Kambar's usage of “Moongai”, a Jain vocabulary

Abstract

Yeomen service has been accomplished by Tamil literary poets, who, by reintroduction of innumerable classic Tamil words and coinage of words, in their versatile creations, have not only safeguarded but also revitalized the abundant wealth of Tamil vocabulary. Kambar is at the pinnacle of this glorious legacy. His epic Kambaramayanam, uses innumerable classic words, thereby safeguarding an abundance of vocabulary. This article is an exploration on one such unique word used by him, “Moongai”, analyzing on his usage, frequency and context of usage and whether this word has been used in any other literary works pre-dating Kambar as also the etymology of the word and the times scale when the word was commonly used. This research is also draws a comparative, historical and literary evidence-based analysis of the usage of the word by Kambar as against its usage in other literary works.