தமிழ் அறிவோர் & தமிழை அரிவோர் **

** Title courtesy Mr. TechieV2

Inspired by Geetha Aunty's "Pasting" on the state of modernised Tamizh, especially in the media, I went back to a conversation I had recently (comment exchanges on a FB post)

Mr. TechieV2 Only idiots of the first order say திருவில்லிபுத்தூர் and not ஸ்ரீவில்லிபுத்தூர் (or) வில்லிபுத்தூர். திரு is very much present there you dim wits.

Me also the self proclaimed "தமில் அரிஞர்கல்"

Mr. TechieV2

They think they are "தமிழ் அறிவோர்" while in reality they are "தமிழை அரிவோர் " like சங்கை அரியும் நக்கீரர்..

Me

பகுத்து அரிவோர்

Mr. TechieV2

அரிந்தாலே பகுக்கப்பட்டுவிடுமே பின் பகுத்து அரிவோர் என்னும் பதம் சரியாமோ ? :-)

Me

"தமிழை மொத்தமாக அரிந்தால் பணி செப்பனே நிறைவேறுமோ ஆகாதோ என்ற ஐயத்தினால் பகுத்து பகுத்து அரிவோர்".
they indeed do a fine job, and we can't deprive them of their self-coronated titles :P

Mr. TechieV2

Ha ha.. That was a good splitting there.. As for the fine job, wish the job stopped at the splitting part :P

The first case (Geetha Aunty's post) was about pronunciation and the second about grammar, that too by "self proclaimed scholars". It has been taken a level farther in seeing 'mundane' meaning to words and names. All of us must be familiar with this song, that has been declared as a chartbuster of this Pongal Season - "கரிகாலன் காலபோல கருத்திருக்குது குழலு"

Back in my schooldays, one Thamizh aasiriyai, while teaching at primary level, made a note about a 'legend' that in one of the wars that KarikaalvaLavan fought, he suffered burns in his legs, and from then on, was called the Karikaalan - The one with black legs. But having learnt that the Chozhas were proud warriors, assuming a title that reminds of a wound he suffered wasn't convincing.

In chaste Thamizh, கரி means Elephant. So, calling him கரிகாலன் for he had strong legs as that of an elephant could fit in better, and is more digestible. And காலன் refers to the god of death, and so, கரிகாலன் could mean - one who killed an elephant singlehandedly. Letting these meaningful interpretations go, just to go with ethugais kari-karu-kuzhal, the modern day 'poets' dilute the language; But he couldn't be blamed entirely, for he too belonged to the generation of the certain thamizh aasiriyai who first acquainted me of this meaning, and they both followed whatever they were told/taught.

The above case falls into the category பொருட்பிழை - faulty meaning, faulty substance to be more precise, the point with which Nakkeerar pins down SivaperumAn. On that note, I have heard several mentions about a few தமிழ் அறிஞர்கள் attending NampiLLai's goshti (12-13th century), and trying choking him by 'identifying' பொருட்குற்றம் in AzhwAr pAdal, only to get embarrassing counters back from The UlagAriyan.

To close, let me quote Sri UVe. Dr. MVA on people of this category. A certain thamizh scholar tried reading the guruparampara text all by himself and tried writing a summary on his own. One of the lines read

"பதிமூன்றாம் நூற்றாண்டில் காஞ்சிமாநகரில் நடாதூர் அம்மாள் என்ற பெண்மணி வாழ்ந்து வந்தார்"

ROFL!!