The Country Tamil Chaste

SUBRAMANIA BHARATI

Rendered into English by K. C. Kamaliah

Even while uttering “The Country Tamil Chaste”,¹
Sweet honey fast fills the ear in haste.
“Our Fatherland this is,” while we say,
In a trice in bosom swells energy sway.

Abounding in scriptures is the Tamil Country;
Ingrained in valour high is the Tamil Country.
Resembling the heavenly damsels in love,
Youthful maidens in plenty throng the Tamil Country.

The Kaveri, Palar and South Pennai,
The Vaiyai of Tamil fame and Porunai ²
Watered by the many rivers aforesaid·
Made fertile is the sacred soil of the, Tamil Country.

The Tamil Country is of the venerable sage, ³
Whose abode is on the high ranges,
Protecting with care the three limbs of Tamil. ⁴
Whatever be the kinds of wealth on the face of the earth,
All those the Tamil Country is endowed with.

Standing sentinel on the beach of the blue wavy sea,
The Virgin Goddess ⁵ continues her eternal penance, on the Cape,
Between which and the Hill of Maal ⁶ in the north
Lies the Tamil Country dense with fame.

Foremost in learning is the Tamil Country,
Where the renowned Kamban ⁷ was born.
The fragrance of a good variety of learned works,
The Tamil Country sends forth to all corners of the earth.

Giving unto the world as a gift Valluvan, ⁸
Earned fame sky high this Tamil Country;
Adorned herself with a diamond necklace,
The heart-warming Epic of the Anklet. ⁹

This motherland is of those, who colonised the islands­–
Sinhala, Pushpaka and Java;
Where they hoisted the Tiger and Fish Standards
And established their hegemony. ¹⁰

The Tamil Country was of those valiant heroes,
Who had the strength to strike
In the Himalayas piercing the sky, ¹¹
Who waged war and subdued the Kalinga.¹²

Unto China, Misiram and the Yavana homeland,
Its fame spread, besides many more countries.
Art and knowledge, warfare and trade– 
The Tamil Country patronised their growth.

Notes

¹ Country Tamil Chaste - Centamilnaadu.
² Rivers flowing in Taminaadu: South Pennai - Thenpennai; Vaiyai - Vaigal; Porunai· Tambraparni.
³ Sage Agastya.
⁴ The three limbs of Tamil - Muttamil, i. e., Iyal – literature: isai - music; Koothu - drama.
⁵ Kanyakumari.
⁶ Hill of Maal - Tiruvenkatam. Vishnu is referred to as Maal in Tamil literature.
⁷ Kamban - is the author of the Tamil Ramayana, known as the Emperor of Poesy-Kavi-c-cakravarti.
⁸ Valluvan - Tiruvalluvar, the Bard of Universal Man, the author of T!rukkural
⁹ Epic of the anklet - The Cilappathikaram, the author of which was the Chera Prince Ilango Adigal, who became a Jain Monk.
¹⁰ Tiger and Fish standards were the flags of ancient Chola and Pandya monarchs respectively.
¹¹ The Chera King, Cheran Cenkuttuvan subdued the Aryan rulers, Kanaka and Vijaya after imprinting the Bow, Tiger and Fish emblems on the Himalaya Moumain.
¹² The Kalinga ruler was defeated by the Chola army of invasion under the leadership of Karunakara Tondaman for failure to pay tribute. The expedition is the theme of the celebrated war called Kalingattu-p-parani.