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Akananuru (அகநானுறு) is the seventh book in the Sangam literature anthology Ettuthokai. This contains 400 ‘’Akam’’ poems dealing with matters of love and separation. A number of poets contributed to this anthology. Perunthevanaar, who translated the Mahabharatham into Tamil, is one of the authors. It is highly likely that these poems were prevalent independently before they were collected and categories in this present form. The anthology is dated to around the first and the second century C.E. The poems probably are of a much earlier date.
Rudrasarman compiled this anthology at the behest of the Pandya king Ukkiraperuvazhuthi. Akananuru is also known by the name Nedunthokai – (The long Anthology)
Poetic characteristics
This book comes under the Akam (subjective) category in its subject matter. Ancient Tamil poems was categorised into the broad categories of Akam(அகம்) - Subjective, dealing with matters of the heaqrt and human emotions, and Puram (புறம்) - Objective, dealing with the tangibles of life such as war, politics, wealth, etc. The poems of this anthology are of the Akaval meter.
In the poems on Akam, the aspects of love of a hero and a heroine are depicted. The story of love is never conceived as a continuous whole. A particular moment of love is captured and described in each poem as the speech of the hero or the lady-companion or somebody else.
The 400 poems in this anthology are divided into Kalintruyanainirai (களிற்றுயானைநிறை), Manimidaipavalam (மணிமிடைபவளம்) and Nittilakkovai (நித்திலக்கோவை).
References
- Mudaliyar, Singaravelu A., Apithana Cintamani, An encyclopaedia of Tamil Literature, (1931) - Reprinted by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi (1983)
- http://www.tamilnation.org/literature/
"Akananuru"