A Critical Study of Kuruntokai

Kuruntokai is one of the eight anthologies called Ettu-t-tokai which form part of the earliest extant literary works in Tamil, namely Sangam Literature. According to the ancient commentators and some of the modern eminent scholars, Kuruntokai has a very important and significant place among these anthologies. Of the four hundred stanzas in this collection, two hundred and thirty six stanzas have been either quoted or referred to or explained in comparison, in the ancient commentaries of the classical works. This book is a critical study of such an important literary work. This collection also serves as a source of early South Indian History as there are thirty four stanzas with historical settings. The life of the people in various regions, their amusements, superstitions, methods of worship, marriage customs, etc., have been studied. This anthology abounds in descriptions of Nature and most of the poets were highly sensitive to the aesthetic appeal of the landscape, flora and fauna, the sky, the stars, the clouds, the moon, etc.