This thesis is a Tamil to English translation of Tirukkaḷirruppaṭiyar (TKP), composed by Uyyavanta Tevanayanar toward the end of the twelfth century C.E. The work contains one hundred quatrains of Tamil poetry composed in veṇpa meter. It is a poetic expansion of Tiruvuntiyar (TU), an earlier composition likely by the author's teacher's teacher. The TKP is a transitional text between the devotional religious bhakti(patti -Tamil) hymns of the nayanmar, who lived between the sixth century and the twelfth, and the Saiva-Siddhanta (Caiva Cittantam-Tamil) Theo-philosophical system, which developed between the thirteenth and the fourteenth centuries. TKP is the second work in the canon of fourteen texts called the Meykaṇṭa Sastra (Meykaṇṭa Cattiraṅkaḷ -Tamil), TU being the first. The introduction in the thesis discusses the date of the author, his position in the lineage of teachers, major themes found in the work such as the importance of a teacher, types of worship, miracles of the Saiva saints and final release from the cycle of births and deaths. TKP's similarities and differences with the TU, and how the TKP provides a foundation for later Saiva Siddhanta thought are addressed. Besides translation, each verse has a gloss and there are several appendices, tables and charts with additional information.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Full text release at OhioLINK's ETD Center delayed at author's request

This dissertation examines the concept of living liberation in the Tirumantiram, a work recognised as one of the Tamil Saiva canonical texts composed around the ninth century. Modern scholarship has thus far attempted to comprehend the Tirumantiram in terms of the post-Tirumantiram traditions that developed after the thirteenth century: Tamil Saiva Siddhànta and Tamil Siddha. Consequently, the unity and coherence of the text are subjected to question, and the dual literary and cultural roots of the Tirumantiram remain largely uninvestigated. Besides, the significance of the Tirumantiram as one of the earliest vernacular works directly dealing with the question of soteriology for Tamil speaking populace, most of whom are not qualified for liberation and preceptorhood according to the Saivàgamas with which the text identifies itself, is not fully recognised. This dissertation argues that the concept of living liberation constitutes the unifying theme of the Tirumantiram, which is an outcome of the synthesis of Tamil and Sanskrit traditions, and demonstrates that the Tirumantiram-which does not apparently promote the ideology of temple cult around which the Tamil bhakti movement and Saivàgamas of Southern Saivism developed–exemplifies an alternative religious vision centred on the human body. This dissertation consists of four chapters. The first chapter examines the Tamil legacy to the concept of living liberation. The second examines the ambiguous relations between the Sanskrit traditions and the Tirumantiram. How the Tamil and Sanskrit traditions are fused together to produce a unique version of yoga, the means to attain living liberation, is the concern of the third chapter. The final chapter establishes through an analysis of sexual symbolism expressed in connotative language that the Tirumantiratm is an esoteric text. Thus, the Tirumantiram reflects the blending of an esoteric tantric sect with the leading mainstream bhakti religion, probably to win approval of and recognition in the Tamil Saiva community during the medieval period.

This dissertation examines the concept of living liberation in the Tirumantiram, a work recognised as one of the Tamil Saiva canonical texts composed around the ninth century. Modern scholarship has thus far attempted to comprehend the Tirumantiram in terms of the post-Tirumantiram traditions that developed after the thirteenth century: Tamil Saiva Siddhànta and Tamil Siddha. Consequently, the unity and coherence of the text are subjected to question, and the dual literary and cultural roots of the Tirumantiram remain largely uninvestigated. Besides, the significance of the Tirumantiram as one of the earliest vernacular works directly dealing with the question of soteriology for Tamil speaking populace, most of whom are not qualified for liberation and preceptorhood according to the Saivàgamas with which the text identifies itself, is not fully recognised. This dissertation argues that the concept of living liberation constitutes the unifying theme of the Tirumantiram, which is an outcome of the synthesis of Tamil and Sanskrit traditions, and demonstrates that the Tirumantiram-which does not apparently promote the ideology of temple cult around which the Tamil bhakti movement and Saivàgamas of Southern Saivism developed–exemplifies an alternative religious vision centred on the human body. This dissertation consists of four chapters. The first chapter examines the Tamil legacy to the concept of living liberation. The second examines the ambiguous relations between the Sanskrit traditions and the Tirumantiram. How the Tamil and Sanskrit traditions are fused together to produce a unique version of yoga, the means to attain living liberation, is the concern of the third chapter. The final chapter establishes through an analysis of sexual symbolism expressed in connotative language that the Tirumantiratm is an esoteric text. Thus, the Tirumantiram reflects the blending of an esoteric tantric sect with the leading mainstream bhakti religion, probably to win approval of and recognition in the Tamil Saiva community during the medieval period.

No description available.