Kural
Encyclopedia
The Kural is one of the most important forms of classical Tamil
poetry
. It is a very short poetic form, exactly in 2 lines, the first line consisting of 4 words and the second line consisting of 3. It should also conform to the grammar
for Venpa
. Thirukkural, one of the greatest philosophical works in Tamil language
by Thiruvalluvar
, is a typical example.
There are 1330 poems in 133 chapters ( each chapter consists of 10 poem). These 133 chapters are under broad classification of 3 parts
1. Arathupal.
2. Porutpal.
3. Kamathupal.
Here is an example:
Contemporary Kurals are best exemplified by the poet Damo in his Silver Rose sonnets.
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
. It is a very short poetic form, exactly in 2 lines, the first line consisting of 4 words and the second line consisting of 3. It should also conform to the grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
for Venpa
Venpa
Venpa is a form of classical Tamil poetry. Classical Tamil poetry has been classified based upon the rules of metric prosody. Such rules form a context-free grammar. Every Venpa consists of between two to twelve lines....
. Thirukkural, one of the greatest philosophical works in Tamil language
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
by Thiruvalluvar
Tiruvalluvar
Thiruvalluvar , or Tiruvalluvar, was a celebrated Tamil poet whose contribution to Tamil literature is the Thirukkural, a work on ethics. Thiruvalluvar is thought to have lived sometime between the 2nd century BC and the 8th century AD. This estimate is based on linguistic analysis of his writings,...
, is a typical example.
There are 1330 poems in 133 chapters ( each chapter consists of 10 poem). These 133 chapters are under broad classification of 3 parts
1. Arathupal.
2. Porutpal.
3. Kamathupal.
Here is an example:
- Pleasure, rhythm, power, surprise
- Rhyme's glorious conquistadors
Contemporary Kurals are best exemplified by the poet Damo in his Silver Rose sonnets.
Further reading
- Tiruvaḷḷuvar, & Sundaram, P. S. (1991). The Kural. New York, N.Y.: Penguin Books. ISBN