty, but how can it be related to Himalayas which is

located somewhere in the north and ruled by Aryan

kings?, Why are we being praised with those words?”

Such questions kept rising within him, after

examining all these questions he understood their wish

to bring Himalayas under his dynasty

“Yes, the southern ocean was won by our father

Udhiyan Cheralathan and was praised as the King who

owned both sun rise and sun set directions as

boundaries, one more ancestor who won the Vaanamalai

and expanded his boundary upto south of Payal

mountain and praised as Vaanavaramban, so now it’s

our turn to march towards north and make Himalayas as


Ki. Madhan Kumar

3

our northern boundary” Nedun Cheralathan concluded.

Immediately he called for a meeting with his ministers

and generals to have a discussion about his plan of

expedition, everyone present in that discussion

acknowledged his of invasion idea with a great cheer;

also he thought of consulting the other two monarchs i.e.

Chozha & Pandian kings on his decision and made a

message to them, they were also praised him on his

vision and supported him by sending great fleet of army

from their side. The march towards Himalayas began

where Nedun Cheralathan was leading the front,

followed by the Elephant regiment, auxiliary regiments,

infantries and archers. In those days the landscape

between Konkana and Himalayas were called as Aryake.

There ruled Sadhakannar and Mouryas. Knowing about

the march they made preparations to stop them on the

way with their army. In the battle field, looking at the

strength of opponent army, standing before them like a

confluence of three oceans, they could do nothing but

retreat. Then crossing them, the march continued

towards north where they defeated joined hands of seven

crowned kings who opposed him near River Ganges and

reached the height of Himalayas. He placed Chera‟s

symbol as a sign of their victory. When this victorious

Thamizh army returned home, received an awful

welcome from the citizens and scholars and named their

King “Imaya Varamban”, where Imayam is the Thamizh

word of Himalayas and Varamban refers to a person who

reached the sky. The victory of Cheralathan was praised

in the poem of Pathitrupathu, 11 as

O King Cheralathan who wears sandal garlands

and drinks palm-fiber filtered toddy!

You own murderous armies who fight wars.

You are seated high on your royal elephant,

the fresh victory garland filling your chest

hangs down touching the gleaming face ornaments



4

of your faultless elephant with powerful,

high tusks and neck decorated with gold jewels.

Everyone praises your immense wealth.

I saw the sweetness of it, my lord!

Deer sleeping on slopes filled with coral trees,

dream of the narantham grass they ate,

and of wide waterfalls from which they drank,

in the well renowned Himalayas where Aryans live.

In the land between that mountain and southern

Kumari, you have ruined the strength of arrogant kings.

- Thamizh Poet Kumattur Kannanar, Thamizh Epic

Pathitrupathu, 11.

With this victory Cheralathan assumed the title

“One to whose broad chest, where the prosperity

resided, belonged the seven crowns” (Pathitrupathu, 14)

implying that he deprived seven kings of their crowns,

melted them and made golden garland of them. In the

contemporary eulogy, Kumattur Kannanar merely says

that his king “Quelled the Valour” of Aryan Kings up to

the Himalayan region where the Aryans abound.

Baranar the eulogist of Nedun Cheralathan‟s son,

Kuttuvan explains that this Cheralathan “Charged the

Aryans so as to make them howl, carved the bent bow

(Chera Dynasty Symbol) on the ancient northern

mountain and captured the ferocious kings.” He was

praised by poet Baranar as below

I will not be afraid to stay here. Should you

leave, before leaving, you need to return my

beauty, like Vanji city of the victorious Cheras

who attacked the trembling Aryans and carved

their bow symbol on the ancient, northern

mountains

- Poet Baranar: Thamizh Epic Agananuru, 396


Ki. Madhan Kumar

5

Karikal Chozhan Karikal Chozhan, son of Ilamcetcenni was the eminent

and greatest among the early Chozha kings in the

Sangam age with Kaveripoompattinam as his capital,

ruled around 120 C. E. He had also been known as

Karikal Pervalthan and Thirumavalavan by his epithets.

