Manimekalai

Topics in Tamil literature

Sangam Literature
Five Great Epics
Silappatikaram Manimekalai
Civaka Cintamani Valayapathi
Kundalakesi
The Five Minor Epics
Neelakesi Culamani
:
 Naga Kumara Udayana

Kaviyam Kumara
Kaviyam
Yashodhara
Kaviyam
Bhakti Literature
Naalayira Divya Kamba
Prabandham Ramayanam
Tevaram Tirumurai
Tamil people
Sangam
Sangam
landscape
Tamil history from Ancient Tamil
Sangam literature music
:
 Maṇimēkalai (Tamil: !"#!$%&,
lit. 'jewelled belt, girdle of gems'),
also spelled Manimekhalai or
Manimekalai, is a Tamil-
Buddhist[1] epic composed by
Kulavāṇikaṉ Seethalai Sataṉar
probably somewhere between the
2nd century to the 6th century.[2] It
is an "anti-love story",[3][4] a sequel
to the "love story" in the earliest
Tamil epic Silappadikaram, with
some characters from it and their
next generation. The epic consists
of 4,861 lines in akaval meter,
:
 arranged in 30 cantos.[5]

The title Manimekalai is also the

name of the daughter of Kovalan
and Madhavi, who follows in her
mother's footsteps as a dancer and
a Buddhist nun.[6] The epic tells her
story. Her physical beauty and
artistic achievements seduces the
Chola prince Udayakumara.[7] He
pursues her. She, a nun of
Mahayana Buddhism persuasion,
feels a commitment to free herself
from human ties. She rejects his
:
 advances, yet finds herself drawn
to him.[8] She hides, prays and
seeks the help of her mother, her
Buddhist teacher Aravana Adikal
and angels. They teach her
Buddhist mantras to free herself
from fears. One angel helps her
magically disappear to an island
while the prince tries to chase her,
grants her powers to change forms
and appear as someone else. On
the island, she receives a magic
begging bowl, which always gets
filled, from Mani Mekalai
:
 Theivam.[9] Later, she takes the
form and dress of a married woman
in the neighborhood, as the prince
pursues her.[8] The husband sees
the prince teasing her, and protects
"his wife" – Manimekalai-in-hiding
– by killing the prince. The king and
queen learn of their son's death,
order the arrest of Manimekalai,
arrange a guard to kill her. Angels
intervene and Manimekalai
miraculously disappears as others
approach her, again. The queen
understands, repents. Manimekalai
:
 is set free. Manimekalai converts
the prison into a hospice to help
the needy, teaches the king the
dharma of the Buddha.[7] In the
final five cantos of the epic,
Buddhist teachers recite Four
Noble Truths, Twelve Nidanas and
other ideas to her. She then goes to
goddess Kannaki temple in Vanci
(Chera kingdom), prays, listens to
different religious scholars, and
practices severe self-denial to
attain Nirvana (release from
rebirths).[7][8]
:
 The Manimekalai is one of the Five
Great Epics of Tamil Literature, and
one of three that have survived into
the modern age.[10][11] Along with
its twin-epic Silappadikaram, the
Manimekalai is widely considered
as an important text that provides
insights into the life, culture and
society of the Tamil regions (India
and Sri Lanka) in the early
centuries of the common era. The
last cantos of the epic – particularly
Canto 27 – are also a window into
then extant ideas of Mahayana
:
 Buddhism, Jainism, Ajivika, and
Hinduism, as well as the history of
interreligious rivalries and
cooperation as practiced and
understood by the Tamil population
in a period of Dravidian–Aryan
synthesis and as the Indian
religions were evolving.[12][13][14]

Author and period of

composition
There is no credible information
available about the author or the
:
 date of its composition. Late
sources suggest that the author
Kulavāṇikaṉ Seethalai sāttaṉār may
have been a Buddhist grain
merchant and Tamil writer.[15]

The Manimekalai has been

variously dated between the 2nd-
century and early 9th century by
Indian and non-Indian scholars,
with early dates favored by Tamil
scholars generally allied to the
Tamil tradition.[16] A part of the
complication is that the
:
 Manimekalai contains numerous
Hindu Puranic legends, references
to gods and goddesses in Hindu
and Buddhist traditions, as well as
the epic's author's summary
sections on various schools of
Buddhist, Hindu and Jain
philosophies some of whose
authors are generally dated to later
centuries.[17]

The colonial era Tamil scholar S.

Krishnaswami Aiyangar proposed
in 1927 that it was either
:
 composed "much earlier than AD
400" or "decisively to be a work of
the fifth century at the earliest".[18]
In 1974, Kamil Zvelebil – a Tamil
literature and history scholar,
proposed mid 6th-century as the
most informed dating, based on the
linguistics, internal evidence, the
dating of its twin-epic
Silappadikaram, and a comparison
to other Tamil literature.[14][19] In his
1989 translation, Alain Danielou
suggests that the text was
composed after the first Tamil epic
:
 Silappadikaram, but likely in the
2nd- or 3rd century.[20] According
to Hikosaka, if some of the events
mentioned in the epic partially
related to actual historic Chola
dynasty events, some portions of
the Manimekalai should be dated
after 890 CE.[21] According to
Paula Richman, the 6th-century
dating by Kandaswami and Zvelebil
are the most persuasive scholarly
analysis of the evidence within the
epic as well as the evidence in
other Tamil and Sanskrit texts.[22]
:
 The Epic
The Manimekalai builds on the
characters of the oldest Tamil epic
Silappatikaram (Tamil:
'&()*$+,-).[5] It describes the
story of Manimekalai, the beautiful
daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi,
in 30 cantos.[23][6] The
Manimekalai is the anti-thesis of
the Silappadikaram in focus, style
and the propaganda in the two
epics.[24] The Silappadikaram is a
tragic love story that ultimately
:
 becomes supernatural. The
Manimekalai is an anti-love story
that starts off with supernatural
elements.[3][14] The
Silappadikaram builds on human
emotional themes and includes
some sections praising Jains, while
the Manimekalai is Buddhist
propaganda that "attacks and
ridicules Jainism", according to
Kamil Zvelebil.[25]

