Ghost Theme is Ancient Kannada and Tamil texts

Abstract

As members of Dravidian family of Languages, Kannada and Tamil are close to each other. Apart from linguistic and grammatical similarities there are comparable elements in literary texts also. There are similar motifs and themes in Ancient Kannada and Tamil literary works. Though a few studies have concentrated in the similarities of Kannada and Tamil grammars, very little is done on the similar features of literary works. This paper makes an attempt to bring out a surprising motif of ghosts that occur in Ancient Kannada and Tamil texts. Tolkappiyam is an early grammatical work in Tamil and date of which is believed to be from 1 to 3 AD. This book speaks of a concept of ‘Thodakkaanji’. This concept is explained by commentators as not allowing the evil spirit to eat the body of the hero who died during a war. The same concept, though the technical term to denote the concept is absent, is present in the Kannada text ‘Sahasa Bheema Vijaya or Gadhayuddha’ by the Ranna, who belongs to the tenth century. While the theme of the narration centers around the battle of maces between Bhima and Duryodhana on the last day of the eighteen-day war, the poet uses a technique similar to flashbacks. This technic we can see in Tamil as a “Singanokku” which is used in grammar text to explain the ‘noorpaa’. Ranna the Kannada poet gives the details of an incident of the war field where the dead leader’s body is guarded from evil spirits/ ghosts by the fellow warriors whose wounds are less fatal. Tolkappiyam is an earlier work and Ranna’s work is late period. But that the particular theme of Thodakkanchi occurs in the Kannada and Tamil contexts merits mention and study a rare example which has not been brought out by anybody so far. Such similar points of comparison are brought out elaborately in this article.