Periya Puranam - Revision history

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	The '''''~~Periya Puranam~~''''' ([[Tamil language\|Tamil]]: பெரிய‌ புராண‌ம்), that is, the ''great purana'' or epic, sometimes called ''Tiruttontarpuranam'' ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] poetic account depicting the lives of the sixty-three [[Nayanars]], the canonical poets of Tamil [[Shaivism]]. It was compiled during the 12th century by [[Sekkizhar]]. It provides evidence of trade with West Asia<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=11FYACaVySoC&pg=RA1-PA289&lpg=RA1-PA289&dq=book+kader+mohideen&source=web&ots=ejotHgcd7L&sig=4kng4UJLwM5tYAYtSe1Quhgah0w&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA6,M1 Glimpses of life in 12th century South India]</ref> The ''Periya Puranam'' is part of the corpus of Shaiva canonical works.		The '''''Periya‌ purāṇa‌m''''' ([[Tamil language\|Tamil]]: பெரிய‌ புராண‌ம்), that is, the ''great purana'' or epic, sometimes called ''Tiruttontarpuranam'' ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] poetic account depicting the lives of the sixty-three [[Nayanars]], the canonical poets of Tamil [[Shaivism]]. It was compiled during the 12th century by [[Sekkizhar]]. It provides evidence of trade with West Asia<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=11FYACaVySoC&pg=RA1-PA289&lpg=RA1-PA289&dq=book+kader+mohideen&source=web&ots=ejotHgcd7L&sig=4kng4UJLwM5tYAYtSe1Quhgah0w&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA6,M1 Glimpses of life in 12th century South India]</ref> The ''Periya Puranam'' is part of the corpus of Shaiva canonical works.

	[[Sekkizhar]] compiled and wrote the ''Periya Puranam'' or the ''Great Purana'' in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] about the life stories of the sixty-three [[Shaiva]] [[Nayanars]], poets of the God [[Shiva]] who composed the liturgical poems of the [[Tirumurai]], and was later himself canonised and the work became part of the sacred canon.<ref name="ADictionaryofIndianLiterature">A Dictionary of Indian Literature By Sujit Mukherjee.</ref> Among all the hagiographic ''Puranas'' in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]], Sekkizhar's ''Tiruttondar Puranam'' or ''Periyapuranam'', composed during the rule of Kulottunga ~~Chola~~ II (1133–1150 CE) stands first.<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature">Medieval Indian Literature By K. Ayyappapanicker, Sahitya Akademi.</ref>		[[Sekkizhar]] compiled and wrote the ''Periya Puranam'' or the ''Great Purana'' in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] about the life stories of the sixty-three [[Shaiva]] [[Nayanars]], poets of the God [[Shiva]] who composed the liturgical poems of the [[Tirumurai]], and was later himself canonised and the work became part of the sacred canon.<ref name="ADictionaryofIndianLiterature">A Dictionary of Indian Literature By Sujit Mukherjee.</ref> Among all the hagiographic ''Puranas'' in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]], Sekkizhar's ''Tiruttondar Puranam'' or ''Periyapuranam'', composed during the rule of [[Kulothunga Chola II\|Kulottunga II]] (1133–1150 CE) stands first.<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature">Medieval Indian Literature By K. Ayyappapanicker, Sahitya Akademi.</ref>

