The discovery of the three inscribed hero stones, which date back to the 3rd century BCE, at Pulimankombai in Theni district in 2006, is now a pictorial document along with all other estampages of the memorial stones documented in the book Nadukal Kalvettukkal (Inscriptions from hero stones), authored by eminent archaeologist R. Poongundran, former assistant director, Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department. The memorial stones which display inscriptions in the ancient Tamil Brahmi script throw light on the literacy of the ancient Tamil society.
The discovery of the three inscribed hero stones, which date back to the 3rd century BCE, at Pulimankombai in Theni district in 2006, is now a pictorial document along with all other estampages of the memorial stones documented in the book Nadukal Kalvettukkal (Inscriptions from hero stones), authored by eminent archaeologist R. Poongundran, former assistant director, Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department. The memorial stones which display inscriptions in the ancient Tamil Brahmi script throw light on the literacy of the ancient Tamil society.
“The three hero stones were discovered by the staff and students from the Department of Epigraphy and Archaeology of Tamil University, Thanjavur. The memorials were, for the first time, spotted in the village Pulimankombai, when a piece of land was tilled for agriculture” informs Poongundran.
Besides the three hero stones discovered at Pulimankombai, plenty of other ones documented in Poongundran’s book, stand testimony to the idea of ancient Tamils considering cattle as their wealth. The book speaks of the hero stones erected in memory of the warriors, who died in seizing the enemy’s cattle and recovering theirs from the foe. The seizing of an enemy’s cattle as a declaration of war was called Aakolpoosal in classical Tamil.
“The two themes Vetchi (the act of seizing enemy’s cattle) and Karanthai (the act of recovering the cattle from the enemy) were described in Tolkapiyam, the available ancient treatise of Tamil. Besides, many songs in Sangam Tamil literature speak on erecting the nadukal in memory of the warriors who died in the act of seizing the enemy’s cattle and recovering theirs from the enemy” informs Poongundran.
One of the three ancient hero stones discovered at Pulimankombai informs in its Tamil Brahmi inscription that the memorial was erected to honour a warrior named ‘Pedu Theeyan Andhavan’, who was killed during his attempt in seizing his enemy’s cattle in a village called ‘Koodal’
Reminding the origin of worshiping ancestors as family deities, the 335th song in Purananuru, a Sangam period work, says that there were no other Gods other than the slain warriors depicted in the hero stones. Sangam age poet Mangudi Kizhar describes the hero stones thus in his lyric:
There are no gods, other than the
memorial stones of heroes who blocked enemies,
killed their elephants with lifted, bright tusks
and got killed, to be worshiped with rice showerings!
Aavur Mulankizhar, another Sangam age poet, while writing on the death of his benefactor Malli Kizhan Kaariyathi, informs :
… now that he has become
a memorial stone, that young hero with a victorious spear, who
killed the cattle raiders…… he returned wearing fragrant ‘karanthai’ garlands that hang
down like udders of cows.
(It was a tradition in the ancient Tamil society to wear garlands stringed of vetchi flowers when going off on cattle raid and wear garlands of karanthai flowers while returning)
“The language used in most hero stones was in vernacular. Besides, there are also a few memorial stones which contain the information on the deceased in the traditional Tamil verse forms Aasiriyappa and Venba” says Poongundran.
“The three hero stones were discovered by the staff and students from the Department of Epigraphy and Archaeology of Tamil University, Thanjavur. The memorials were, for the first time, spotted in the village Pulimankombai, when a piece of land was tilled for agriculture” informs Poongundran.
Besides the three hero stones discovered at Pulimankombai, plenty of other ones documented in Poongundran’s book, stand testimony to the idea of ancient Tamils considering cattle as their wealth. The book speaks of the hero stones erected in memory of the warriors, who died in seizing the enemy’s cattle and recovering theirs from the foe. The seizing of an enemy’s cattle as a declaration of war was called Aakolpoosal in classical Tamil.
“The two themes Vetchi (the act of seizing enemy’s cattle) and Karanthai (the act of recovering the cattle from the enemy) were described in Tolkapiyam, the available ancient treatise of Tamil. Besides, many songs in Sangam Tamil literature speak on erecting the nadukal in memory of the warriors who died in the act of seizing the enemy’s cattle and recovering theirs from the enemy” informs Poongundran.
One of the three ancient hero stones discovered at Pulimankombai informs in its Tamil Brahmi inscription that the memorial was erected to honour a warrior named ‘Pedu Theeyan Andhavan’, who was killed during his attempt in seizing his enemy’s cattle in a village called ‘Koodal’
Reminding the origin of worshiping ancestors as family deities, the 335th song in Purananuru, a Sangam period work, says that there were no other Gods other than the slain warriors depicted in the hero stones. Sangam age poet Mangudi Kizhar describes the hero stones thus in his lyric:
There are no gods, other than the
memorial stones of heroes who blocked enemies,
killed their elephants with lifted, bright tusks
and got killed, to be worshiped with rice showerings!
Aavur Mulankizhar, another Sangam age poet, while writing on the death of his benefactor Malli Kizhan Kaariyathi, informs :
… now that he has become
a memorial stone, that young hero with a victorious spear, who
killed the cattle raiders…… he returned wearing fragrant ‘karanthai’ garlands that hang
down like udders of cows.
(It was a tradition in the ancient Tamil society to wear garlands stringed of vetchi flowers when going off on cattle raid and wear garlands of karanthai flowers while returning)
“The language used in most hero stones was in vernacular. Besides, there are also a few memorial stones which contain the information on the deceased in the traditional Tamil verse forms Aasiriyappa and Venba” says Poongundran.