Tuft-headed Horses - Ainkurunooru 202

  

Will he come soon?

He who went in search of wealth

Taking my heart with him

Will he come

Before I wither away?

Won't you say good news, my friend?

Long live mother! Won't you listen! 

Like our town's parppana lads 

Have tufted heads, the chariot horses 

Of the Lord of the long mountains!

For the original Tamil poem and explanation, please click on this link, குடுமி கொண்ட குதிரைகள்.

Ainkurunooru 202

As said to the heroine by her friend.

annaai vaazhi vendu annai ennai 
nammuur paarppana kurumagan pola thaamum
kudumi thalaiya mandra
nedumalai naadan uurndha maave

This Kurinji Thinai poem depicts the words said to the heroine by her friend, when she saw the hero coming back after earning money for the wedding. It's one out of the ten poems named as 'Annaay pathu' meaning 'ten songs addressed to the mother'. It was customary for the heroine and her friend to address each other fondly as 'mother'. Even Tholkappiyar has outlined this in his book, Tholkappiyam, the earliest book known to be available in classical Tamil literature. 

To paraphrase, "To say mother, my master also is customary", where my master refers to the lover.

Now, to the song:

Paraphrase: Long live, mother, listen to me. Similar to the lads of Parppana community in our town, the trotting horses hitched to the chariot of the Lord of the long mountain range have tufts on their heads. 

Explanation: The hero has gone in search of wealth for the wedding and the heroine is awaiting his arrival. Since it has been a long time the heroine is downhearted, and her friend is worried about her health. In this situation, one day the friend sees the hero coming back in a horse chariot. Delighted that the heroine's distress is coming to an end, she runs and calls out to her friend, the heroine to come and see the hero's arrival. The horses look majestic with their tufts and the heroine's friend compares them to the tufts of the parppana (Brahmin) lads in town. The friend depicts the scene of hero's arrival beautifully. The fact that he is coming in a horse drawn chariot implies he has earned well and ready to get married to the heroine.

Poems also express something similar to the body language, which is known as 'meippaadu' in Tamil literature. According to 'Perumazhaipulavar' Po. Ve. Somasundaranar, this poem expresses the joy of hero's return. The benefit of the poem is called 'aatrupaduthal', meaning 'consoling'. The poem is undoubtedly consoling to the heroine who is longing for the hero's return. By saying 'Lord of the long mountains', the friend also implies that the hero has immeasurable wealth, unshakeable demeanour and capable of nurturing even in lack.

Synonyms: annaay - mother; vaazhi - long live; vendu annai - listen mother; nammuur - our town; paarppana - name of a community; kurumagan - lad; pola - like; thaamum - they too; kudumi - tuft; thalaiya - headed; mandra - an expletive; nedumalai naadan - Lord of the long mountains; uurndha - moving, here it means trotting; maa - horse;

My Poem:

Long live mother! Won't you listen! 

Like our town's parppana lads 

Have tufted heads, the chariot horses 

Of the Lord of the long mountains!