In this episode, we perceive the anguish of a parted heart, as portrayed in Sangam Literary work, Aganaanooru 183, penned by Karuvoor Kalingaththaar. Set in the ‘Paalai’ or ‘Drylands landscape’, the verse echoes the emotional response to words of consolation.

‘குவளை உண்கண் கலுழவும், திருந்திழைத்
திதலை அல்குல் அவ் வரி வாடவும்,
அத்தம் ஆர் அழுவம் நத் துறந்து அருளார்
சென்று சேண் இடையர் ஆயினும், நன்றும்
நீடலர்” என்றி தோழி! பாடு ஆன்று
பனித் துறைப் பெருங் கடல் இறந்து, நீர் பருகி,
குவவுத் திரை அருந்து கொள்ளைய குடக்கு ஏர்பு,
வயவுப் பிடி இனத்தின் வயின்வயின் தோன்றி,
இருங் கிளைக் கொண்மூ ஒருங்குடன் துவன்றி,
காலை வந்தன்றால் காரே மாலைக்
குளிர் கொள் பிடவின் கூர் முகை அலரி
வண்டு வாய் திறக்கும் தண்டா நாற்றம்
கூதிர் அற்சிரத்து ஊதை தூற்ற,
பனி அலைக் கலங்கிய நெஞ்சமொடு
வருந்துவம் அல்லமோ, பிரிந்திசினோர் திறத்தே?

In this trip to the drylands, it’s more about the weather rather than the land, as we listen to the lady say these words to the confidante, when the man continues to remain parted away, having left in search of wealth:

“‘Making your blue-lily-like, kohl-streaked eyes to brim with tears, the beautiful lines on your spotted loins, adorned with well-etched ornaments, to fade, he parted away to those formidable paths in the drylands. Even though he’s gone afar, he will not delay further in returning’, you say to me, my friend! Dipping into the resounding huge ocean, with a cool shore, guzzling the water from the roaring waves, and brimming with excess, climbing on to the west, appearing here and there, akin to a parade of pregnant elephants, the dark herd of clouds then come together and pour down. Such a day in the season of rains has arrived, and in the evening, sharp buds of the wild jasmine shivering in the cold, open to the nudge of the bees. The irrepressible fragrance of these flowers is spread everywhere, by the winds of the cold season. Isn’t it natural to worry, with a heart shaken by these circumstances, thinking about how the one who parted away, hasn’t returned?”

Let’s hear the roar of the rain clouds and inhale the fragrance of the jasmines! The lady starts by repeating the words of her friend who had been talking about how the man had left, causing the lady’s eyes to brim with tears and her beauty lines to fade, and how though he was far off, he would return soon to the lady’s fold. After acknowledging these words, the lady talks about how the rainy season, characterised by dark clouds, which she imaginatively connects to a herd of pregnant elephants, had come and gone, and now the wild jasmines were blooming. She concludes by relating how shaken by the scent of these flowers and the touch of the cold winds, she had no other go but to worry about the man and his absence.

In all, it seems like just an expression of pining but within hides some intricate elements of therapy, such as a concerned friend and her thoughtful words, as well as acknowledgement of the lady about her friend’s act of consolation and her own expression of worrying emotions within. Aren’t these the exact elements to help overcome those seemingly impossible moments in life?