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Scholars believe her to have been active in the 8th-century CE, [1][2] with some suggesting 7th century CE. [3][note 1] Andal is credited with two great Tamil works, Tiruppavai and Nachiyar Tirumoḻi, which are still recited by devotees during the winter festival season of Margaḻi.
This study is an explorative and descriptive study employing tools of historical and textual analysis. To understand her legacy and her impact on the modern identity, I will study her poetry in detail to extract the meanings, motifs, and imagery that Andal expressed through her poetry.
How does Andal’s poetry interweave through religious and secular realms, straddling multiple performative genres? After independence, the politics of religion, secularism and cultural memory
- So Who Is Andal?
- A Personal Connect with Andal
- The Authorship of Andal’s Hymns
- True Equality in The Alwars
- Andal The Saint-Poet and Her Love For The Lord
- Getting Your Own Copy?
Andal was the only woman among the twelve Alwars– medieval Vaishnavite poets who took the scriptures to the masses, composing hymns in Tamil that are considered the equivalent of the Sanskrit Vedas. Along with Shridevi (Lakshmi), Andal appears beside Vishnu as his consort, Bhoodevi – the personification of earth.
I was born in Srirangam, and as a schoolgirl, spent summer vacations there with my grandparents; I’ve always wondered why Andal is revered as much as she is, why women see her as one of their own. So it was with a degree of anticipation that I set off on this journey to discover the young Kodai; I was not disappointed. The colours on the jacket bro...
The question regarding the authorship of the Thiruppavai (thirty pasurams – paragraphs of poetry set to music – attributed to the young Andal) and the much longer Nachiyar Thirumozhi(fourteen hymns said to have been composed in her teens) is important, and the book does justice to it. The translators bring to the reader the theories that abound – t...
But what the book fails to mention, I can! 1. The majority of the Alwars did not come from the brahminor priestly class. 2. Thiruppana Alwar was from the Panar community that was not allowed into temples. 3. Kulasekara Alwar was a kshatriya, a king turned devotee. 4. Thirumangai Alwar was from the kazhwar, or robber community. 5. Nammalwar belonged...
Then comes the much-awaited Thiruppavai. Having two translators interpret it works really well, giving the reader a better sense of what the original may be like. Neither translates literally, or approaches it as a philosophical text, choosing instead to focus on the aesthetics. And yet they have distinct styles. Priya’s poetry instantly appeals. S...
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Feb 2, 2018 · Andal was the only woman among the twelve Alvars. Another of the twelve Alvars, Periyalvar, is said to have found Andal as a baby in the tulsi garden at the Srivilliputhur temple, and adopted her...
Jan 7, 2021 · Andal composed two works – Tiruppavai and Tirumozhi. She is hailed as a goddess and is one of the twelve Tamil Vaishnavite Alvar saints of medieval India. The Tiruppavai is sung in the month of Margazhi in temples and homes. The story of Andal is deeply moving. Andal’s innocence, sincerity, and perseverance as well as her strength are ...
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The book will interest students, readers, and scholars interested in religious studies, South Asian religion, and tantric studies, Indology, Hindu studies, especially, Srīvidya and the relationship between Sakta and Saiva traditions.