Notable characters

Manimekalai - The daughter of

:
 Kovalan and Madhavi, who was
born with bravery and virtues.
Udayakumara - The Chola
prince, who was madly in love
with Manimekalai.
Sudhamati - Manimekalai's most
faithful and trustworthy friend.
Manimekalā - The sea goddess
who protects the heroine.
Aravana Adikal - The Buddhist
ascetic teacher (Adikal means
"revered/venerable ascetic,
saint")
:
 Cantos I-VII: Manimekalai in
Puhar

Canto I

The annual festival in the honor of

Indra begins; a description of the
Chola city, people and the
festival.[26]

Canto II

Manimekalai, her delicate beauty

and extraordinary talents
introduced in the epic; Kovalan and
Kannaki remembered;[27]
:
 Manimekalai's mother Madhavi
and grandmother Chitrapati learn
that Manimekali insists on being a
nun, lead a religious life and that
she will not dance or otherwise
attend the festival; more
description of the Chola city,
people and the festival.[27]

Canto III

Manimekalai goes to a city garden,

away from the festival center, with
her friend Sutamati;[28] continued
description of the Chola city,
:
 people and the festival, mentions a
"filthy Jain monk, naked and
waving a fly-whisk to avoid hurting
unseen fragile insect" as well as
"Kalamukhas [a subtradition of
Shaivism] wearing oleander flower
garlands and rudraksha mala, body
smeared with ashes, acting
madly".[28]

Canto IV

Manimekalai enters crystal pavilion

of the garden; Prince Udayakumara
introduced, brave and beautiful; he
:
 is told about Manimekalai the
dancer and her beauty;[29] the
prince heads to find her in the
garden; he finds her, pursues her,
her friend Sudhamati tries to block
him, and he then asks why is she
not in a monastery, why in the
garden; Sudhamati says, body is
simply a vessel of vices, born due
to karma of past births; the prince
tries to meet Manimekalai, she
hides in the crystal pavilion.[29]

Canto V
:
 According to the epic,
Manimekalai's beauty rivaled that
of the goddess of fortune, Lakshmi
as she hid in the crystal pavilion full
of statues.[30] Udayakumara sees
her, falls for her instantly, wonders if
she is real or a perfectly crafted
statue. The more she avoids him,
the more he wants her. Sudhamati
reminds him that Manimekalai is
not interested in handsome men
like him, because both Manimekalai
and she are nuns. Sudhamati
describes she is from Bengal, her
:
 father a Brahmin who tended fire
[Vedic], and they came to the south
on a [Hindu] pilgrimage towards
Kanyakumari, related to the journey
of Rama in the Ramayana.[30]
There she joined a Jain monastery.
Her father joined her, but one day
after an accident her father was
bleeding badly. The Jains kicked
them both out, afraid that the blood
will pollute them. She then became
a nun at a Buddhist monastery, and
that is where she met nun
Manimekalai.[30] The prince left
:
 unconvinced, resolving to meet
Manimekalai's family to put
pressure on her. Manimekalai then
confesses she is confused because
she wants to be a nun, yet she feels
attracted to the prince. The
goddess of the seas, Manimekhala,
appears. She praises the Buddha,
his wheel of dharma, meets the two
Buddhist nuns.[30]

Canto VI

A description of Goddess
Manimekhala and her powers; she
:
 advises the nuns to go to the
Chakravala-kottam, that is "Temple
of Heaven" – monk gathering
spaces with Buddhist mounds – to
avoid being chased by the prince. A
history of the "Temple of Heaven"
follows along with their then-
popular name "City of the
Dead";[31] the epic recites the story
of a Brahmin named Shankalan
enters the mound by mistake at
night and is confronted by a
sorceress with a skull in her hand
accompanied by screaming jackal-
:
 like noises, the Brahmin flees in
terror, then dies in shock in front of
his mother Gotami. The mother
goes to the Champapati temple
and prays, "take my life, let my son
live".[31] Champapati appears and
says this was fate, his karma and
he will be reborn again. The mother
questions the four Vedas, the
goddess explains the Buddhist
theory of samsaras, mount Meru,
and realms of rebirth.[31] According
to the epic, the feeble mind of
Sudhamati barely understands but
:
 she feels that Goddess
Manimekhala is right. The goddess
then casts magic, plunges the two
nuns into sleep, thereafter instantly
transports Manimekalai alone
through air to the island of
Manipallavam where her oaths of
being a nun would not be
threatened by the prince's
charms.[31]

Canto VII

The goddess meets the prince and

tells him to forget about
:
 Manimekalai because she is
destined to live a monastic life; She
then awakens and meets
Sudhamati, tells her Manimekalai is
safe on a distant island and to
remind her mother Madhavi not to
search and worry about her
daughter;[32] the goddess then
disappeared into the sky; a
description of the ongoing festival
continues, along with a mention of
upset women, infidelities of their
husbands, the tired and sleeping
young boys and girls who earlier in
:
 the day had run around in their
costumes of Hindu gods (Vishnu)
and goddesses (Durga);[32]
Sudhamati walked through the
sleeping city, when a stone statue
spoke to her and told her that
Manimekalai will return to the city in
a week with a complete knowledge,
like Buddha, of all her past births as
well as yours. Sudhamati froze in
fear seeing the stone statue talk
and what it told her.[32]
:
 Cantos VIII-XI: Manimekalai
on Manipallavam island