	== Background ==		== Background ==
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	The study of ''Chivaka Chintamani'' by Kulottunga Chola II, deeply affected Sekkizhar who was very religious in nature. He exhorted the king to abandon the pursuit of impious erotic literature and turn instead to the life of the Saiva saints celebrated by [[Sundarar\|Sundaramurti Nayanar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]]. The king thereupon invited Sekkizhar to expound the lives of the Saiva saints in a great poem. As a minister of the state Sekkizhar had access to the lives of the saints and after he collected the data, he wrote the poem in the ''Thousand Pillared Hall'' of the [[Chidambaram]] temple.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲"/> Legend has it that the Lord himself provided Sekkizhar with the first feet of the first verse as a divine voice from the sky declaring "உலகெலாம்" (ulakelam: All the world).{{cn\|date=January 2019}}		The study of ''Chivaka Chintamani'' by Kulottunga Chola II, deeply affected Sekkizhar who was very religious in nature. He exhorted the king to abandon the pursuit of impious erotic literature and turn instead to the life of the Saiva saints celebrated by [[Sundarar\|Sundaramurti Nayanar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]]. The king thereupon invited Sekkizhar to expound the lives of the Saiva saints in a great poem. As a minister of the state Sekkizhar had access to the lives of the saints and after he collected the data, he wrote the poem in the ''Thousand Pillared Hall'' of the [[Chidambaram]] temple.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲"/> Legend has it that the Lord himself provided Sekkizhar with the first feet of the first verse as a divine voice from the sky declaring "உலகெலாம்" (ulakelam: All the world).{{cn\|date=January 2019}}

	This work is considered the most important initiative of Kulottunga Chola II's reign. Although, it is only a literary embellishment of earlier hagiographies of the Saiva saints composed by [[Sundarar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]], it came to be seen as the epitome of high standards of the [[Chola]] culture, because of the highest order of the literary style.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲">The Home of Dancing Śivan̲ By Paul Younger.</ref>{{full\|date=January 2019}} The ''Periyapuranam'' is considered as a [[fifth Veda]] in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] and immediately took its place as the twelfth and the last book in the Saiva canon. It is considered as one of the masterpieces of the [[Tamil literature]] and worthily commemorates the Golden age of the [[Cholas]].<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature"/>{{full\|date=January 2019}}		This work is considered the most important initiative of Kulottunga Chola II's reign. Although, it is only a literary embellishment of earlier hagiographies of the Saiva saints composed by [[Sundarar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]], it came to be seen as the epitome of high standards of the [[Chola]] culture, because of the highest order of the literary style.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲">The Home of Dancing Śivan̲ By Paul Younger.</ref>{{full\|date=January 2019}} The ''Periyapuranam'' is considered a [[fifth Veda]] in [[Tamil language\|Tamil]] and immediately took its place as the twelfth and the last book in the Saiva canon. It is considered one of the masterpieces of the [[Tamil literature]] and worthily commemorates the Golden age of the [[Cholas]].<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature"/>{{full\|date=January 2019}}

	== Significance ==		== Significance ==

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{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2016}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2016}}
{{Saivism}}
{{hinduism_small}}
{{Tirumurai}}
{{Italic title}}
The '''''Periya Puranam''''' ([[Tamil language|Tamil]]: பெரிய‌ புராண‌ம்), that is, the ''great purana'' or epic, sometimes called ''Tiruttontarpuranam'' ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a [[Tamil language|Tamil]] poetic account depicting the lives of the sixty-three [[Nayanars]], the canonical poets of Tamil [[Shaivism]]. It was compiled during the 12th century by [[Sekkizhar]]. It provides evidence of trade with West Asia<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=11FYACaVySoC&pg=RA1-PA289&lpg=RA1-PA289&dq=book+kader+mohideen&source=web&ots=ejotHgcd7L&sig=4kng4UJLwM5tYAYtSe1Quhgah0w&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result#PPA6,M1 Glimpses of life in 12th century South India]</ref> The ''Periya Puranam'' is part of the corpus of Shaiva canonical works.

[[Sekkizhar]] compiled and wrote the ''Periya Puranam'' or the ''Great Purana'' in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] about the life stories of the sixty-three [[Shaiva]] [[Nayanars]], poets of the God [[Shiva]] who composed the liturgical poems of the [[Tirumurai]], and was later himself canonised and the work became part of the sacred canon.<ref name="ADictionaryofIndianLiterature">A Dictionary of Indian Literature By Sujit Mukherjee.</ref> Among all the hagiographic ''Puranas'' in [[Tamil language|Tamil]], Sekkizhar's ''Tiruttondar Puranam'' or ''Periyapuranam'', composed during the rule of Kulottunga Chola II (1133–1150 CE) stands first.<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature">Medieval Indian Literature By K. Ayyappapanicker, Sahitya Akademi.</ref>

