1. Alpha

Thiruvalluvar was sitting on the pial of his small home at Mylapre¹, deeply contemplating. A few palm leaves were lying near him waiting for getting inscribed with his wisdom. The feather with a blunt tip that has been serving as his pen, while being moved over his face, was wondering why people had to touch different parts of their face with the tip of a pen when they were thinking!

Thiruvalluvar’s wife Vasuki who was inside the house came to him and observing that her husband was in deep thought, asked him in a gentle voice, “May I help you with your problem, dear?”

“It’s not a problem. It’s a project I have been conceiving” replied Thiruvalluvar. “I want to write a book encompassing all aspects of our life in this world,” he continued.

“Oh, it should be a challenging work. Please make your work stand out from the rest of its kind. After all, there is no dearth of books on Ethics and Morals, though only a few people read them.”

“And very few of those who read them even think of following them! I am planning to write my book with a different structure. I want to write two-line verses, with the second line a little shorter than the first.”

“Good idea,” commended Vasuki “People are more likely to read a short verse. What will be the title of your work?”

“I have been thinking of the title. I have tentatively chosen ‘Kural,' which in Tamil means ‘a short verse.’ But somehow the title seems inadequate to me.”

“Just add the auspicious prefix ‘Thiru’ to ‘Kural' and make it ‘Thirukkural,” suggested Vasuki.

"That’s a wonderful idea. The title ‘Thirukkural’ sounds very nice. This short title is in consonance with the short verses that my work will be made of. Each of my short verses should have a  profound meaning. That’s my ambition.”

“Don’t call it an ambition. Have it as your goal and you will achieve it! Have I not been observing how you convey a lot through the few words that you speak to me?”

“Are you conveying something subtle to me through your short message, Vasuki? Are you suggesting that I don’t speak to you much or that my words have a hidden meaning that could be deemed pejorative?” asked a somewhat upset Thiruvalluvar.

“No, dear. How can I imply such a thing about you, a person who is overly careful about not hurting anyone through the use of words even inadvertently? Did you not once tell me that choosing harsh words over benign words is like choosing to eat an unripe fruit when ripe fruit is available in plenty?”

“Did I? That seems to be a good line. I will make a note to use this in one of my kurals.”

“Your idea of packing a powerful idea in a small verse reminds me of  Vamana², the tiny figure that contained the gigantic Trivikrama in him! Incidentally, the Vaishnavite saint Nammazhvar calls Vamana ‘Thirukkural Appan (The Great Little Man)’. Just as Vamana covered the terrestrial world with his one tiny foot and the Celestial world with his other, the two verses of your Kural will also contain a world of wisdom in them.”

“That is the idea.”

“How are you going to organize the content of your work?”

“I plan to structure my work by dividing it into three sections corresponding to the three major pursuits of human beings namely Dharma or Virtue, Artha or Materialism and Kama or Love. These divisions, as you know, are as per our traditions.”

“But dear, I understand that our traditions mention four pursuits. Why are you leaving out the fourth pursuit Moksha or Salvation?”

“I consider the fourth pursuit Moksha or Salvation as the objective and the other three pursuits as the means for attaining the fourth pursuit. From another perspective, the first three pursuits relate to our way of life. Everything we do comes under one of the three pursuits.”

“It is true. But don’t you feel that leaving out Moksha will make your work inadequate?”

“I don’t think so. If one follows the right way in one's approach towards the first three pursuits, the fourth pursuit Moksha will come to him or her without his or her seeking it. This is the secret of life which people who pursue Moksha without striving to adopt the right approach towards the other three pursuits, fail to realize!”

“Oh, I didn’t realize this. Tell me more about the book.”

“I will name my work ‘Thirukkural’ as per your suggestion. The book will have three sections  Aram, Porul and Inbam, the Tamil names for Dharma (Virtue), Artha (Material Possessions) and Kama (Love). The book will have 133 chapters with 10 verses in each chapter. I have decided on the chapter headings and jotted them down.”

“Oh! Did it not occur to you to get some inputs from me when you were thinking of topics to be covered under Love?”

“Don’t be upset, Vasuki. I will seek your advice not only on Love but also on the other two sections, when I am writing the verses. What I have prepared is only an outline. You will find it interesting  to know that I am also covering the misunderstandings and rifts between lovers!”

“You definitely know how to pacify an aggrieved spouse! Do you want me to believe that you are going to invite suggestions from me for the content of the verses?”

“Vasuki, I really mean it. In fact, I want your suggestion even about the first verse."

“Well, is it not the convention to sing the praise of God in the first verse?"

Yes it is. In fact, my first chapter is titled ‘In praise of God’ and I will be writing 10 verses talking about the glory of God. but there is another convention. Tamil works have the word ‘world’ in their first verse. In fact, often the verses start with this word. Even if it is not the first word, the word ‘world’ should find a place in the first verse. I am breaking my head as to how to relate the world to God.”

“Last evening, I was listening to a religious discourse at the Kapaleeswara temple. The speaker narrated an interesting story. Lord Siva had a mango. Each of his two sons Vinayaka and Skanda wanted the fruit for himself. So Siva and His concert Parvati held a contest. Both their sons should go around the world. Whoever completed the assignment first would get the fruit. While the second son Skanda went around the world flying on the Peacock, his vehicle, Vinayaka traversed a circle around his parents and claimed to have completed the assignment first. Siva gave the fruit to Vinayaka, accepting his claim. He explained to his infuriated son Skanda that for a child, its parents constitute the world.  I think you will be able to derive some ideas from this story.”

“Yes, you have led me to a wonderful idea. This story suggests that parents constitute the world. Since the world was created by God, we can say that God has a relationship with the world, a relationship similar to the one parents have with their child. I can write ‘The world begins with God.' I can make this the second line of my first verse. What shall I put in the first line?”

“Can’t you use the analogy of alphabets beginning with the first letter Alpha?”

“Wonderful Vasuki. You have created the first verse for me. ‘Just as Alphabets begin with Alpha, the World has God as its origin.’ This sounds very appropriate I don’t know how I should thank you for your great help.”

“Remember my help when you are writing about the greatness of a wife!” quipped Vasuki.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'akara mudhala' by the same author)

Thirukkural

Virtue

Chapter 1

In Praise of God

Verse 1:

Akara mudhala ezhuththellaam aadhi
Bhagavan mudhaRRe ulaku.

Meaning: The alphabets begin with the letter Alpha. The world originates from God.

1. Thiruvalluvar is said to have lived in Mylapore, Chennai.

2. Vamana is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Vamana, a Brahmin lad with a puny figure asked King Mahabhali to give him land to the extent of three times the size of his feet. Once Mahabhali granted Vamana what he had asked for, Vamana transformed himself into a giant figure called Trivikrama. He covered the entire world with his one foot and measured out the entire celestial kingdom with his other foot. With no more land available, Mahabhali asked Vamana to place his third foot on his head.

Verse 2