He had the legacy for successfully unifying all three

Thamizh Kingdoms through the Battle of Venni. After

the Battle of Venni, his legendary campaign to Northern

India had been of royal hype. He made an unstoppable

and undisputable march towards north defeating all

kings who were against in his way. The King of

Magadha Dynasty, ruler of Bihar with Girivrijja

(Modern Patna) made an attempt to stop Karikala with

his army force of infantry, elephants and Cavalry forces

at the banks of River Ganga. But they couldn‟t withhold

the vigorous roar of Karikala‟s prodigious army and

their war art, the war didn‟t extent too long and both the

armies demolished. The kingdom was subjugated and

was made dependent under the Chozha Empire. Then the

Chozhas crossed Ganges and reached high Himalayas

where he established his Tiger Flag waving majestically

at Golden Meru which is spoken of in Indian Legends as

the centre of Earth. (Thamizh Epic Silapathikaram,

Vazhthu Kathai, Poem 19). On his return towards south,

he was greeted by Vajra King who paid tribute to

Chozhan with monuments and gifts with so much of

respect. Avanti Empire King who was already a good

friend of Karikala, hearing the news of his triumph

gifted him a golden arch as a symbol of victory. He

brought all the monuments and gifts presented by the

kings and exhibited them in Poompuhar. (Thamizh Epic

Silapathikaram, Indhira vizhavooredutha Kathai, Poem

86-100)



6

Pandian

Pandian‟s Fish flag also shined in Himalayas, the honour

of this triumph belongs to the Pandian King Konnavil

Koor Vel Kon Nedumaran who marched upto Himalayas

and engraved Pandian symbol on the slopes, was praised

as “Mountain eye engraved by Pandian Patriarch” by an

ancient poet Periyazhvar in his Thirumozhi poems, here

he symbolizes Pandian‟s fish symbol as a similarity to

the eyes. One more honour about his conquest is that he

had made the symbols of other two monarchs also along

with his fish symbol.

One of the Pandian ancestries named

Nedunchezhian has been praised as “Arya Padai

Kadantha Nedunchezhian (Conqueror of Aryan Army)”

in Great Epic Silapathikaram, for his enormous act of

war skills against Aryans who came with the thought of

invasion to his boundary. Nedun Chezhian the furious

warrior defeated the Aryan army and proceeded towards

the Mountain Himalayas to uphold Pandian‟s glory on

the slopes. Looking at the virility, integrity, wisdom and

prosperity of Madurai during his rule a poet from the

neighbouring nation praised “South Ruler, His Land‟s

Calibre & Prosperity, Seen By My Pleased Eye”

(Thamizh Epic Silapathikaram, Kadu Kaan Kathai, 54-

55).

W


Ki. Madhan Kumar

7

Chapter 2

Kannagi - Valour Of Chastity

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8

Kannagi

In ancient Thamizhagam, each and every woman

pursued a life of house hold moral ethics where chastity

and virtuosity for the growth of their husbands as well as

the nation were their ultimate agenda, among them

Kannagi, who is eulogized as a supreme epitome of

chastity. She is worshiped as Kannagi Amman in

Thamizh Nadu and by Thamizh Eezham People, also as

Pathini Goddess in Srilanka by Sinhalese. Her life was

narrated by the poet Ilango adigal in the Thamizh Epic

Silapathikaram which is considered to be the chief of

five great epics (Silapathikaram, Manimegalai, Seevaga

Sinthamani, Valayapathi and Kundalagesi) in Thamizh

Literature. Regarded as one of the great achievements of

Thamizh genius, the Silapathikaram is a poetic rendition

with details of Thamizh culture; its varied religions; its

town plans and city types; the mingling of different

people; and the arts of dance and music.

