Kulapathi Nayanar

Kulapathi Nāyanār (Tamil: குலபதி நயனார்), also known as Kulapathiyār, was a poet of the Sangam period to whom verse 48 of the Tiruvalluva Maalai is attributed.

Biography

Kulapathi Nāyanār was a poet belonging to the late Sangam period that corresponds between 1st century BCE and 2nd century CE. He is believed to be the head of his clan.

View on Valluvar and the Kural

Kulapathi Nāyanār has authored verse 48 of the Tiruvalluva Maalai. He opines about Valluvar and the Kural text thus:

As the Cural of Valluvar causes the lotus-flower of the heart to expand, and dispels from it the darkness which cannot otherwise be dispelled, it may well be compared to the hot-rayed sun, which causes the lotus-flower of the tank to expand, and dispels the darkness from the face of the earth. [Emphasis in original]

See also

• Sangam literature
• List of Sangam poets
• Tiruvalluva Maalai

References

• Edward Jewitt Robinson (2001). Tamil Wisdom: Traditions Concerning Hindu Sages and Selections from Their Writings. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services.
• Vedanayagam, Rama (2017). திருவள்ளுவ மாலை மூலமும் எளிய உரை விளக்கமும் [Tiruvalluva Maalai: Moolamum Eliya Urai Vilakkamum] (in Tamil) (1 ed.). Chennai: Manimekalai Prasuram.