Biography of a scholar that captures Tamil landscape in the 19th Century

Meenakshisundaram Pillai was born in 1815 and died in 1876. His student U.Ve. Swaminatha Iyer wrote an excellent biography, collecting information from those who were close to him and placing a newspaper advertisement requesting for details

Al Pacino, one of the greatest actors of all time, recalls his childhood friend Cliffy in his memoir. It brings to mind the paradesi (mendicant) who taught Tamil grammar work Thandialankaram to Meenakshisundaram Pillai, the teacher of U.Ve. Swaminatha Iyer, fondly called Tamil Thatha.

“Cliffy was a true original. Even at thirteen, he was never without a copy of Dostoevsky in his back pocket,” says Al Pacino. Cliffy, like two other friends Petey and Bruce, was killed by heroin. The 13-year-old delinquent was violent, a drug addict, and a fan of Dostoevsky. The paradesi who taught Meenakshisundaram Pillai was also a drug addict. The biography of Meenakshisundaram Pillai, who was known as Thirusirapuram (Tiruchi) Vidwan and the greatest teacher of Tamil in the 19th Century, narrates the story. It was penned by Swaminatha Iyer.

Learning from a mendicant

“When Pillai was keen on learning Thandialankaram, there were no teachers who had read the work. A mendicant was an authority on Thandialankaram and other Tamil literary works. But he held others in contempt. He had a good collection of books at his mutt and would sometimes teach students, if only he desired. Pillai followed him while he was begging and entered into a conversation with him. He also bought ganja (cannabis) for him to smoke. He learnt Thandialankaram and collected other books after making the mendicant happy,” writes Swaminatha Iyer. Sree Meenakshisundaram Pillaiyavarkal Charithiram has been edited by P. Saravanan and republished by Kalachuvadu with a detailed preface, new photographs, a glossary of old words, reviews of the first edition of the book, and many other details.

Interest in teaching

He explains why Meenakshisundaram Pillai was great. “The curriculum prepared by the British had not given adequate space for Tamil studies. Though there were a lot of well-read scholars, most of them lacked teaching skills. Meenakshisundaram Pillai functioned like a movement and taught a lot of students. He was more interested in teaching,” writes Mr. Saravanan, who had already published En Charithiram, the biography of Swaminatha Iyer, and his prefaces, titled Swaminatham.

Swaminatha Iyer, who became a student of Pillai at the age of 16, collected details of his teacher from those who were close to him. He also placed an advertisement in Swadesamitran on October 8, 1900 and December 30, 1931, requesting details about Pillai. Only a few, including Savarayalu Nayakar of Puducherry, sent in the information. In his preface to the second edition of the biography, Iyer says that in 1902, he gave a talk about Pillai in Kumbakonam Porter Town Hall for two days. It was followed by another talk at the Kumbakonam Arts College. J.M. Hensman, the principal of the college, was pleased with the lecture and requested Iyer to publish a biography of Pillai. The first volume was released in 1933 and the second volume in 1934. The first volume is a biography of Pillai and the second also serves as an autobiography of Iyer.

“Documentation and historiography were absent in the 19th Century. Iyer established contacts with European scholars through his publishing efforts, and the congenial atmosphere of the Swadeshi renaissance prepared him for the efforts. He became a witness to the inevitable changes that took place in the Tamil landscape,” writes Mr. Saravaran, Assistant Director, Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation.

Meenakshisundaram Pillai’s ancestors hailed from Madurai, where they worked as accountants at the Meenakshi temple. They left Madurai after having differences of opinion with the temple administrators and settled at Ennai Gramam near Tiruchi. He was born in 1815 and died in 1876. The biography names many Tamil scholars across the State. Meenakshisundaram Pillai travelled the length and breadth of the Tamil country and learnt from great scholars. He later became the poet-laureate of the Thiruvavaduthurai Mutt.

Helping Gopalakrishna Bharathiar

Swaminatha Iyer records how Pillai came forward to write a preface to Nandan Charithiram of Gopalakrishna Bharathiar. Since Nandan Charithiram had deviated from the version of Periyapuranam and Tamil scholars faulted the grammar of the work, Gopalakrishna Bharathiar wanted to get a preface from Pillai to ward off the criticism. Pillai dodged Bharathiar who persisted with his efforts. “One day, when Pillai had a nap after lunch, Bharathiar, who was sitting on the veranda, started singing, Kanavo Ninaivo, Varamaliruparo, Sindhanai Seithukondirunthal, and Theeyinil Moozhkinar. By the time Pillai woke up, he was singing Kanagasabapathi Tharisanamorunal Kandal Kalitheerum. The keerthana melted Pillai’s heart. Pillai was pleased and wrote a preface,” says Swaminatha Iyer in the biography. 

Published - September 19, 2024 11:53 pm IST