== Background ==
Sekkizhar was a poet and the chief minister in the court of the [[Cholas|Chola]] King, [[Kulothunga Chola II]]. Kulottunga Chola II, king Anabaya Chola, was a staunch devotee of Lord [[Shiva|Siva]] Natraja at [[Chidambaram]]. He continued the reconstruction of the center of Tamil Saivism that was begun by his ancestors. However Kulottunga II was also enchanted by the [[Jainism|Jain]] courtly epic, ''[[Cīvaka Cintāmaṇi|Chivaka Chinthamani]]'' an epic of erotic flavour (''sringara rasa'') whose hero, Chivaka, combines heroics and erotics to marry eight damsels and gain a kingdom. In the end he realises the transiency of possessions, renounces his kingship and finally attains Nirvana by prolonged austerity (''tapas'').<ref name="CriminalGodsandDemonDevotees">Criminal Gods and Demon Devotees By [[Alf Hiltebeitel]].</ref>{{full|date=January 2019}}

In order to wean Kulottunga Chola II from the heretical ''Chivaka Chintamani'', Sekkizhar undertook the task of writing the ''Periyapuranam''.<ref name="ADictionaryofIndianLiterature"/>{{full|date=January 2019}}

== Periyapuranam ==
The study of ''Chivaka Chintamani'' by Kulottunga Chola II, deeply affected Sekkizhar who was very religious in nature. He exhorted the king to abandon the pursuit of impious erotic literature and turn instead to the life of the Saiva saints celebrated by [[Sundarar|Sundaramurti Nayanar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]]. The king thereupon invited Sekkizhar to expound the lives of the Saiva saints in a great poem. As a minister of the state Sekkizhar had access to the lives of the saints and after he collected the data, he wrote the poem in the ''Thousand Pillared Hall'' of the [[Chidambaram]] temple.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲"/> Legend has it that the Lord himself provided Sekkizhar with the first feet of the first verse as a divine voice from the sky declaring "உலகெலாம்" (ulakelam: All the world).{{cn|date=January 2019}}

This work is considered the most important initiative of Kulottunga Chola II's reign. Although, it is only a literary embellishment of earlier hagiographies of the Saiva saints composed by [[Sundarar]] and [[Nambiyandar Nambi]], it came to be seen as the epitome of high standards of the [[Chola]] culture, because of the highest order of the literary style.<ref name="TheHomeofDancingŚivan̲">The Home of Dancing Śivan̲ By Paul Younger.</ref>{{full|date=January 2019}} The ''Periyapuranam'' is considered as a [[fifth Veda]] in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and immediately took its place as the twelfth and the last book in the Saiva canon. It is considered as one of the masterpieces of the [[Tamil literature]] and worthily commemorates the Golden age of the [[Cholas]].<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature"/>{{full|date=January 2019}}

== Significance ==
All the saints mentioned in this epic poem are historical persons and not mythical. Therefore, this is a recorded history of the 63 Saiva saints called as [[Nayanmars]] (devotees of Lord Siva), who attain salvation by their unflinching devotion to [[Shiva|Siva]]. The Nayanmars that he talks about belonged to different [[caste]]s, different occupations and lived in different times.<ref name="MedievalIndianLiterature"/>{{full|date=January 2019}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://shaivam.org/thirumurai/14/twelveth-thirumurai Periya Puranam in Tamil].
* [https://shaivam.org/devotees/life-of-the-sixty-three-nayanmar-periyapuraanam Periya Puranam in English].
* [http://www.shaktipeethas.org/travel-guide/topic214.html Nayanar temples locations] explained in Periya puranam

{{Nayanars}}
{{Shaivism}}
[[Category:Tamil-language literature]]
[[Category:Texts related to Nayanar saints]]
[[Category:Puranas]]