Canto VIII

Manimekalai wakes up on the

Manipallavam island. She finds
herself alone, is confused and
afraid.[33] She weeps while walking
on the beach, recalls her friend, her
father Kovalan who was unjustly
executed in Madurai, her mother
and all loved ones. Then
Manimekalai sees Buddha's
footprint pedestal, shining with
:
 jewels.[33] She sees some people
fighting near it. Buddha appears,
orders them to cease fighting, to
remember that the pedestal is for
him alone and should be
worshipped by sages and the
powerful.[33]

Canto IX

Manimekalai's fear and worries

vanished near the Buddha's
footprints. Tears of joy rolled down
her cheeks.[34] She suddenly and
miraculously remembers all her
:
 past lives along with the
circumstances, and saddened by
her numerous rebirths, her fathers
and husbands.[34] The epic
mentions she meeting a sage
named Brahma Dharma, being a
Buddhist in the last birth, of
Gandhara, Naganadu, the north city
of Avanti, and other locations
significant to Indian Buddhism.[34]

Canto X

A goddess appears and says that

Buddha appeared when "goodness
:
 was no longer found among living
beings, people have become deaf
to wisdom and true knowledge".[35]
She circumambulates around the
jeweled Buddha's pedestal
clockwise three times. The
goddess then meets Manimekalai
and gives her more information
about her cycles of previous
rebirths, including that prince
Udayakumar in this life was the
king and her husband in the last
birth who was rude to a Buddhist
monk, but you begged his
:
 forgiveness, donated food and
obeyed the monk's orders.[35] In
this life, therefore, he is a frustrated
prince while your merits have made
you into a Buddhist nun. She
informs her that Madhavi and
Sudhamati were her sisters in
previous lives, and are now her
mother and friend in this life.[35]
She then guides her on how to be
free of suffering and fears. The
goddess asks Manimekalai to
study the "deceitful theories of
various religions", and teaches her
:
 magical mantras (Dharani) to
overcome sufferings of ascetic life
and hunger. One of the mantras,
says goddess, will let her change
her appearance into another
person and instantaneously travel
through air.[35]

Canto XI

A Buddhist protectress goddess

Tiva-tilakai (Skt: Dvipa-tilaka)
meets Manimekalai. The goddess
says, only those who have
amassed great merit in past lives
:
 and remained Buddhist over their
many births are able to see and
worship Buddha's footprints in their
present life.[36] Tivatilakai mentions
that Buddha was born in the month
of Vaishaka on the longest day, and
every year on Buddha's birthday
near a lake a magic bowl appears,
called Amrita Surabhi (lit "cow of
abundance").[36] It just happens
that Manimekalai is near the lake
on that very day, so she can go and
get the magic bowl she is destined
to receive. With that bowl, she will
:
 never run out of food to eat
everyday, says Tivatilakai.[36]
Manimekalai visits the magical lake
and gets the magic bowl. She
chants the glory of the Buddha,
prostrates before goddess
Tivatilakai and the Buddha's
footprints. The goddess tells her to
meet Aravana Adigal to learn more
about the magic bowl and the
Buddha dharma.[36]
:
 Cantos XII-XVII: Manimekalai
returns, meets Adigal

Canto XII

Manimekalai returns from the

island. Back with her mother and
friend Sudhamati in the Chola
kingdom, she finds the old
Buddhist ascetic Aravana Adigal
after several efforts to locate
him.[37]

Canto XIII

Manimekalai learns the story of

:
 Aputra – the first possessor of the
magic bowl, and the Brahmin
Abhanjika of Benares (Hindu holy
city) where Abhanjika taught the
Vedas. A boy named Aputra is
accused of stealing a cow, and the
cows protect the boy by fighting
Abhanjika and other Brahmins,
killing one of the Brahmins.[38]
Aputra then meets and accuses the
Brahmins of twisting the meaning
of the Veda verses taught by
Brahma born from the navel of
Vishnu who holds a golden disc as
:
 his weapon. Aputra reminds the
Brahmins that the greatest Vedic
teachers such as Vasishtha and
Agastya were born of low birth.[38]
Aputra is labeled as a cow-thief,
and his begging bowl is filled with
stones when he does his
rounds.[38] Aputra leaves the city
and reaches Madurai. He sits with
his begging bowl inside Madurai's
Temple of Lakshmi, the goddess of
fortune.[38] The worshippers of
Lakshmi are kind and donate much
food to the bowl of Aputra, which
:
 Aputra shares with the poor, the
blind, the deaf and other needy
people. The epic mentions the
name Kanyakumari and it being a
Hindu bathing pilgrimage site.[38]

Canto XIV

Manimekalai learns more about the

Aputra story from ascetic Aravana
Adigal. Aputra lives in Madurai for
many years, begging in the
Lakshmi temple.[39] In a particular
year, there was famine in the Tamil
region when god Indra became
:
 angry. During this period of
suffering, one day goddess
Sarasvati appears and gave him
the magic bowl. The epic refers to
Sarasvati as the goddess of all
things related to mind, and
goddess of language, knowledge
and arts. The magic begging bowl
always fills up every day with
mountains of food, which Aputra
shares with the needy. The famine
continues for 12 years in the
Pandya kingdom, yet the bowl
always fills up.[39] Aputra, like a boy,
:
 mocks Indra because he has the
magic bowl to help the needy. Indra
takes revenge by making rains
plentiful and showering everyone
with so much prosperity that no
needy were left. No one was poor,
and Aputra felt frustrated that he
had no one to donate food from his
abundant magic bowl to.[39] Then,
one day, people of Java (Indonesia)
met him. Indra was not generous to
them, and many were dying of
hunger in Java. Aputra left for Java
in a ship. A storm hits the ship, and
:
 Aputra lands on Manipallavam
island. Aputra died on that island.
That is how the magic bowl came
to be on that island, and why
Manimekalai found the same bowl
there.[39]

