Actually what I am going to write about is not classified as history. Its more about the beliefs that get embedded into the society... call them norms or conventions...
Its just a few days past the International Tamil Conference.When the intellects discussed the beauty of
Ilango Adigal's great Tamil epic Shilapadhikaram, they were quite unaware of what misery my protagonist had to go through.
It seems our gods lavishly empower and privilege the dedicated women who are but responsible to one and only one , their men.
According to the epic a rich merchant Kovalan and his wife Kannagi lived happily until the man met Madhavi and fell in love with her. Gradually he washed out all his wealth and returned to Kannagi. The Ideal Indian wife in Kannagi understood the financial condition and offered her precious pair of anklets. They moved to Madurai in the hope of making a fortune .
Kovalan went to the market to sell one of those anklets.In the meantime a look alike anklet of the queen of Pandiyan Nendunjeliyan was lost. The guards mis informed the king and Kovalan was hanged.
Then the story takes the moral overtone. Kannagi burns the city of Madurai to ashes. God bestowed these powers on her for being a forgiving , moral and righteous woman.
The question is: Is that righteousness....
My protagonist definitely doesn't think so...
She is lekshmi born to a merchant in Madurai. She had three brothers and a sister. They were living happily in the city of Madurai when one day the fire broke out. She screamed for her life but later regretted for being spared. Her brothers perished in the wild fire. Her infant sister died while asleep.No one knew what happened to her parents. But god allowed her to live... to live much longer .. to this day.... She starved and ceased to exist.
But the truth is I saw her. She is living in the shadows of parochialism.
She can't perish unless there is no lack of reason...