Kannagi, born in a rich merchant family, daughter

of Maanaigan was married to Kovalan who was the son

of another wealthy merchant named Masathuvan in

Chozha Nadu at the shores of Puhar which was later

called Poompuhar and Kaveripattinam. Then when

Kovalan lost all his wealth there with the infatuation

over dancer Madhavi, they left to Madurai with Kannagi,

after execution of her husband in Madurai she exploited

the city and walked to Chera Nadu where Cheran

Chenguttuvan built a temple of her as Maadhevi

Kannagi, with her morale and ethics she is considered to

be the god of Chastity.

Kannagi’s Married Life in Puhar

Both Kannagi and Kovalan had a prosperous household

life until Madhavi, the dancer came to the city and

Kovalan fell in love with her. Due to this infatuation he

started losing his grip on his wife and spent most of the


Ki. Madhan Kumar

9

time in the house of Madhavi who too was fallen in love

with him. He began to spend his wealth on the dancer,

even though Kannagi is knew about her husband‟s love

with Madhavi she gave her jewels to him as to fulfill his

wish. At last losing all his money with the dry hand and

clouded face came to his home, looking her husband

worried and upset she thought that it is because he didn‟t

have money, immediately took her anklet from the legs

which was only left out and gave it to him with a smile

on her face. Looking at her innocence and love, the

clouded face started raining with the guilt. Realizing his

mistake, they decided to leave Puhar and migrate to

Madurai.

Madurai Exploitation

They started their journey with the pair of anklets and

reached Madurai, which was then ruled by Pandian King

Nedun Chezhian I. Since they were empty handed and

with the idea of creating some source of income,

Kovalan planned to do some business for which he

required initial investment. For that Kannagi gave one of

her anklet to sell it in the street market of Madurai.

Unfortunately the same time when he went into the

streets with that anklet, one of the anklets of Queen

Koperundhevi was stolen by a goldsmith and the city

was made alert. For Kovalan‟s bad luck, the stolen

anklet was in the same shape as that of Kannagi‟s which

lead to a goldsmith to incriminate him as thief and

accused Kovalan. The information was sent to the King

that the thief has got caught in the market and without

any trial Nedun Chezhia Pandian I passed a verdict to

behead Kovalan and to bring the anklet. The verdict was

executed by the guards of the Pandian Dynasty and poor

Kovalan was cut into two pieces by cutting his head.



10

Kannagi’s Fury

Hearing the death of her husband, she exclaimed with

intolerable pain, yelled and screamed, ran to the spot and

screamed with the high pitched wail of grief and pain,

tears of distress were flooding on the body of Kovalan

who was lying dead. This exasperation turned her into an

uncontrollable anger due to this distress and injustice act

caused her innocent husband‟s death. With so much

aggression she walked towards the court of Nedun

Chezhia Pandian I with another anklet in her hand.

Entered the Court with indignation and accused King for

the injustice act of the King. Just imagine what

democratic morale was practiced in ancient period where

a common woman was allowed to enter King‟s court and

accuse the King for his unjustified verdict, but now we

can‟t even meet our councillors. With the enraged voice

she asked “Is my husband a thief? No, you the injust

King is the thief….How can a victim be beheaded

without proper enquiry and trials?” which shocked

everyone around in the court. In the further argument

King asked is there any proof that the anklet which

Kovalan had belonged to Kannagi. She replied that the

stones filled in her anklet are Rubies (which is the pride

of Chozhas). The King then said that the stones filled in

Queen‟s anklet are Pearl (it‟s also the pride of Pandian

Nadu, pearl collection from the southern ocean is was

the ancient primary business of Thamizhs in this region),

then removed one of the anklet from the Queen‟s leg and

thrown on the ground, pearls exposed. Kannagi asked

about the other one and king did it, to everyone‟s

surprise and shock they exposed the balls of Ruby, then

she thrown the other one in her hand in which the same


Ki. Madhan Kumar

11

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