Canto XV

The Buddhist ascetic tells the nun

the story of a generous cow who
helped the people of Java in the
memory of Aputra. He presents the
Buddhist theory of rebirth
dependent on the merits earned in
:
 previous lives (karma). He
recommends that Manimekalai and
Sudhamati use the magic bowl in
their possession to help the hungry
and needy, just like the gods tried
to help the cause of good with the
amrita they obtained by churning
the cosmic ocean [samudra
manthan].[40] The nuns, so
convinced, began roaming the
streets of Puhar to beg. They then
shared the food they collected in
the magic bowl with the needy. The
epic mentions kingdoms in the
:
 Himalayas, Kausambi and
Ujjain.[40]

Canto XVI

Ascetic Adikal teaches the nuns

about supernatural genies and the
tale of trader Shaduvan and his
wife Atirai. Shaduvan is reported
dead in a sea storm.[41] Atirai tries
to kill herself by jumping into a pit
with burning wood, but the fire did
not harm her. She sees a goddess
who tells her that she is unharmed
by her fire because her husband is
:
 alive on the island of the Naga
kingdom.[41] The Nagas welcome
him and give him a girl for pleasure.
He refuses the girl, and teaches
them the Buddha dharma about
rebirths and merits. They prostrate
before him and invite to take all the
gold, diamonds and rubies in
shipwrecks near their islands.
Shaduvan collects a massive
fortune from the wrecks and brings
it back to Atirai. The monk teacher
explains to Manimekalai that this
was all because of merits earned
:
 and virtue in the past lives.[41]

Canto XVII

Manimekhalai, with monk Adikal's

wisdom, uses magic bowl to help
people. She starts a hospice. The
epic mentions Rama and Vishnu
story from the Ramayana, states
that they built a link to Sri Lanka,
but a curse of an ascetic dissolved
the bridge link.[42] It also mentions
stories of people fed from the
magic bowl suddenly realizing their
past lives. The hospice of
:
 Manimekalai is near a Temple of
Heaven (Buddhist mounds,
gathering place for monks).[42]

Cantos XVIII-XXV:
Manimekalai meets
Udayakumara, he is killed

Canto XVIII

Prince Udayakumara visits the

hospice of Manimekalai after her
grandmother tells the prince where
she is. He tells the grandmother
how much he adores her, wants
:
 her. She says that it is his duty to
return her to dance, music and
householder role.[43] The prince,
driven by his desires and said duty
promises her that he will. He
confronts Manimekalai. She insists
she is and wants to be a nun
because the body and human
desires are the source of all
suffering.[43] After her reply, she
used the magic mantra she had
learned to convert herself into a
look-alike of Kayashandikai – the
wife of Vidyadhara. She escapes
:
 the prince's pursuit.[43]

Canto XIX

Manimekalai in her new

appearance continues to beg with
her bowl and help others. She
reaches the prison and meets the
guards and then king, persuading
him to convert the prison into a
Buddhist monastery. The king
releases all the prisoners, and
converts the prison into a
monastery.[44]
:
 Canto XX

The prison-turned-monastery adds

a temple for the worship of
Buddha.[45] Udayakumara learns
about it and that Manimekalai was
behind the conversion. He goes to
see her. While he was on his way,
the husband of Kayashandikai-
but-in-reality-Manimekalai goes to
meet his wife.[46] The husband
reaches first. Manimekalai does not
recognize him, frowns and refuses
his affections. Then the prince
arrives and tries his lines on her.
:
 She recognizes him, smiles but
refuses him too. The "husband"
overhears the prince, sees his
frowning "wife" smiling at another
man, assumes the worst, pulls out
his sword and cuts the prince's
body into two. The prince dies
instantly. The "husband" learns
who his wife really is, he is in
sorrow. A Buddhist goddess
comforts him.[46]

Canto XXI

Manimekalai learns of the death of

:
 Udayakumara.[47] She cries. She
laments that her husband of
"innumerable" previous births is
dead because of her decisions,
adding that the endless cycles of
suffering would continue without
her monastic ways.[48] She hopes
that Udayakumara will learn from
all this in his next birth. A Buddhist
genie appears, talks and comforts
her. Others recommend that she go
to Vanci (Chera kingdom) to learn
more about religious traditions and
Buddhism.[48]
:
 Canto XXII

The Buddhist monks learn about

the killing of the prince. They ask
Manimekalai what happened. She
tells them everything. They hide the
dead body of the prince, confine
Manimekalai to her quarters. A
monks delegation goes and meets
the king.[49] The Buddhist monks
tell the king legends of Vishnu,
Parashurama and Durga, then the
errors of the prince and finally his
death.[49] The king thanks them,
said he would have executed his
:
 son according to his dharma duty
to protect the honor of women. He
ordered the cremation of his dead
son and the arrest of Manimekalai
for the deception that caused the
misunderstandings.[49]

Canto XXIII

The queen learns of her son's

death. She sends an assassin to kill
Manimekalai. Buddhist goddesses
perform miracles that scares the
queen. She asks the king to free the
prisoner. Manimekalai comes out of
:
 the prison.[50]

Canto XXIV

Aravana Adigal meets the queen.

