WRITTEN BY LONDON SWAMINATHAN

Post No. 11,294

Date uploaded in London – 25 SEPTEMBER 2022         

Contact – swami_48@yahoo.com

Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge.

this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.

tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

https://www.pustaka.co.in/home/author/london-swaminathan

Xxx

 Picture shows Swamiji Krishna of Aykudi (near Tenkasi) giving prasad to an elephant.

More from 2000 year old Sangam Tamil Literature:

Otal Antaiyar (Othal Aanthaiyaar) is a Tamil poet who composed 100 poems of Ainkurunuuru besides a few poems of Kurunthokai. All his poems describe arid dry (Paalai in Tamil) lands. His pictures of birds and animals under scorching sun are full of pathetic feelings. The elephant is afraid of the scorching heat of the ground and is careful not to touch it with its trunk (see Ainkurunuuru verse 321) . He also described the elephant as having small eyes and lined and spotted trunk. Tamil word Vezam for elephant is used by him.

In another verse he said, the thirsty elephant searches for water in vain and finally raises its trunk and breathes hard like the blowing of a horn (see Ainkurunuuru verse 327). Here he used the Tamil word Yaanai for elephant. That is the most common word used until this day for elephant.

Forest fires are described throughout Tamil and Sanskrit literature. Vedic literature is the oldest one which described the wild fires in detail. Otal Antaiyar described it from a different angle. The poet saw the forest fire from a distance spreading in the mountain and aptly compares it to a gold chain adorning the back of the elephant (Ainkurunuuru verse 356). It is very interesting to note that the poet’s imagination jumped from a wealthy city to a dark forest in a fraction of a second.

Elephant Intelligence

I am surprised to read articles on Animal Intelligence in famous science magazines like Nature and Scientific American. They are too late compared to Hindus. We have hundreds of references to the animal intelligence and dreams. Westerners still have not yet not studied the dreams of animals properly. We have reports of even animal dreams.

Hindus have not only been watching animals but also learning from them. Dattatreya’s lessons from Nature are already posted here. Hindus talked about six lessons offered by the crows.

The elephant is resourceful in saving its mate as well as itself from danger. (see my post on Gajendra Moksha in Africa). When the male elephant slips and fall into a deep slippery pit, its mate breaks of big branches and throws them into the pit so as to improve steps for the animal to come up.( Aka naanuuru 8). It was seen by Perunkundrur Kizaar 2000 years ago!

Xxxx

Avvaiyaar , greatest of the Tamil poetesses,  sings about the strength of a crocodile which can even kill a mighty elephant. Gajendra Moksha story is very familiar to Hindus which is seen in Gupta sculptures at Deogarh.-Puranaanuuru 104

Remembering the Gajendra Moksha story many poets including Tiruvalluvar sings that a crocodile is more powerful in water than any other animal. (Kural 495)

Katiyalur Uruththirankannanar (Mr Rudraksha or Mr Red Eye) sings about the tusks of the elephant in  his poem Parumpanaatrup patai; he compared the bent banana fruits to tusks of the elephants (lines 358-359).

To be continued………………………………….

 Tags- Gajendra Moksha, Elephant intelligence, Sangam Literature