Kainnilai
Encyclopedia
Kainnilai, and Innilai are Tamil
poetic works belonging to the Pathinenkilkanakku
anthology of Tamil literature
. These two books together form the eighteenth book in the anthology, belonging to the 'post Sangam period' corresponding to between 100 – 500 CE. Kainnilai contains sixty poems written by the poet Pullangkaathanaar and Innilai contains 45 poems and was written by the poet Poigayaar.
The poems of Innilai deal with the ethical concepts of aram – propriety, porul – wealth, inpam – love and veedu – salvation. In this respect it is similar to Tirukkural
which also concerns with these concepts.
Kainnilai is available in a much-damaged condition with many of its poems only partially available. Kainnilai deals with the subjective (agam) concepts. Agam in the Sangam literature
denotes the subject matters that deal with the intangibles of life such as human emotions, love, separation, lovers' quarrels, etc. The poems of Kainnilai are categoriesed into twelve poems for each of the five thinai, or landscape
of Sangam poetry and describe in detail the situation and emotions specific to each landscape. The five landscapes of Sangam poetry are mullai – forest, kurinji – mountains, marutham – farmland, paalai – arid land and neithal – seashore.
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
poetic works belonging to the Pathinenkilkanakku
Pathinenkilkanakku
Pathinenkilkanakku is a collection of eighteen poetic works created during the 'post Sangam period' . The poems of this collection differ from the earlier works under the Pathinenmaelkanakku collection , which are the oldest surviving Tamil Poetry. The poems are written in the Venpa meter and are...
anthology of Tamil literature
Tamil literature
Tamil literature refers to the literature in the Tamil language. Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution...
. These two books together form the eighteenth book in the anthology, belonging to the 'post Sangam period' corresponding to between 100 – 500 CE. Kainnilai contains sixty poems written by the poet Pullangkaathanaar and Innilai contains 45 poems and was written by the poet Poigayaar.
The poems of Innilai deal with the ethical concepts of aram – propriety, porul – wealth, inpam – love and veedu – salvation. In this respect it is similar to Tirukkural
Tirukkuṛaḷ
Tirukkuṛaḷ , sometimes spelt 'Thirukkural, is a classic of couplets or Kurals or aphorisms celebrated by Tamils. It was authored by Thiruvalluvar, a poet who is said to have lived anytime between the 2nd and 6th centuries AD. Although the exact period of its composition is still disputed,...
which also concerns with these concepts.
Kainnilai is available in a much-damaged condition with many of its poems only partially available. Kainnilai deals with the subjective (agam) concepts. Agam in the Sangam literature
Sangam literature
Sangam literature refers to a body of classical Tamil literature created between the years c. 600 BCE to 300 CE. This collection contains 2381 poems composed by 473 poets, some 102 of whom remain anonymous The period during which these poems were composed is commonly referred to as the Sangam...
denotes the subject matters that deal with the intangibles of life such as human emotions, love, separation, lovers' quarrels, etc. The poems of Kainnilai are categoriesed into twelve poems for each of the five thinai, or landscape
Sangam landscape
The Sangam landscape is the name given to a poetic device that was characteristic of love poetry in classical Tamil Sangam literature. The core of the device was the categorisation of poems into different tiṇais or modes, depending on the nature, location, mood and type of relationship...
of Sangam poetry and describe in detail the situation and emotions specific to each landscape. The five landscapes of Sangam poetry are mullai – forest, kurinji – mountains, marutham – farmland, paalai – arid land and neithal – seashore.