She washes the feet of the
Buddhist ascetic to honor him. The
ascetic explains the Twelve
Nidanas (causation links) doctrine
of Buddhism, uses it to explain the
loss of her son. He says past lives
of her son made him behave
inappropriately and led to his
death.[51] The ascetic cautions
everyone to follow dharma, behave
:
 according to it. Manimekalai
prostrated before the ascetic and
asked everyone gathered including
the queen to follow the dharma.
She resolves to go to the city of
Vanci, after one visit to
Manipallavam island.[52]

Canto XXV

Manimekalai disappears, travels

through air to reach the island of
Manipallavam. Aputra miraculously
joins her on the island. They
circumambulate the jeweled
:
 footprints of the Buddha on the
island, then pay homage to it.[53]
The king meets his teacher and
tells him he wants to renounce,
spend his time worshipping
Buddha's footprint. The teacher
says that would be selfish and
wrong, as who will protect the
kingdom and world without him.
His dharmic duty is to continue.
Manimekalai meets him and tells
the king that his kingdom suffers
without him. He should be in his
throne, while she will now spend
:
 her time in Vanci.[54]

Cantos XXVI-XXX:
Manimekalai visits Vanci and
Kanci

Canto XXVI

Manimekalai flies through air and

arrives in the mountainous
kingdom's capital Vanci. She first
visits the temple of Kannaki and
pays her homage to the goddess.
The epic mentions the legend of
Kalinga kingdom (Odisha).[55]
:
 Canto XXVII

Manimekalai learns about the

different schools of Buddhist,
Hindu, Jain, Ajivika and Carvaka
philosophies.[56] This section and
the rest of the epic are "not a
philosophical" discussion per se,
states Paula Richman, rather it is a
literary work.[57] The Buddhist
author presents non-Buddhist
schools in a form that shows them
inconsistent or inferior to
Buddhism. According to Zvelebil,
this is "Buddhist propaganda" that
:
 ridicules the other.[24] The epic
mentions Vedic religion and their
various epistemological theories
(pramana).[56] The Hindu sub-
schools mentioned include
Vedanta, Mimamsa, Nyaya,
Samkhya, Vaisheshika, Shaivism
[Shive], Vaishnavism [Vishnu],
Brahmavada [Brahma] and
Vedavadi [no deity, the Vedas are
supreme].[56]

Canto XXVIII

Manimekalai visits Kanci, meets her

:
 mother and Aravana Adigal.[58]

Canto XXIX

Aravana Adigal teaches

Manimekalai the doctrines of the
Buddha dharma.[59]

Canto XXX

Manimekalai learns more Buddhist

doctrines. She then puts the theory
to practice, performs severe ascetic
practices to end her cycles of
rebirth and attain Nirvana.[60]
According to Anne Monius, this
:
 canto is best seen as one
dedicated to the "coming of the
future Buddha", not in the prophetic
sense, rather as nun Manimekalai
joining the movement of the future
Buddha as his chief disciple. The
last canto, along with a few before
it, are the epic's statement on the
karma theory of Buddhism, as
understood by its author, and how
rebirths and future sufferings have
links to past causes and present
events in various realms of
existence (samsara).[61]
:
 Manuscripts and
translations
The Manimekhalai palm-leaf
manuscripts were preserved and
found in Hindu temples and
monasteries along with those of
Silappadikaram. It is the only
surviving Tamil Buddhist literary
work, though commentary and
secondary Tamil literature evidence
suggests that there were other
Buddhist epics and texts in the
Tamil language at least till the 14th
:
 century.[62] The reason for its
survival, states Richman, is
probably its status as the sequel to
the Silapathikaram or
Sīlappadhikāram.[19] UV
Swaminatha Aiyar published a
critical edition of the text in
1921.[19]

The first abridged English

translation and historical analysis
of Manimekalai by R. B. K. Aiyangar
in 1928, as Maṇimekhalai in its
Historical Setting.[63] Extracts of
:
 this, particularly Canto 30, was
republished in Hisselle
Dhammaratana's Buddhism in
South India but with altered
terminology.[64]

In 1989, Alain Daniélou with the

collaboration of T.V. Gopala Iyer
published an English translation.[6]

There is also a Japanese

translation by Shuzo Matsunaga,
published in 1991.

Significance
:
 The epic gives much information
on the history of Tamil Nadu,
Buddhism and its place during that
period, contemporary arts and
culture, and the customs of the
times. It presents the author's view
of the Buddhist doctrine of Four
Noble Truths (ārya-satyāni),
Dependent Origination
(pratītyasamutpāda), mind (citra),
goddesses, miracles, mantras,
rebirth, merit-making, begging by
monks and nuns, helping the poor
and needy.[65][66] The epic
:
 provides a view of religious rivalry
between Buddhism and Jainism,
where Buddhist ideas and
propaganda are presented while
Jainism is "attacked and ridiculed",
according to Zvelebil.[67]

According to Richman, the

Manimekalai is a significant
Buddhist epic, given its unique
status. The summary of Buddhist
doctrine in it, particularly in Cantos
27, 29 and 30, present a Tamil
literary writer's perspective of
:
 Buddhism before it likely died out in
Tamil Nadu, in or about the 11th
century.[68]

Buddhist School Affiliation

According to a 1927 thesis of Rao

Bahadur Krishnaswāmi Aiyangar,
the Manimekalai contains "nothing
that may be regarded as referring
to any form of Mahayana
Buddhism, particularly the
Sunyavada as formulated by
Nagarjuna".[69] In contrast, in 1978,
:
 C.N. Kandaswami stated there is a
lot of internal evidence that
"Manimekalai explains Mahayana
Buddhism, and champions its
cause".[70]

