The people of the Kongu region excelled in music even around 1800 years ago and engraved a musical notation on a rock at Arachalur in the present-day Erode district. Interestingly, the notation is a palindrome in every line, which reads the same as backward.
The people of the Kongu region excelled in music even around 1800 years ago and engraved a musical notation on a rock at Arachalur in the present-day Erode district. Interestingly, the notation is a palindrome in every line, which reads the same as backward.
The notation, which is inscribed as two sections on a rock in the hill, begins thus:
“Tha Thai Thaa Thai Tha
Thai Thaa Thea Tha Thai…”
“The historical treasure, which dates back to 2nd century CE, stands witness to the service of the Jain Tamil scholars to music in Kongunadu. The inscription found on a Jain cave in Arachalur is inevitable to the researches on the musical tradition of Tamils and their ancient writing system called Thamzhi ” says Pulavar. Se. Rasu, an eminent Kongu historian and former Head, Department of Epigraphy and Archaeology, Tamil University, Thanjavur.
The inscription also mentions the name of the person who engraved the notation, as ‘Mania Vannakkan Devan Saaththan‘
“His name draws similarity to the names of the Sangam age Tamil poets ‘ Pudhukayaththu Vannakkkan Samboor Kizhan ‘and‘ Vannakkan Somarung Kumaranaar. Besides the inscription dates back to the age, in which the great Tamil epic Silapathikaram was written.” compares Rasu.
An author of over 100 books on history and literature, Rasu penned a book a few years ago on the title ‘Kongu Aayvugal’ (Researches in the history of Kongunadu).
The book consists of interesting chapters on the titles Arachalur Isai Kalvettu (The musical inscription at Arachalur), Thippuvum Kongunadum (Tipu Sultan and Kongunadu), Kongunattin Mudhal Kalvettu Aayvaalar (The first epigraphist of Kongunadu), and many more.
Tracing the first epigraphist of Kongunadu, Rasu writes:
“Almost 95 years ago, there lived an elementary school teacher by name Duraisamy Naidu at Perunthalayur, a village near Bhavani in the present-day Erode district. The man, who had a passion for deciphering the stone inscriptions at ‘Thirumakizhvanamudayaar Temple’ in the village, for the first time, decoded and published them into a book on the title ‘Perunthalayur Saasana Varalaru’ (History of Perunthalayur Inscriptions). It is surprising that the man, being an elementary school teacher, had deciphered the temple inscriptions and published them into a book even years before the Archaeological Survey of India took the estampages at the shrine in 1955” avers Rasu.
However, Rasu informs that Duraisamy Naidu had worried that he could not publish all the inscriptions into one book due to his inability in meeting the printing expenses.
“So he had planned to bring out the book in two volumes. The first volume, which he published using the money from his pocket, contains only a few chapters. Duraisamy Naidu, being an elementary school teacher, deciphered the inscriptions and published them into a book almost a century ago. If the learned professors of the present-day have the same passion for history and epigraphy too, the world is sure to witness numerous inscriptions that throw new light on the history of Kongunadu" opines Rasu.
"Duraisamy Naidu could have studied only up to grade eight. Those days, a person just with a qualification of the eighth standard could be appointed as a 'higher grade teacher', and he could conduct classes up to the fifth standard” he explains.
Rasu could not trace further historical details of Duraisamy Naidu.
“But, it is said that he hailed from Coimbatore” adds Rasu.