Tirumurukāṟṟuppaṭai

Tirumurugatruppadai (Tamil: திருமுருகாற்றுப்படை) by Nakkirar, a Tamil poetic work, is one of the most important works of Sangam Literature. It is the first poem of the Pattupattu anthology. Tirumurugarruppatai follows the Arruppadtai style, a device used by most of the books in the Pattupattu anthology. The poems in this book were composed towards the end of the Sangam period - between the fifth and the sixth centuries C.E. Tirumurugarruppatai is also called Pulavararuppatai.

Aartruppadai is a literary device by which a bard or a minstrel who has received bountiful gifts from some wealthy patron is supposed to direct another to the same Maecenas. This gives the occasion to the poet, among other topics, to describe in great detail the natural beauty, fertility, and resources of the territory that has to be traversed to reach the palace of the patron. Tirumurugartruppadai or 'Guide to Lord Murugan' suggests that those who need spiritual guidance should seek out Lord Murukan.

Tirumurugartruppadai was the first anthology-poem that points to Skanda (Murugan in Tamil) worship of that time. Tirumurugartruppadai later included in the Eleventh Tirumurai, a collection of Saiva religious books. Tirumurugartruppadai is lyrical, narrative, philosophical and theological in its style and as a result was instrumental in the propagation of the nascent Muruga worship. Tirumurugartruppadai has been considered as a hymn for protection for the devotees. For this reason alone the poem became a daily liturgy.

There are a number of legends about the composer Nakkirar. One such explains the circumstances under which this book was composed:

Tirumurugartruppadai has been written in the metre called aciriyappa and is 317 lines in length. The subject matter is the splendour of Murugan and his abodes: the Arupatai Vitu or the six armories of Murugan. It seems that the entire philosophy behind this poem is to motivate devotees towards Murugan. This philosophy then leads to a theological conclusion that, if the devotees wish to obtain salvation, they should visit his holy shrines.

The meaning of this sangam literature is done by nachinarkkiniyar and please follow this link for original text and explanation: http://temple.dinamalar.com/news_detail.php?id=13485

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