According to G John Samuel and

others, based in part on the
antiquity of the text and theories, it
was believed that the epic was
from an early Hinayana
(Theravada) Buddhist school, but
more recent studies suggest that
the Buddhist epic Manimekalai
:
 belonged to an early form of
Mahayana Buddhism influenced by
ideas now attributed to scholars
such as Vasubandhu, Dignaga,
Buddhagosha, Buddhadatta and
Dharmapala.[71]

According to Shu Hikosaka – a

scholar of Buddhism and Tamil
literature, in Manimekalai "there are
not only the doctrines of Mahayana
Buddhism but also those of
Hinayana Buddhism", in an era
when monks of these traditions
:
 were staying together, sharing
ideas and their ideologies had not
hardened.[72]

Reception
To some critics, Manimekalai is
more interesting than
Silappadikaram, states Zvelebil, but
in his view the literary quality of
Manimekalai is significantly
inferior.[73] The story of
Manimekalai is overloaded with
supernatural events, miraculous
:
 goddesses and reads like a
propaganda pamphlet of
Buddhism.[73] In Silappadikaram,
the epic's storyline is served by
ethics and religious doctrines. In
Manimekalai, states Zvelebil, the
ethics, and religious doctrines are
served by the epic's storyline.[73]
Kannaki is a strong, inspiring tragic
character that grabs the audience's
interest. In contrast, Manimekalai is
a rather feeble character, says
Zvelebil.[73]
:
 According to a review by the
Brahmin scholar Subrahmanya
Aiyar in 1906, Manimekalai in
puritan terms is not an epic poem,
but a grave disquisition on
philosophy.[74] He states that the
three surviving Tamil epics
including Manimekalai, on the
whole, have no plot and are not
epic-genre texts. The Manimekalai
is a Buddhistic work of an "infant
society sensitive to higher
influences of life", and inferior to the
Silappadikaram that he calls as the
:
 work of a "Hindu poet".[74]

Ramayana Reference

Like the Silappatikaram, this epic

also makes several references to
the Ramayana, such as a setu
(bridge) being built by monkeys in
canto 5, line 37 (however the
location is Kanyakumari rather than
Dhanushkodi). In another reference,
in canto 17, lines 9 to 16, the epic
talks about Rama being the
incarnate of Trivikrama or Netiyon,
:
 and he building the setu with the
help of monkeys who hurled huge
rocks into the ocean to build the
bridge. Further, canto 18, lines 19 to
26, refers to the illegitimate love of
Indra for Ahalya the wife of Rishi
Gautama(Pandian, 1931, p.149)
(Aiyangar, 1927, p.28).[75][76][77]
This seems to indicate that the
story of the Ramayana was familiar
in the Tamil land since very early
times and Rama was
acknowledged as a God, even
before the Kamba Ramayanam of
:
 the 12th century.

