Book Review: All-time Adages of Avvaiyaar, the Tamil Poetess by Jyothirllata Girija

All-time Adages of Avvaiyaar, the Tamil Poetess by Jyothirllata Girija is a collection of short poems that deal with universal themes such as love, hate, friendship among others. There is no lack of wisdom. The compositions with simple verses express the feelings experienced by the second Avvaiyaar in particular moments of her life. The poems are short, intense, and exciting in which the reader can find themselves.

The poems still manage to arouse emotions? Reading the book of Jyothirllata Girija has, no doubt, an affirmative answer. The poignant words are simple, and devoid of forced technicalities but are spontaneous and immediate. They deal with issues involving all sensitive souls and the message conveyed is clear and understandable and immediately get to the heart that often rips the soul.

It highlights the worldly wisdom that people should follow in their daily life. The poems are pictures of life, telling experiences intensively and the reader may find himself in them, reviewing, in personal memories, his mother, a friend, a loved one, an enemy or a sick relative. Surely all of us have experienced the desire to live or die, to love or to hate, to communicate or to be silent, to brag about or be ashamed.

Avvaiyar was the name of several poets at different periods of Tamil literature. The Tamils frequently refer elderly, but intelligent woman as the Auvai. The poems remain popular today and are taught in the schools of Tamil Nadu. The poems contain a series of rules, things to do or not to do that are useful for everyday life. They are formulated in simple and short sentences. Avvaiyar I lived during the Sangam period during Ist and IInd centuries. She had cordial relations with Tamil leaders Pari and Athikaman. She wrote 59 poems in Purananuru. The 2nd Avvaiyar lived during the period of Kambar and Ottakkuttar during the reign of the Cholas in the XIIIth century.

The lyrical content is strong, and diversified, but made comparable in the overall message. The man, with his actions and his free will, is, after all, a piece of inexorable fate, but it is a largely varied microcosm to be discovered. Kudos to the author for the emotions that can stir up!

I greatly appreciated the work that has great simplicity and delicacy, and that's enough to make the reader enjoy the thrill of a lifetime. The poems sow awareness that what remains is not to be thrown away, rather it is a precious treasure. The experiences we live make us who we are.

When poetry called, energy blends and here in these verses I have met the soul's melody. The poems seem to look almost tiptoed by its minutiae, and emotions that bring us the smell of good things. A literary expression so clear and deeply felt, can only come in the soul that turns and flow into the silence. They resonate with love and raw truth.

From these poems, Jyothirllata Girija brings a great expressiveness that takes the reader in a very compelling way. There emerges from these poems, a great awareness of human values that degenerate over the passage of time. The poems sow a wind of hope towards the faded prayer while they return the echo of a noise below the silences. The creak of a chair seems to scream and break the absence of those who will not hear.

Format: Paperback ♥ Pages: 74 ♥ Publisher: Cyberwit ♥ Published: July 1, 2017 ♥ Language: English ♥ ISBN-13: 978-9386653000