Poonthanam (1547-1640AD) was a famous devotee of Guruvayurappan, who lived in Keezhattoor in Malappuram district. He was a famous devotee of Lord Krishna (Guruvayurappan). He is remembered for his masterpiece, Jnanappana which means 'the song of wisdom' in Malayalam. Poonthanam was the family name, his personal name is not known.
He married at 20, but for a long time, they had no children. He began to propitiate the Lord of Guruvayur by reciting the ‘Santhana Gopalam ’ and a son was born. He called for a celebration and everybody known was invited, but the child died an hour before the Annaprasanam ceremony. Grief stricken, Poonthanam sought refuge at Guruvayur and started praying with the puranic story of Kumaraharanam.
He was a contemporary of Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri(1559–1645), another famous poet associated with Guruvayur. He was a mathematical linguist (vyakarana). His most important scholarly work, Prakriya-sarvawom(പ്രക്രിയ സർവ്വവം), sets forth an axiomatic system elaborating on the classical system of Panini. However, he is most famous for his masterpiece, Narayaneeyam, a devotional composition in praise of Guruvayoorappan (Sri Krishna) that is still sung at the temple of Guruvayoor.
Read More »
Champu poems can be classified into two types, being Pracheena Manipravala Champukkal and Madhyakala Champukkal.
Pracheena Manipravala Champukkal - Unniyachi Charitham, Unniyadi Charitham and Unni Chiruthevi Charitham.
Madhyakala Champukkal - Ramayanam Champu, Bharatham Champu, Naishadham Champu, Rajaratnavaleeyam Champu, Kodiyam Viraham Champu, Kamadahanam Champu, Chellur Nadhodayam Champu, Narayaneeyam Champu and Thenkaila Nadhodayam Champu.
Read More »
Manipravalam was a literary style used in medieval liturgical texts in South India, which was composed in the curious mixture of Sanskrit and Malayalam which is referred to as Manipravalam, mani meaning ruby (Malayalam) and pravalam meaning coral (Sanskrit).
Lilathilakam, a work on grammar and rhetoric, written in the last quarter of the 14th century discusses the relationship between Manipravalam and Pattu as poetic forms. It lays special emphasis on the types of words that blend harmoniously. It points out that the rules of Sanskrit prosody should be followed in Manipravalam poetry. This particular school of poetry was patronized by the upper classes, especially the Nambudiris. It is also to be remembered that the composition of this dialect also reflects the way Aryan and Dravidian cultures were moving towards a synthesis.
Dramatic performances given in Koothampalams, known by the names of Koothu and Koodiyattom, often used Sanskrit and Malayalam. In Koodiyattom, the clown (vidooshaka) is allowed to use Malayalam while the hero recites slokas in Sanskrit. Tholan, a legendary court poet in the period of the Kulasekhara kings, is believed to have started this practice. The language of Kramadeepikas and Attaprakarams, which lay down the rules and regulations for these dramatic performances, is considerably influenced by the composite literary dialect of Manipravalam.
Source: www.prd.kerala.gov.in/manipravalam.htm
Read More »
Niranam gave birth to three well-known poets called Madhava Panikkar and Sankara Panikkar and Rama Panikkar. These poets were populary known as Niranam Poets. They belong to the Kannassa family and the first two were the uncles of Rama Panikkar. They lived in between 1350 and 1450 and made valuable contribution to the Malayalam Literature. It is said that the appearance of modern Malayalam literature starts with the Niranam poets.
Before them the Malayalam poetry was a mix of Sanskrit and Malayalam known as ‘Manipravala’. Their success led to the gradual replacement of the Manipravala cult of worldliness and sensual revelry by an indigenous poetics of high seriousness. Madhava Panikkar wrote a condensed Malayalam translation of Bhagavad Gita, perhaps the first ever translation of that classic into any modern Indian language. Sankara Panikkar’s important work is Bharathamala, a masterly condensation of Mahabharatham, is also the first major work of its kind in Malayalam. The greatest of the three is of course Rama Panikkar, the author of Ramayanam, Bharatham, Bhagavatham, and Sivarathri Mahatmyam. Kannassa Ramayanam and Kannassa Bharatham are the most important of Niranam works. Rama Panikkar’s ‘Ramayanam’ has an important link among Cheraman’s ‘Ramacharitam’, Ayyappilli Asan’s ‘Ramakadhappattu’ and Ezhuthachan’s ‘Adhyatma Ramayanam’. The centrality of Niranam Rama Panikkar is of vital concern to any conscientious literary historian of Malayalam. The subordination of the descriptive and the narrative elements to the controlling theme is a feature of Rama Panikkar’s poetic style. Ulloor, a literary historian of Kerala, has said that Rama Panikkar holds the same position in Malayalam literature that Spenser does in English literature..
Source & Thanks: http://www.keralaholidays247.com/niranam-poets/
Read More »
Poonthanam (1547-1640AD) was a famous devotee of Guruvayurappan, who lived in Keezhattoor in Malappuram district. He was a famous devotee of Lord Krishna (Guruvayurappan). He is remembered for his masterpiece, Jnanappana which means 'the song of wisdom' in Malayalam. Poonthanam was the family name, his personal name is not known.