See also
Tamil Jain
Five Great Epics
Tamil Buddhism

References
1. Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya, ed.
(2009). A Social History of Early
India. Jointly published by CSC
and Pearson Education for the
Project of History of Indian
Science, Philosophy and Culture.
p. 238.
:
 p. 238.
2. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 140–
143.
3. Paula Richman (1988). Women,
Branch Stories, and Religious
Rhetoric in a Tamil Buddhist Text
(https://books.google.com/books
?id=i2cOAAAAYAAJ) . Syracuse
University Press. p. 22.
ISBN 978-0-915984-90-9.
4. Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya
(2009). A Social History of Early
India (https://books.google.com/
books?id=0tX4wzIUY3QC&pg=
PA238) . Pearson Education.
pp. 238–239. ISBN 978-81-317-
:
 1958-9.
5. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 140–
141.
6. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993.
7. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. xxi–xxiv.
8. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, p. 141.
9. A. K. Warder (1994). Indian
Kavya Literature (https://books.g
oogle.com/books?id=7WnWL5Lt
YfcC) . Motilal Banarsidass.
pp. 217–218. ISBN 978-81-208-
0449-4.
10. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 130–
131.
:
 11. Mukherjee 1999, p. 277
12. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. vii–xvii.
13. Anne E. Monius (2001).
Imagining a Place for Buddhism:
Literary Culture and Religious
Community in Tamil-Speaking
South India (https://books.google
.com/books?
id=CvetN2VyrKcC) . Oxford
University Press. pp. 87–96.
ISBN 978-0-19-803206-9.
14. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 140–
142.
15. Paula Richman 2003, p. 458.
16. Paula Richman 2003, p. 610.
:
 16. Paula Richman 2003, p. 610.
17. Paula Richman 2003, pp. 610–
611.
18. S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar,
Maṇimekhalai in its Historical
Setting (https://archive.org/detail
s/manimekhalaiinit031176mbp) ,
London, 1928, pp. xxvi-xxvii
19. Paula Richman, "Cīttalai
Cāttanār, Manimekhalai"
summary in Karl H. Potter
ed.,The Encyclopedia of Indian
Philosophies: Buddhist
philosophy from 350 to 600 A.D.
New Delhi, 2003, pp.458.
20. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
:
 20. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. xvi–xvii.
21. Hikosaka 1989, pp. 91–94.
22. Paula Richman 2003, p. 611.
23. Bhanu, Sharada (1997). Myths
and Legends from India - Great
Women. Chennai: Macmillan
India Limited. pp. 7–9. ISBN 0-
333-93076-2.
24. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 141–
142.
25. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 130–
132, 141–142, Quote:
"Manimekalai preaches the
Buddhist ideal of serving all living
beings with detachment at the
:
 expense of Jainism which is
attacked and ridiculed..
26. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 1–4.
27. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 4–7.
28. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 7–13.
29. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 13–17.
30. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 18–23.
31. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 23–30.
32. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
:
 pp. 30–35.
33. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 35–37.
34. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 37–39.
35. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 40–43.
36. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 43–48.
37. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 48–51.
38. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 52–55.
39. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 55–59.
:
 40. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 59–62.
41. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 62–67.
42. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 67–71.
43. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 71–76.
44. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 76–83.
45. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 83–85.
46. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 83–87.
47. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
:
 47. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 87–89.
48. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 87–93.
49. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 93–100.
50. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 101–106.
51. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 106–110.
52. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 111–112.
53. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 112–114.
54. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 114–122.
:
 pp. 114–122.
55. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 122–125.
56. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 126–141.
57. Paula Richman 2003, pp. 457–
458.
58. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 141–149.
59. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. 150–162.
60. Alain Danielou (Translator) 1993,
pp. xxiv, 163–172.
61. Anne E. Monius (2001).
Imagining a Place for Buddhism:
Literary Culture and Religious
:
 Literary Culture and Religious
Community in Tamil-Speaking
South India (https://books.google
.com/books?
id=CvetN2VyrKcC) . Oxford
University Press. pp. 88–89.
ISBN 978-0-19-803206-9.
62. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 140–142
with footnotes.
63. Rao Bahadur Krishnaswāmi
Aiyangar, Maṇimekhalai in its
Historical Setting, London, 1928.
Available at www.archive.org [1] (
https://archive.org/details/manim
ekhalaiinit031176mbp)
64. Hisselle Dhammaratana,
Buddhism in South India, Kandy,
:
 Buddhism in South India, Kandy,
1964
65. Rao Bahadur Krishnaswāmi
Aiyangar, Maṇimekhalai in its
Historical Setting, London, 1928,
p.185, 201, Available at
www.archive.org [2] (https://arch
ive.org/details/manimekhalaiinit0
31176mbp)
66. Paula Richman, "Cīttalai
Cāttanār, Manimekhalai"
summary in Karl H. Potter
ed.,The Encyclopedia of Indian
Philosophies: Buddhist
philosophy from 350 to 600 A.D.
New Delhi, 2003, pp.457–462.
:
 67. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 141–
142, Quote: "Manimekalai
preaches the Buddhist ideal of
serving all living beings with
detachment at the expense of
Jainism which is attacked and
ridiculed..
68. Paula Richman 2003, pp. 457–
462.
69. Rao Bahadur Krishnaswāmi
Aiyangar (1927), Maṇimekhalai in
its Historical Setting (https://arch
ive.org/details/manimekhalaiinit0
31176mbp/page/n31) , p. xxvii,
p. 85, 104, 188
70. Cō. Na Kantacāmi (1978).
:
 70. Cō. Na Kantacāmi (1978).
Buddhism as Expounded in
Manimekalai (https://books.googl
e.com/books?id=U2cOAAAAYAA
J) . Annamalai University. p. 394.
71. G. John Samuel; Ār. Es
Śivagaṇēśamūrti; M. S.
Nagarajan (1998). Buddhism in
Tamil Nadu: Collected Papers (ht
tps://books.google.com/books?id
=4WoEAAAAYAAJ) . Institute of
Asian Studies. p. xvi.
72. Shu Hikosaka (1989). Buddhism
in Tamilnadu: A New Perspective
(https://books.google.com/books
?id=XmQEAAAAYAAJ) . Institute
of Asian Studies. p. 93.
:
 of Asian Studies. p. 93.
73. Kamil Zvelebil 1974, pp. 141–142
74. University of Calcutta 1906, pp.
426-427
75. Pandian, Pichai Pillai (1931).
Cattanar's Manimekalai (https://a
rchive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.201
5.65472) . Madras: Saiva
Siddhanta Works. Retrieved
30 July 2019.
76. Aiyangar, Rao Bahadur
Krishnaswami (1927).
Manimekhalai In Its Historical
Setting (https://archive.org/detail
s/manimekhalaiinit031176mbp) .
London: Luzac & Co. Retrieved
:
 30 July 2019.
77. Shattan, Merchant-Prince
(1989). Daniélou, Alain (ed.).
Manimekhalai: The Dancer With
the Magic Bowl. New York: New
Directions.

Bibliography
N. Balusamy, Studies in
Manimekalai, Madurai: Athirai
Pathippakam, 1965.
Brenda E.F. Beck. The three
twins : the telling of a South
Indian folk epic, Bloomington,
:
 Indiana University Press, 1982.
Manimekhalai: the dancer with
the magic bowl (https://books.go
ogle.com/books?id=wl7T45yhh1
sC) , translated by Alain
Danielou, Penguin Books, 1993,
ISBN 9780811210980
Hisselle Dhammaratana,
Buddhism in South India, Kandy,
1964. Available online at
Buddhist Publication Society
Online Library Buddhism in
South India (http://www.bps.lk/ol
ib/wh/wh124-u.html#Appendix)
:
 Gaur A. S. and Sundaresh,
Underwater Exploration off
Poompuhar and possible causes
of its Submergence, 1998,
Puratattva, 28: 84–90. Available
online at [3] (http://drs.nio.org/dr
s/bitstream/2264/2065/2/Purat
attva_28_84.pdf)
Hikosaka, Shu (1989), Buddhism
in Tamilnadu: a new perspective,
Madras: Institute of Asian
Studies
K. Kailasapathy, Tamil Heroic
:
 Poetry, Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1968.
S.N. Kandaswamy, Buddhism as
expounded in Manimekalai,
Annamalainagar : Annamalai
University, 1978.
Lal, Mohan; Sāhitya Akādemī
(2001). The Encyclopaedia Of
Indian Literature (Volume Five)
(Sasay To Zorgot), Volume 5 (htt
ps://books.google.com/books?id
=KnPoYxrRfc0C&pg=PA4256) .
New Delhi: Sāhitya Akādemī.
ISBN 81-260-1221-8.
:
 Mukherjee, Sujit (1999). A
Dictionary of Indian Literature:
Beginnings-1850 (https://books.
google.com/books?id=YCJrUfVt
ZxoC&q=jivaka+chintamani&pg
=PA150) . New Delhi: Orient
Longman Limited. ISBN 81-250-
1453-5.
Pillai, M. S. Purnalingam (1994).
Tamil Literature (https://books.g
oogle.com/books?id=QIeqvcai5
XQC&pg=PA115) . Asian
Educational Services. p. 115.
ISBN 978-81-206-0955-6.
:
 R. Kasirajan, Evolution and
evaluation of epics in Tamil,
Madurai: Mathy Pathippakam,
1990.
Krishnaswami Aiyangar,
Manimekhalai in its historical
setting, London: Luzac & Co.,
1928. Available at [4] (https://arc
hive.org/details/manimekhalaiinit
031176mbp)
R. Natarajan, Manimekalai as an
Epic, Madras, 1990.
Panicker, K. Ayyappa (2003). A
:
 Primer of Tamil Literature (https:
//books.google.com/books?id=p
SLoIsW0FF0C&q=Cilappatikara
m+criticism&pg=PA7) . New
Delhi: Indira Gandhi National
Centre for the Arts. ISBN 81-
207-2502-6.
P. Pandian (Bacon), Cattanar's
Manimekalai translated from the
Tamil, Madras: South India Saiva
Siddhanta Works Publishing
Society Ltd., 1989.
R. Parthasarathy, The
Cilappatikaram of Ilanko Atikal :
:
 an epic of South India, New York:
Columbia University Press, 1993.
Series title: Translations from the
Asian classics.
Rao, S.R. "Marine archaeological
explorations of Tranquebar-
Poompuhar region on Tamil Nadu
coast" in Journal of Marine
Archaeology, Vol. II, July 1991,
pp. 6. Available online at [5] (http
s://web.archive.org/web/2011012
4225917/http://drs.nio.org/drs/bi
tstream/2264/3295/2/Mar_Arch
aeol_2_5.pdf)
:
 Paula Richman (2003), Cīttalai
Cāttanār, Manimekhalai
summary in Karl H. Potter ed.,
The Encyclopedia of Indian
Philosophies, Volume IX:
Buddhist philosophy from 350
to 600 A.D., Motilal Banarsidass,
pp. 457–462, with notes on
610–612
Paula Richman, Women, branch
stories, and religious rhetoric in
a Tamil Buddhist text, Syracuse
University, 1988. Series title:
Foreign and Comparative
:
 Studies. South Asian series no.
12.
Peter Schalk, editor-in-chief, A
Buddhist woman's path to
enlightenment : proceedings of
a Workshop on the Tamil
Narrative Manimekalai, Uppsala
University, 25–29 May 1995.
Uppsala, Academiae Ubsaliensis,
Stockholm, 1997. Series title:
Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis.
Historia religionum 13.
S.V. Subramanian, Descriptive
grammar of Cilappatikaram,
:
 Madras, 1965.
Subrahmanya V Subrahmanya
Aiyar (1906). Calcutta review,
Volume 123 (https://books.googl
e.com/books?id=WLSgAAAAMA
AJ&pg=PA426) . London: The
Edinburgh Press..
Takanobu Takahashi (1995).
Tamil Love Poetry and Poetics (h
ttps://books.google.com/books?i
d=wgCHuVGyZoEC) . BRILL
Academic. ISBN 90-04-10042-
3.
:
 Eva Maria Wilden (2014).
Manuscript, Print and Memory:
Relics of the Cankam in
Tamilnadu (https://books.google.
com/books?id=KuPmBQAAQBA
J&pg=PA75) . Walter de Gruyter.
ISBN 978-3-11-035276-4.
Kamil Zvelebil (1973). The Smile
of Murugan: On Tamil Literature
of South India (https://books.goo
gle.com/books?id=degUAAAAIA
AJ) . BRILL. ISBN 90-04-
03591-5.
Kamil Zvelebil (1974), Tamil
:
 Literature (https://books.google.
com/books?
id=OQ33i496MsIC) , Otto
Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-
3-447-01582-0
Zvelebil, Kamil (1992).
Companion studies to the
history of Tamil literature (https:/
/books.google.com/books?id=qA
Ptq49DZfoC&pg=PA73) . BRILL.
p. 73. ISBN 90-04-09365-6.
C. P. Rajendran and others,
Geoarchaeological Evidence of a
Chola-Period Tsunami from an
:
 Ancient Port at Kaveripattinam
on the Southeastern Coast of
India, Geoarchaeology: An
International Journal, 2011.

External links
Manimekalai - Original Text in
Tamil (http://www.projectmadurai
.org/pmworks.html)
Manimekalai - Romanised Tamil (
http://gretil.sub.uni-goettingen.d
e/gretil/4_drav/tamil/pm/pm141_
_u.htm)
:
 Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Manimekalai&oldid=1176705253"

This page was last edited on 23

September 2023, at 13:25 (UTC). •
Content is available under CC BY-SA
4.0 unless otherwise noted.
: