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2Tolkabiam, worinnen die ganze malabarische Poesie enthalten ist nebst unterschiedlichen Wissenschaften, so diejenigen vonnöthen haben, die da in solcher weitläuftigen Sprache recht mächtig und erfahren seyn wollen. Es ist das allergrößte Buch unter allen andern Büchern und auch das allerschwerste. Wer dieses wohl gelernt hat, wird unter den malabarischen Gelehrten für ein guter Poet passiret. Sie haben aber eben so viel Kopfsbrechen darinnin, als wie die europäischen Philosophi über des Aristotelis Schriften haben möchten. Der Autor, der es verfertiget, heißet Tolkabiam und ist ein König gewesen unter einer Art Volk, die die Malabaren Schammaner nennen und für Heiden halten. Wie denn alle dergleichen gelehrte Bücher von selbigen Heiden unter die Malabaren wollen keine Heiden heißen, sondern ein Volk, das da die uralte wahre Religion hätte. Das Alter dieses Buches ist nach Aussage der malabarischen Poeten über 1,000 Jahr. Es sind lauter Praecepta, Regeln und Exempel darinnen enthalten. Um einmal durch zu lesen sollte wohl ein Monat zugebracht werden, geschweige wenn man solches auswendig lernen sollte.

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4Tolkāppiyam, which contains the whole of Malabarian poetics as well as the different arts required by those who wish to have a real command of, and familiarity with, this extensive language. It is the greatest book among all other books, and also the very hardest. Whoever has studied this book well may pass for a good poet among the Malabarian learned. They rack their brains over it just as much as the European philosophers do over the works of Aristotle. The author who composed it was called Tolkāppiyam and was a king among a sort of people whom the Malabarians call camaṇar, and regard as heathen. All similar scholarly books among the Malabarians in the same way have come from these same heathen. The Malabarians will not have it that they themselves are heathen, but rather a people who have the ancient true religion. According to the statements of the Malabarian poets, the age of this book is above one thousand years. Many precepts, rules and examples are contained therein. To read through it once could well take a month, to say nothing of learning it by heart.

Tolkāppiyam is probably the earliest Tamil work still extant, but the questions of both date and authorship are complicated by the different layers within the text. Nevertheless, few would dispute Ziegenbalg’s dating of the text as above one thousand years old. Throughout his writings, Ziegenbalg consistently used the term camaṇar to refer to the Jains. THere is some evidence for thinking that Tolkāppiyam, about whom little is known, was indeed a Jain, if not a king. An annotation to the Malabarische Correspondenz (HB 7: 412) repeats some of these details and adds “There are now very few among the poets and schoolmasters who properly understand this book and still fewer who can teach it.”

Tolkāppiya Muṉivarāl iyaṟṟappaṭṭa Tolkāppiyam, ed. Ci Kaṇēcaiyar (Cuṉṉākam: Tirumakaḷ Aḻuttakam, 1937–38)

Tolkāppiyam in English: translation, with the Tamil text, transliteration in the roman script, introduction, glossary, and illustrations, ed. V. Murugan and G. John Samuel (Chennai: Institute of Asian Studies, 2001)

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6Karigei, darinnen sechzehnerlei Art Verse gezeiget werden, wie man nämlich nach der Kunst, und nach ihren Grammatikalischen Praeceptis in Versen variiren könne, so daß ihre Verse zu singen unterschiedliche Melodien heraus kommen, eben als wie es in unsern Liedern zu geschehen pfleget. Der Autor dieses Buches ist Ammada Sagarer, welcher vor 6 hundert und etliche fünfzig Jahr gelebet und solches Buch verfertiget hat. Er soll ein Einsiedler gewesen seyn, und dergleichen Wissenschaft von einem großen Propheten gelernet haben, der da in einem Berg sich aufhält und annoch mit etlichen Tausend Propheten am Leben seyn soll. Es wird von diesem heiligen Manne Namens Agastien erzählet, daß er einstmals alle sieben Meer ausgetrunken und wieder durch den Urin von sich gegeben habe. Deswegen sagen die Malabaren, daß das Meer salzig wäre. Der Berg, darinnen sich solcher Prophet aufhält, heißt Bodiamamalei und ist 15 Tagereisen weit von hier gelegen. Dieses Buch Karigei ist erstlich von dem Autor in Versen geschrieben worden, nachmals hat es ein andrer erkläret, so, daß unter einem jedweden Verse die Erklärung zu finden ist. Jedoch ist es gleichfalls unter den malabarischen Bücher eines von den schwersten Büchern und wird allein bei den Poeten gefunden.

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8Kārikai, in which sixteen types of verse are demonstrated, that is, how the verses may be varied, artistically and according to their grammatical precepts, to bring out the different melodies for singing their verse, just as we do with our songs. The author of this book is Amitacākarar, who lived some 650 years ago and composed this book. He is supposed to have been a hermit, and to have learned this art from a great prophet who lives in a mountain, and is supposed still to be alive along with several thousand prophets. It is said of this holy man named Akattiyaṉ that once he drank up all seven seas, and then returned them through his urine. It is for this reason, say the Malabarians, that the sea is salty. The mountain in which this prophet lives is called Potiyamāmalai and lies fifteen days’journey from here. This book Kārikai was first written by the author in verse, and later explained by another so that a commentary is to be found beneath each verse. Nevertheless, among the Malabarian books, it is also one of the hardest books, and is only found among the poets.

Ziegenbalg’s dating of Amitacākarar’s Yāpparuṅkala kārikai is in accordance with that of Niklas, namely the second half of the tenth century. The commentator mentioned, but not named, by Ziegenbalg is Kuṇacākarar. Tamil tradition ascribes the first grammar of Tamil to Akattiyaṉ.1

Yāpparuṅkala-k-kārikai mūlamum Kuṇacākarar iyaṟṟiya uraiyum, ed. Na. Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi nāṭṭār (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya caivacittānta nūrpatippuk kaḻakam, 1940).

The Verses on the Precious Jewel Prosody composed by Amitacākarar with the commentary by Kuṇacākarar [Yāpparuṅkala-k-kārikai], ed. Ulrike Niklas (Pondicherry: Institut Français de Pondichéry, 1993).

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10Nannul, ein poetisches Buch, darinnen gezeiget wird, wie man mit den Buchstaben, Sylben und Wörtern in Versen procediren soll. Desgleichen auch, wie man eine Materie nach den Kunstregeln erweitern und amplificiren kann. Dieses Buch ist nicht eben groß, aber über die Maßen sehr schwer; sintemal nicht nur allein die Materie sehr verdrießlich, sondern auch die Verse sehr intricat sind. Wiewohl auch hierzu eine Erklärung vorhanden, welche mir von einem malabarischen Poeten versprochen worden, und im Kurzen zu empfahen gedenke. Der Autor heißt Bawanandi und ist ein berühmter Prophet gewesen, nach ihren Aussagen das Alter dieses Buches ist 750 Jahr.

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12Naṉṉūl, a poetic book in which it is shown how to use letters, syllables, and words in verse. Likewise too, how a matter can be elaborated and amplified according to the rules of art. This book is not particularly large, but hard beyond all measure. For not only is the subject matter irksome, but the verses too are very intricate. A commentary exists, however, which I have been promised by a Malabarian poet and expect to receive shortly. The author is called Pavaṇanti and was a famous prophet. According to their statements, the age of this book is 750 years.

As Ziegenbalg’s gloss on the title indicates, Pavaṇanti’s Naṉṉūl, deals with only the first two of the traditional topics of Tamil grammar namely eḻuttu “letters” and col “words.” Ziegenbalg’s dating is somewhat earlier than that accepted by most modern scholars (early 13th century). The work was widely used and there are numerous commentaries.

Naṉṉūl mūlamum Kūḻaṅkaittampirāṉ uraiyum, ed. A. Tāmōtaraṉ (Wiesbaden: Steiner, 1980).

13Henry Bower, Introduction to the Nannul: the Tamil Text and English Translation (Madras: Christian Knowledge Society’s Press, 1876).

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15Diwagaram, ein poetisches Buch, so da copiam verborum in sich fasset, und am allerersten von der Jugend in ihrem 8. oder 9. Jahre gelernet wird. Der Autor dieses Buchs heißt Diwagaram und ist einer von der Schammaner Nation gewesen, die Malabaren halten ihn für einen sehr hoch gelehrten Mann. Er ist vor 5 hundert und etliche 40 Jahren gestorben. Dieses Buch lernen allein diejenigen, so da wollen Gelehrte werden, oder doch solche Leute seyn, die mit Gelehrten umgehen und ihre gelehrte Sprache verstehen wollen. Die gemeinen Malabaren verstehen kein Wort aus selbigen oder doch ganz wenig.

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17Tivākaram, a poetic book containing copiam verborum, and studied by the youth at the earliest in their eighth or ninth year. The author of this book is called Tivākaraṉ and was one of the camaṇar nation; the Malabarians regard him as a very highly learned man. He died some five hundred and forty years ago. This book is studied only by those who wish to become scholars, or those who interact with scholars and wish to understand their language. The common Malabarians understand not a word of it, or at least very little.

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19Negendu, ein poetisches Buch, so gleichfalls copiam verborum in sich fasset, als wie Diwagaram, ist aber heirinnen von jenem unterschieden, weil es in lauter Versen bestehet, jenes aber nur in Prosa geschrieben ist. Der Autor dessen heißt Wiramandalawen und hat zur Zeit Diwagaram gelebet, und aus der Diwagaram dieses Buch verfertiget.

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21Nikaṇṭu, a poetic book which like Tivākaram contains copiam verborum but differs from it in that it consists only of verses, while the other is written in prose. The author of it is called Vīramaṇtalavaṉ and lived at the time of Tivākaraṉ and composed this book on the basis of Tivākaram.

Tivākaram is usually dated somewhat earlier (9th century) than Ziegenbalg allows and the Cūṭāmaṇi nikaṇṭu by Maṇtala (or Vīramaṇtala) puruṭar is not contemporary with it but a much later work (16th century). Moreover, Tivākaram, and the long series of Tamil nikaṇṭu works which follow its twelvefold structure, were all written in verse. Ziegenbalg’s own dictionary of literary Tamil2 was based on these works and compiled over a period of four months with the help of his Tamil scribes.

Tivākaram, ed. Mu. Caṇmukam Piḷḷai and I. Cuntaramūrtti (Ceṉṉai: Ceṉṉai palkalai kaḻakam, 1990–93).

Maṇṭala puruṭariṉ cūṭāmaṇi nikaṇṭu: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Ārumuka Nāvalar (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya caivacittānta nūrpatippuk kaḻakam, 1996).

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23Diruwaschagom, das ist, eine heilige Schrift, so da das malabarische Sittengesetz in sich fasset. Dieses Buch wird für sehr heilig gehalten, und zeiget, wie man Gott solle erkennen und anbeten, item wie man vor Gott und Menschen solle leben. Es ist in lauter Versen geschrieben und daher sehr schwer zu verstehen, zumal weil oftmals in einem Verse eine sehr weitläuftige Materie verborgen lieget. Solches Buch ist sehr rar zu bekommen. Der Autor dessen heißt Manikkawaschager, der von Jugend auf ein heiliger Mann gewesen sein soll, daher sein Name sehr berühmt ist. Es ist mehr denn vor tausend Jahr geschrieben worden, und ist eines von den größten und besten.

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25Tiruvācakam, that is, a holy scripture, containing the Malabarian code of conduct. This book is regarded as very holy, and shows how God should be acknowledged and worshipped, likewise how one should live before God and man. It is written entirely in verse and therefore very hard to understand, especially since a very substantial amount of material often lies concealed in one verse. The book is very scarce, and difficult to obtain. The author of it is called Māṇikkavācakar, who is supposed to have been a holy man from his youth, therefore his name is very famous. It was written more than a thousand years ago, and is one of the best and greatest.

Māṇikkavācakar is the last of the nālvar, the four Śaiva saints. With Tirukkōvaiyār, another work ascribed to Māṇikkavācakar, which Ziegenbalg appears not to have known, Tiruvācakam forms the eighth book of the Tirumuṟai, the Śaiva canon. In his Malabarisches Heidenthum, Ziegenbalg quotes several times from Tiruvācakam each time giving only the title of the hymn and no indication that it forms part of the Tiruvācakam.3 In the Genealogia (GMG 30r), he gives a similar account of the book, and explains the meaning of Māṇikkavācakar’s name.

Tiruvācakam: oppuḷḷa upaniṣat mantraṅkaḷ iṇaikkap peṟṟuḷḷaṉa, 3rd ed., ed. Swami Chidbhavananda (Tirupparāyttuṟai: Śrī Rāmakiruṣṇa Tapōvaṉam, 1975).

Tiruvaachakam: Tamil text and English translation, trans. T. N. Ramachandran (Chennai: International Institute of Tamil Studies, 2001).

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27Tiruwalluwer, ein moralisches Buch in Versen, so der Materie nach des Seneca Schriften ganz ähnlich ist, und sehr hoch unter den Malabaren geschätzet wird; wie es denn auch eines mit von den gelehrtesten und erbaulichsten Büchern ist, die unter ihnen mögen gefunden werden. Es pflegen viele hohe Malabaren solches zu ihrem Handbuch zu erwählen. Dahero wenn sie mit einem disputiren, führen sie all Zeit einige Verse daraus zum Beweisthum ihrer Rede an. Wie denn dieses unter den gelehrten Malabaren ganz gebräuchlich, daß sie alle Sachen mit diesen und jenen Versen wissen zu confirmiren und zu demonstriren, welches für die größte Kunst unter ihnen gehalten wird. Dahero werden dergleichen Bücher von ihnen nicht nur allein gelesen, sondern alle auswendig gelernet: wie denn derjenige Poet, den ich im Hause habe, dieses Buch nebst sehr vielen andern schweren Büchern accurat auswendig zu sagen weiß, uneracht daß er blind ist. Der Autor dieses Buches ist Tiruwalluwer, so da ein vornehmer Poet gewesen auf demjenigen Orte, wo der heilige Apostel Thomas gelebet und das Evangelium gelehret hat. Nach Aussage der Poeten, soll dieses Buch schon über anderthalbtausend Jahr alt seyn. Die Verse sind sehr kurz und tiefsinnig, so daß man bey einem einzigen Verse weitläufige Materie zu reden hat. In großen Schulen pfleget dieses Buch nur tractiret zu werden, sintemahl es auch für Jugend als [sic: all] zu schwer seyn würde.

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29Tiruvaḷḷuvar, a book of morality in verse, which in content is very similar to the writings of Seneca and is very highly esteemed among the Malabarians. It is indeed one of the most learned and edifying books to be found among them. Many high Malabarians take it as their handbook. Thus when they argue with someone, they continually quote verses from it in support of what they say. This is so common among the Malabarians that they are able to confirm and prove everything with this or that verse, which is taken by them to be the highest accomplishment. Therefore books like this are not only read by them, but rather entirely learned by heart. Thus the poet I have at home is able to recite this and very many other difficult books accurately from memory, notwithstanding that he is blind. The author of this book is Tiruvaḷḷuvar, who was a distinguished poet from that place where the holy apostle Thomas had lived and preached the Gospel. According to what the poets say, this book is supposed already to be more than one and a half thousand years old. The verses are very short and profound, so that much is to be said on a single verse. This book is taught only in higher schools since it would be too difficult even for youths.

Ziegenbalg’s comments on Tiruvaḷḷuvar’s Tirukkuṟaḷ and its place in Tamil culture are entirely apt and his dating is again close to that accepted by most scholars. He would not be the last European scholar to compare Tiruvaḷḷuvar’s works with those of Seneca, but unlike others he does not extrapolate from the connection with Mylapore to speculate about Christian influence in Tirukkuṟaḷ.

Tirukkuṛaḷ of Tiruvaḷḷuvar: in roman transliteration; with English translation, ed. and trans. V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar (Madras: Adyar Library, 1949).

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31Tiruwalluwerurei, das ist die Erklärung des Tiruwalluwers bestehende in zwey großen Bänden. Dieses Buch ist sehr rar und uneracht daß es eine Erkärung seyn soll, so kann es doch von Niemand anders, als nur von gelehrten Malabaren verstanden werden: sintemahl darinnen lauter poetische Wörter und Redensarten enthalten seyn. Der Autor dieser Erklärung ist Natschinarkiniar der da ein vornehmer Poet gewesen: so da alle intricate Verse hat erklären können. Er hat einige hundert Jahr nach Tiruwalluwer gelebet und annoch viele andere Bücher erkläret, so da sowohl nach ihrer Schriftart als auch nach ihren vortragenden Materien schwer zu verstehen seyn.

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33*Tiruvaḷḷuvarurai, that is, a commentary on Tiruvaḷḷuvar in two large volumes. This book is very rare and although it is supposed to be a commentary, nevertheless it can be understood by no-one except the learned Malabarians since it contains only poetic words and turns of speech. The author of this commentary is Nacciṉārkkiṉiyar who was a distinguished poet, able to explain every intricate verse. He lived several hundred years after Tiruvaḷḷuvar and explained many other books difficult to understand because of both their style and the material they present.

In his introduction to Kōpālakruṣṇamācārya’s edition of Tirukkuṟaḷ with the commentary of Parimēlaḻakar, Vai. Mu. Caṭakōparāmānujācārya quotes an oral tradition listing Nacciṉārkkiṉiyar among ten commentators on Tirukkuṟaḷ, but no such work is known to be extant. The Toṇṭaimaṇṭala catakam, a work roughly contemporaneous with Ziegenbalg’s catalogue, also lists ten commentators on Tirukkuṟaḷ but these do not include Nacciṉārkkiṉiyar.4 Parimēlaḻakar—who did comment on Tirukkuṟaḷ—is mentioned in Ziegenbalg’s next entry, on Cīvakacintāmaṇi— which was commented on by Nacciṉārkkiṉiyar, mentioned here. It is possible that Ziegenbalg has simply transposed the names of these commentators.5

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35Tschintamani, ein sehr großes Buch in Versen nebst weitläuftiger Erklärung, handelnd von allerley weltlichen Historien, von Gleichnissen, von vielfältigen Begebenheiten der Gelehrten und Ungelehrten, von allerley weltlichen Wissenschaften und dergleichen. Es kann von Niemand, als nur von denen Gelehrten verstanden werden; der erste Autor, so die Verse gemacht hat, heißt Dirudakkamamuni, so da unter den Schammaner ein berühmter Einsiedler gewesen, und dieses Buch in Kupfer geschrieben hat. Dahero sagen auch die Malabaren, daß solches eines von den ältesten Büchern wäre, und daß der Autor dessen annoch am Leben seyn sollte, sich aufhaltend in dem Berg Bodiamamalei genannt nebst annoch andern 13 Propheten, so da niemals sterben können. Der andre Autor aber, so da die Erklärung zu den Versen gemachet hat, heißt Barimelarager, so da ein guter Poet gewesen ist. Die Malabarischen Poeten sagen, daß so oft als er ein Capitel mit der Erklärung verfertiget habe, so oft sey der Abgott Ispiren zu ihm gekommen und habe ihm eine güldene Kokonuß verehrt. Deßwegen halten auch die Poeten sehr viel von diesem Buche, unerachtet daß sie viel Kopfbrechens darinnen haben müssen.

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37Cintāmaṇi, a very large book in verse together with extensive commentary dealing with all kinds of worldly stories, parables, various occurrences among the learned and unlearned, all kinds of worldly sciences and the like. It can be understood by no-one except the learned. The first author, who wrote the verses, was called Tiruttakkamāmuni and was a famous hermit among the camaṇar. He wrote this book on copper [plates]. For this reason the Malabarians go so far as to say that this must be one of the oldest books, and that the author of it is supposed still to be living, residing in the mountain called Potiyiṟmalai together with another thirteen prophets who can never die. The second author, however, who composed the commentary on the verses, is called Parimēlaḻakar and was a good poet. The Malabarian poets say that whenever he completed the commentary on a chapter the idol Īcuvaraṉ came to him and honoured him with a golden coconut. Therefore the poets to have a great regard for this book, even though they find a great deal in it which causes them to rack their brains.

Tiruttakkatēvar’s Cīvakacintāmaṇi is the only one of the early Tamil epics to be mentioned by Ziegenbalg. Given the erotic nature of some of its content, it seems unlikely that Ziegenbalg had read much of it at the time he wrote the Bibliotheca Malabarica, for he rarely misses an opportunity to comment unfavourably on works he regarded as indecent. He does not quote or refer to Cīvakacintāmaṇi in any of his later writings and in fact—with the exception of Tiruvācakam— rarely quotes from any of the earlier Tamil works he possessed.

Tiruttakkatēvariyaṟṟiya Cīvakacintāmaṇi mūlamum Nacciṉārkkiṉiyaruraiyum, ed. U. Vē. Cāminātaiyar (Tañcāvūr: Tamiḻp Palkalaik Kaḻakam Veḷiyīṭu, 1986).

James D. Ryan, Cīvakacintāmaṇi: the Hero Cīvakan, the Gem that Fulfills All Wishes; Verses 1–1165 (Fremont: Jain Publications, 2005).

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39Paradum, ein großes Buch von sehr schweren Versen, welche die Malabaren wiruddum nennen. Darinnen ist die ganze Historie des Abgotts Kischtnums enthalten, welche dem Leser sehr gelehrt und angenehm vorgestellet wird. Die Verse pflegen nach dem drittel Tact in einer sehr hoffärtigen Melodie gesungen zu werden. Der Autor dieses Buchs heißt Willi puddur alwar, so da ein Poet gewesen, der allein über die Abgötter Verse gemacht hat, und niemals über einigen König oder andere Personen Verse machen wollen. Dieses Buch ist zwar sehr schwer, aber gleichwohl in seinen künstlichen Versen sehr leiblich anzuhören. Die Verse bestehen in sechstausend Liedern.

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41Pāratam, a large book of very difficult verses, which the Malabarians call viruttam. It contains the full story of the idol Kiruṣṇaṉ, presented to the reader as very learned and pleasant. The verses are sung in triple time to a very jaunty melody. The author of this book was called Villiputtūr Āḻvār, he was a poet who only wrote verses on the idols and never wished to write verses on kings or other people. Although this book is very hard, at the same time its fine verses are very charming to listen to. The verses consist of six thousand songs.

The extant editions of Villiputtūr Āḻvār’s Pāratam, a Tamil version of the Mahābhārata, include only some 4,300 verses, but Zvelebil notes that according to an ancient verse, Villiputtūr composed 6,000 stanzas, adding that the “main attraction of this work is the musical rhythm in which its verses, chiefly viruttam, are composed.”6 Ziegenbalg also lists separately the Kiruṣṇaṉ tūtu (bm 70), an episode from the Uṭṭiyōka paruvam of Villiputtūr’s Pāratam, and a work he calls Arccuṉaṉ tavacu nilai (bm 114), which is based on an episode in the Āraṇiya paruvam.

Villiputtūrār iyaṟṟiya Makāpāratam, ed. Vai. Mu. Kōpāla Kiruṣṇamācāryar, 10 vols. (Ceṉ-ṉai: Vai. Mu. Kōpālakiruṣṇamāciriyar Kampeṉi, 1960–68).

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43Paradaurei. Erklärung des Paradums, so aus den Versen von Worte zu Worte in das gemeine Malabarisch ist übersetzet worden. Die Historie hanget zwar in ihrer Connexion ganz richtig zusammen, aber hält sehr große Ungereimtheiten in sich. Ich habe es von Anfang bis zum Ende durchgelesen, und sehr viele vocabula und schöne Redensarten daraus gezogen. Der Autor dieser Erklärung ist ein Bramaner gewesen, so da eine Tochter gehabt, die da das Buch Paradum genannt in seinen Versen zwar lesen aber nicht wohl verstehen können; dahero soll sie den Vater gebeten haben, daß er ihr die Verse in das gemeine Malabarische übersetzen möchte, welches er auch gethan; so da in ganz kurzer Zeit geschehen sein soll.

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45*Pārata urai. Commentary on Pārata which translates the verses word for word into common Malabarian. The stories are connected to one another quite well, but they contain very great absurdities. I have read through it from beginning to end, and taken from it very many words and pleasing expressions. The author of this commentary was a Brahmin who had a daughter. As she could read the verses of the book Pāratam but not properly understand them, she is supposed to have asked her father to translate the verses into common Malabarian, which he did. This is supposed to have happened quite recently.

Gaur suggests that this “could be the amplified adaptation of Villiputtūrar’s Bhāratam written by Madalambēḍu Nallā Piḷḷai, who lived approximately at the same time as Ziegenbalg.”7 Nallāpiḷḷai’s Makāpāratam includes verses from Villiputtūrār’s Pāratam and extends it to the full eighteen parvams but is not really a commentary and unlikely to have been referred to as an urai. Nallāpiḷḷai’s work is also in viruttam metre and it therefore seems more likely that Ziegenbalg is referring to another work, perhaps, given his reference to “common” Tamil, a folk version.

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47Kandaburanaurei. Erklärung des Kandaburanums, so da zwölftausend Lieder in schweren Versen in sich fasset, aber von mir noch nicht hat können erlanget werden, ohne nur allein deren Erklärung, so gleichfalls sehr lang und weitläuftig ist, in sich fassend die Historie eines Königes, so 2,000 Jahr in der Wüsten strenge Buße gethan hat, und deswegen von Gott die Gewalt bekommen über alle vierzehn Welten, als ein Souverainer König zu herrschen und regieren. Nachmahls aber sey er hoffärtig und Gottabfällig worden, so daß Gott selbsten mit ihm Krieg führen müssen. Da denn auf beiden Seiten ein solches großes Krieges-Heer gewesen, daß durch deren Marschiren alle sieben Meer vom Staube eingetrocknet sind, ihre Höhe soll bis an die Sterne gereichet haben. Zu Schleudersteinen haben sie sich der größten Berge bedienet und was dergleichen hoffärtige Vortstellungen mehr sind. Ich kann bezeugen, daß ich meine Tage keine handgreiflichere Lügen in so schöner Zusammanhängung und zierlicherm Stilo gehöret oder gelesen habe, als darinnen anzutreffen sind, ich habe auch die allerbesten Phrasen daraus gezogen. Erstlich ist diese Historie in Malabarisch Latein geschrieben worden, so da der hohe Mann Agastier dictiret hat, welches vor 6 tausend Jahren geschehen seyn soll. Nachmals ist es in Malabarische Verse von einem Bramanen gesetzet und endlich ins gemeine Malabarische Verse versetzet worden. Es kommen viel hundert Personen der Abgötter darinnen vor, so da in dergleichen großen Kriege mit impliciret gewesen sind. Uneracht aber daß es eines mit von den ältesten Malabarischen Büchern ist, so bekennen doch viele Malabaren, daß nicht alles zu glauben darinnen wäre; jedoch die meisten sprechen, weil es in den vorigen Weltzeiten geschehen, so könne es wohl gläublich sein, indem dazumal ganz andere Menschen gewesen, nicht wissende, daß eben der Autor desto größere Freiheit zu lügen gehabt, weil er vorgegeben, als sey es in den vorigen Welten geschehen, da denn Niemand nach fragen kann, und er beweiset auch nicht das Geringste, sondern bleibt nur in der historischen Erzählung; solchergestalt haben sich die armen Malabaren auf viel tausendfältige Art von ihren klugen Poeten betrügen und verführen lassen bis auf heutigen Tag.

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49Kanta purāṇam urai. Commentary on the Kanta purāṇam, which consists of twelve thousand songs in difficult verses, but which I have not yet been able to obtain, except only for the commentary on it which is likewise very long and wide-ranging. It contains the story of a king who did severe penance in the desert for two thousand years and therefore received from God power over all fourteen worlds, to rule and to reign as a sovereign king. Later however, he became haughty and dismissive of God, so that God himself had to go to war against him. The forces on both sides were so great that their marching dried up all seven seas, and their height is supposed to have reached the stars. For slingshot stones they used the largest mountains and more exaggerated fancies of this kind. I swear that in all my days I have never heard or read such palpable lies in so fine a framework and such a delicate style as are to be met here, and I have also taken the very best phrases from it. This story was first written in Malabarian Latin, as the great man Akattiyaṉ had dictated it, which is supposed to have happened six thousand years ago. After this it was set down in Malabarian verse by a Brahmin and then finally rewritten in common Malabarian verse. Hundreds of different identities of the idols appear within, as having been involved in the same great war. However, notwithstanding that it is one of the oldest Malabarian books, many Malabarians do acknowledge that not everything within it is to be believed. Still the majority say that since it took place in the previous age of the world, it could well be plausible as at that time there were quite different people, not realising that the author’s freedom to lie is that much greater since he pretended that it happened in the former world, so that no-one may check what he says. Moreover he does not prove even the smallest thing but simply continues to relate a historical tale. In this way the poor Malabarians have been deceived in many thousands of ways by their cunning poets, and to this day let themselves be led astray.

There are several extant commentaries on the Kanta purāṇam but none is old enough to have been known by Ziegenbalg. He seems later to have acquired a copy of the Kanta purāṇam itself, as he quotes from it several times.8

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51Aritschandiren kadei. Eine Historie eines Königes Namens Aritschandiren. Von selbigem wird erzählet, daß er niemals einige Lügen gesaget. Einstmals sey ein Prophet zu ihm gekommen mit einen Tanzmädchen; als dann nun dieser König an deren Tanzen ein sehr großes Wohlgefallen gehabt, so fraget er den Propheten, was er wohl von ihm verlangte, dieser bittet denn ein zulängliches Vermögen zu einem sehr kostbaren Opfer, verlangte es aber nicht zu nehmen, als bis er wieder komme. Nachdem denn nun dieser wieder kommt, so ist das verlangte Opfergeld nebst den verstandenen Zinsen so groß, als das ganze Königreich. Weil aber der König niemals eine Lüge geredet, so wollte er auch diesmal nicht lügen erfunden werden, und giebt ihm also sein ganzes Königreich und wird noch mit seinem Weibe und Kindern für einen Sclaven verkauft. Da aber nach langwieriger Prüfung seiner Geduld endlich Gott selbst ist zu ihm gekommen und ihn mit seinem Weibe sichtbar gen Himmel genommen. Diese Historie ist in sehr fließenden Versen geschrieben, und wird von den Malabaren sehr werth gehalten. Dieser König Aritschandiren soll 2,000 Jahr regiert haben. Bey Anfang dieser Weltzeit, davon nunmehro schon fünftausend Jahr verflossen: sein Reich soll sich über die ganze Welt erstrecket haben.

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53Ariccantiraṉ katai. The story of a king named Ariccantiraṉ. It was said of him that he never told a lie. Once a prophet came to him with a dancing girl; since her dancing pleased the king so much, he asked the prophet what he wanted from him. He requested a considerable fortune, amounting to very costly sacrifice, but asked not to take it until he returned again. When he returned, the financial sacrifice together with the outstanding interest was so great that it equalled the whole kingdom. Since, however, the king never told a lie, he did not want to be found in a lie this time, and therefore gave him his whole kingdom, and even sold himself as a slave, together with his wife and children. However after extended trial of his patience, finally God himself came to him and took him to heaven with his wife. This story is written in very fluent verses, and is highly valued by the Malabarians. This king Ariccantiraṉ is supposed to have reigned for two thousand years. Since the beginning of the world until now, five thousand years have already passed. His kingdom is supposed to have extended over the whole world.

Hariścandra appears in the Aitareya Brāhmaṇa and the Mahābhārata but most influentially in the Mārkaṇḍeyapurāṇa. There are many later retellings of the story of Ariccantiraṉ/Hariścandra in both Tamil and Sanskrit literature, including folk versions in Tamil. Ziegenbalg gives a long summary of the story in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, and a shorter one in the Genealogia.

Tiruvaṇṇāmalai Veṅkiṭācala Mutaliyār, Ariccantiramakārājaṉ katai, 2nd ed. (Ceṉṉai: Manōṉmaṇivilāca Accukkūṭam, 1882).

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55Aritschandira Puranum. Dieses Buch fasset in sich die ganze Regierung des Königes Aritschandiren und der Tugenden, die er ausgeübet. Es ist aber in der Schreibart von jenem unterschieden, und weit schwerer zu verstehen, indem es eine sehr schwere Versart in sich fasset, welche wiruddum genennet wird. Ich habe den Autor noch nicht erfahren können, weder von diesem noch von jenem Buch, ohne daß ich gehöret, daß sie beide von zwei wohlerfahrenen Poeten sollen verfertiget worden seyn.

56Sie werden wegen ihrer Moralität und zierlichen Versart allenthalben in Schulen gelesen und auswendig gelernet.

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58Ariccantiraṉ purāṇam. This book comprises the whole reign of king Ariccantiraṉ and the virtues which he practiced. It is different from the other in its style, and much harder to understand, for it uses a very difficult type of verse, which is called viruttam. I have not been able to find out the author of either this book or the other, I have only heard that both are supposed to have been written by two accomplished poets. Because of their morality and elegant style they are studied in schools everywhere and learned by heart.

A sixteenth-century work by Vīraikkavirāyar (or Nallūr Vīrai Ācukavirāyar), based on an earlier Tamil work, the Ariccantiraṉ veṇpā.

Ariccantira purāṇam: mūlamum uraiyum (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūrpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1976).

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60Wetalakadei. Das ist eine weitläuftige Historie eines großen Teufels Wetalam gennant, so da bei einem Malabarischen Könige gedienet Namens Wikkiramatitan und sehr viele lustige Künste ausgeübet. Die Verse sind sehr wohl, aber die Materie kommt sehr abgeschmackt heraus. Denn der Teufel Wetalam soll erstlich Gottes Priester seyn gewesen in der andern Welt. Als denn nun die Göttin Parwadi einstmals mit dem Abgott Ispuren etwas absonderliches zu reden hatte, so versteckte sich dieser Priester und hörete nicht nur allein dasselbige Geheimniß, sondern brachte es auch aus unter andere, so daß deswegen Ispuren erzürnet wurde und ihn verfluchte, da sey er denn nachmals ein Teufel worden, auf die Welt gekommen und habe daselbst Possen getrieben.

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62Vētāḷa katai. This is a lengthy story of a great devil named Vētāḷam who served a Malabarian king named Vikkiramātittaṉ and got up to many amusing stunts. The verses are very good, but the content turns out to be in very bad taste. For the devil Vētāḷam is originally supposed to have been God’s priest in the other world. Then once when the goddess Pārvatī had something special to say to the idol Īcuvaraṉ, this priest concealed himself and not only listened to the secret but spread it among others, so that Īcuvaraṉ was enraged and cursed him so that afterwards he became a devil, came to the world and there played tricks.

The Vētāḷa katai is a section of the Tamil version of the popular Sanskrit collection of stories known as the Vikramacarita. The numerous Tamil versions of this collection appear under different titles, but most often as Muppattiraṇṭupatumai katai or Vikkiramātittaṉ katai.9 The latter title appears in Walther’s 1731 catalogue and was also known to the eighteenthcentury Jesuit missionaries who sent manuscript copies on paper and palmleaves to Paris in 1729 and 1730.10 Zvelebil describes the Muppattiraṇṭupatumai katai as “one of the most interesting collections of narratives ever composed in Hindu India,”11 in part because of its use of emboxed or nested narratives on several levels. The Muppattiraṇṭupatumai katai consists of thirty-two tales told by the statuettes on the steps to Vikkiramātittaṉ’s throne when it is found by Pōjarājaṉ (King Bhoja). One of the statues recounts the story of a vētāḷa caught by Vikkiramātittaṉ and forced to serve him. Ziegenbalg’s text probably included this story, and the emboxed set of twenty-four stories told by the vētāḷa. There are several published versions of the story but these date from the nineteenth century.

Kōkulāpuram Aruṇācala Mutaliyār, Muppattiraṇṭupatumaikatai (Ceṉṉai: Irattiṉa Mutaliyār aṇṭu Saṉ, 1882).
Aru. Rāmanātaṉ, ed., Vikkiramātittaṉ kataikaḷ, 3rd ed. (Ceṇṇai: Piremā piracuram, 1966).

V. A. K. Aiyar, Stories of Vikramaditya (Simhasana dwatrimsika) (Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1960).

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64Balagnana Tschori, ein Buch von unterschiedlichen heiligen Handlungen der Seelen, darinnen viele Ceremonien enthalten sind, so die Malabaren außer den Pagoden und in den Pagoden gebrauchen, nebst vielen Anrufungen der Abgötter, weisende auf ein sehr strenges und eingezogenes Leben, dahero als vor weniger Zeit ein Malabar allhier in Tranquebar solches Buch zu Händen bekommen und sich allzusehr darinnen vertiefet hat, verließ er sein Haus, Weib und Kinder und ging in die Wildniß, darinnen den Göttern zu dienen. Als ich dann nun einstmals zwei von meinen malabarischen Schreibern ins Land schickete, um mir malabarische Bücher zu kaufen, so treffen sie eben diesen Mann an, dieses Buch habende unter seinen Armen: da ers denn endlich auf große Bitte diesen gegeben hat, bezeigende, daß es ihn reute die Seinigen verlassen und dergleichen Leben erwählet zu haben.

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66*Palañāṉa cuvaṭi, a book of various holy acts of the soul, containing many ceremonies which the Malabarians perform both within and without the pagodas, together with many invocations of the idols, recommending a very strict and austere life. Thus a short time ago this book fell into the hands of a Malabarian here in Tranquebar who immersed himself in it to such an extent that he abandoned his BM 16 house, wife and children and went offinto the wilderness to serve the gods. Once when I sent two of my Malabarian scribes into the countryside to buy Malabarian books for me, they came across this very man, with this book tucked under his arm. After much pleading, he finally parted with it, admitting that he regretted leaving all that was his and having chosen this sort of life.

This work is not immediately identifiable. As the title is given in Ziegenbalg’s own transcription from Tamil (“Balagnana Tschori”) it can be taken to mean either a book of old wisdom (taking the prefix as paḻa, “old”) or a collection of wisdom (taking the prefix as pala, “various,” cf. Pala kavi cuvaṭi bm 118).12 Ziegenbalg’s entries often begin with a loose translation of the title, which would here support the second reading. Walther’s 1731 catalogue, which gives titles in Tamil script, also has palañāṉaccuvaṭi. In the Malabarisches Heidenthum, however, Ziegenbalg places Palañāṉa cuvaṭi in a list of fifteen works on ethics which begins “Tirukkuṟaḷ, Palañāṉa cuvaṭi, Ācārakōvai.” He here describes the work as an anthology “containing material both ethical and ceremonial collected from the works of other authors” (mh 234). This suggests the book may be something like Paḻamoḻi nāṉuṟu, a collection of four hundred proverbs on ethical behaviour. Ascribed to the Jaina Muṉṟuraiyaṉār, and dated c. 700 CE, it is one of the Patiṉeṇkīḻkkaṇakku, or eighteen minor classics. The placement of Palañāṉa cuvaṭi in Ziegenbalg’s list, between the only other two Patiṉeṇkīḻkkaṇakku on his list (Tirukkuṟaḷ and Ācārakōvai) might support this, but there are also later works of this kind, such as the Paḻamoḻi tiraṭṭu, a collection of three thousand proverbs not unlike the book Ziegenbalg describes here.

Muṉṟuṟaiyaraiyaṉār paḻamoḻi nāṉūṟu: mūlamum, uraiyum, ed. Mā. Irācamāṇikkaṉār (Ceṉ-ṉai: Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1948).

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68Tschinendira malei, ein philosophisches Buch handelnde von dem Menschen und allen andern erschaffenen Creaturen, darinnen zugleich etwas von der Ethica mit begriffen ist. Den Autor und das Alter dieses Buches hab ich nicht erfahren können, zumal weil es sehr rar und nur bei den Philosophen gefunden wird. Es ist sonst in einer leichten Versart geschrieben; ohne daß es wegen der Materie ein wenig schwer und dunkel ist.

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70Ciṉēntira mālai, a philosophical book dealing with human beings and all other created beings, and at the same time tackling some aspects of ethics. I have not been able to determine the author and the age of this book, especially since it is very rare and only found among the philosophers. Otherwise it is written in an easy verse form but due to its content it is a little difficult and obscure.

There is a published Ciṉēntira mālai by Upēntirācāriyar, “mostly on Jaina philosophy, theology and ethics,”13 which fits Ziegenbalg’s description. Zvelebil tentatively dates it to the nineteenth century, but Ziegenbalg may give us an earlier terminus ante quem. There is also an older Jaina work on astrology entitled Cinēntiramālai quoted in an old commentary on Cilappatikāram.14 Although no manuscript of this text has been identified, the same work is quoted toward the end of the eighteenth century by Maridās Poullé, who suggests the text is more than 600 years old.15

Upēntirācāriyār eṉṉum Caiṉamāmuṉivarceyta Ciṉēntira mālai: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Ti. Cāmināta Jōciyar and Cūḷai Muṉucāmi Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Ātimūlam Piras, 1921).
Ciṉēntiramālai: āruṭa, calliya, kīḻnīr cāttiram, ed. Ci. Kōvintarācaṉar (Tañcāvūr: Caracuvati Makāl Nūlakam, 1990).

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72Parada ammanar, ein großes Buch in sehr wohl-klingenden Versen, hält die Historie des Kischtnams in sich und ist sehr angenehm zu lesen wegen der Zierlichkeit in Versen. Der Autor dessen heißt Ambiabadi, ein wohlerfahrener Poet, so dergleichen Buch vor fünfhundert Jahren verfertiget.

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74Pārata ammāṉai, a large book in mellifluous verses which gives the story of Kiruṣṇaṉ and is very pleasant to read because of the elegance of the verses. The author is called Ampikāpati, an accomplished poet who composed this book five hundred years ago.

Pārata ammāṉai, or Pākavata pāratam, is a long folk ballad, recounting the story of the Mahābhārata in 26,000 lines. It has not been published, but is extant in manuscript.16

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76Kallingaddubarani, ein historisches Buch von Kriegen, so zwischen zwei Malabarischen Königen geführet worden sind Namens Kalinga Rascha und Tschorarascha. Es ist alles in schweren Versen geschrieben. Der Autor heißt Diruddukka mamuni, so ein Einsiedler gewesen und vor 730 Jahr gelebet hat.

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78Kaliṅkattu paraṇi, a historical book about the wars waged between two Malabarian kings called Kaliṅga raja and Cōḻa raja. It is all written in difficult verses. The author is called Tiruttakkamāmuni, he was a hermit and lived 730 years ago.

Ziegenbalg’s dating of the Kaliṅkattu paraṇi is reasonably accurate, but the author is not Tiruttakkamāmuni (i.e. Tiruttakkatēvar, the author of Cīvakacintāmaṇi) but a twelfthcentury court poet known as Cayaṅkoṇṭār (Ceyaṅkoṇṭār, Jayaṅkoṇṭār). The work celebrates the victory of the Cōḻa king Kulōttuṅka I (1070–1118 or 1122) over the Kaliṅga ruler Anantavarman. It provides an elaborate description of Kāḷi and the demons (pēy) who accompany her: “truly a sort of demonology of the Tamil imperial age.”17 Given Ziegenbalg’s interest in the pēy it is perhaps surprising that he does not quote this work in the Genealogia. Ziegenbalg also had a copy of Cayaṅkoṇṭār’s Kāraṇai viḻupparaiyaṉ vaḷamaṭal (BM 27), but he attributes it only to a “farmer.”

Cayaṅkoṇṭāṉ aruḷicceyta Kaliṅkattupparaṇi, ed. Vi. Kō. Cūriyanārāyaṇa Cāstiriyar (Ceṉ-ṉai: Tāmsaṉ Kampeṉi, 1898).

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80Alankara utaranum, eine poetische Anweisung zu Versen mit allerlei Praecepten, Exempeln und Gleichnissen. Der Autor dessen ist Alankaram, so ein Bramanen gewesen und vor siebenhundert Jahr gelebet.

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82Alaṅkāra utāraṇam, poetic instruction on verse with many rules, examples and comparisons. The author of it is Alaṅkāram, who was a Brahmin and lived seven hundred years ago.

Alaṅkāra (Sanskrit, “ornament”), together with utāraṇam (“example”), refers to the content of the book, rather than the author. There are several works of this type, the best known being the Taṇṭiyalaṅkāram, i.e., Taṇṭi’s work on alaṅkāram, a twelfth-century Tamil rendering of Daṇḍin’s Sanskrit Kāvyadarśa. Examples illustrating the principles of ornamentation are contained in commentaries, rather than the Tamil text of the Alaṅkāram itself.18 A letter from one of Ziegenbalg’s Tamil correspondents refers to advanced students studying “Letschana alankárum” (laṭcaṇa alaṅkāram) and “Létschena utárum” (laṭcaṇa utāraṇam) in schools alongside Nālaṭiyār and Tolkāppiyam (MC 139). Ziegenbalg glosses these as two works on poetry, but it seems more likely that two subjects, rather than two books, are referred to here.

Taṇṭiyāciriyar iyaṟṟiya Taṇṭiyalaṅkāram, ed. Ko. Irāmaliṅkattampirāṉ (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya caivacittānta nūrpatippuk kaḻakam, 1938).

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84Dirubugel, göttliches Lob. Darinnen des Abgotts Ispirens Sohn Namens Subbiramanien sehr gerühmet und hoch gelobet wird von seinen vielfältigen Thaten und Wundern. Dieses ist in sehr schweren Versen geschrieben, und wird in den Schulen von der Jugend auswendig gelernet. Der Autor dessen heißt Arunakidnaden, so da lange Zeit ein Trommelschläger gewesen, aber nachmals ein sehr heiliger Mann geworden, daß sich seiner Jedermann verwundert. Dahero sagen auch die Poeten, daß er dergleichen Verse nicht nach der Kunst geschrieben, als welche er niemals gelernet, sondern aus Eingeben des Subbiramanien. Er hat gelebet in einer Stadt Dirkaladdi und ist gestorben vor hundert und etlichen Jahren.

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86Tiruppukaḻ, divine praise. The son of the idol Īcuvaraṉ called Cuppiramaṇiaṉ is here very much lauded and highly praised for his many deeds and wonders. This is written in very difficult verses, and is learned by heart in schools by the youth. The author is Aruṇakirinātar, who was for many years a drummer, but later became a very holy man, to the surprise of all. Even the poets say that he wrote these verses not by art, which he had never learned, but by Cuppiramaṇiaṉ’s inspiration. He lived in the town Tirukkāḷatti and died a hundred and some years ago.

Aruṇakirinātar is renowned for his metrical versatility. Ziegenbalg had a copy of his Kantaraṉupūti (BM 24) and mistakenly ascribes to him also an Aruṇakiriyantāti (BM 83). He gives further details on the life of Aruṇakirinātar in the entries for these works, and at two points in the Genealogia (GMG 74r, 77v). Although elements of this account—his dissolute life and the divine gift of his poetic talent—cohere with the evidence in Aruṇakirinātar’s works and with the varied stories of his life,19 others are strikingly at odds with them. Aruṇakirinātar mentions more than 200 sites in his poetry, but he is particularly associated with Tiruvaṇṇāmalai rather than Kāḷatti (Kālahasti). In addition to Aruṇakirinātar’s Tiruppukaḻ, Ziegenbalg refers also to another work of the same title, “in which the majesty of Viṣṇu is described and praised” (GMG 97r) but this work has not been identified.

Murukavēḷ paṉṉiru tirumuṟai: Aruṇakirinātar aruḷiya Tiruppukaḻātiya nūlkaḷ: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Va. Cu. Ceṅkalvarāya Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: Mīṉākṣikaliyāṇa cuntaram, 1952–55).

The Glory of Lord Muruga (Tiruppugazh) by Sri Arunagirinathar, trans. N. Gopala Sundaram, 9 vols. (Chennai: N. Gopala Sundaram, 2008–11).

87bm 22 Wadapuranam, ein sehr altes Buch in Versen handelnde von den heiligen Wasserflüssen, darinnen sich die Malabaren zu baden pflegen. Item von der Kuhaschen, damit sich die Malabaren zu überstreichen pflegen, desgleichen auch von den Pagoden und Figuren der Abgötter etc. Dieses ist eines mit von ihren Gesetzbüchern, wie es denn auch vor zweihundert Jahren aus dem Malabarischen Latein oder Kirendum ins rechte Malabarische durch einen Bramanen translatiret worden ist; der Autor, der solches anfänglich verfertiget, heißt Tschugabrummarischi, so da ein sehr erleuchteter Prophet gewesen sein soll, aus des Bramans Geschlechte. Die Göttin Parwadi, so des Ispiren Weib ist, soll dergleichen Buch dem Autor in den Griffel dictiret haben, welches vor etliche tausend Jahr geschehen ist.

88bm 22 Tiruvātavūrār purāṇam, a very old book in verse dealing with the holy bodies of water in which the Malabarians are in the habit of bathing. Likewise with the ashes of cow dung which the Malabarians are in the habit of painting on themselves, and similarly with the pagodas and the figures of the idols, etc. This is one of their law books, as it also has been translated from Malabarian Latin or kirantam into Malabarian proper by a Brahmin two hundred years ago. The author who originally composed it is called Cukapramma Riṣi, and is supposed to have been a very inspired prophet of the Brahmin caste. The goddess Pārvatī, the wife of Īcuvaraṉ, is supposed to have dictated the book to the author’s pen; this happened some thousand years ago.

Ziegenbalg’s “Wadar” or “Wadur” purāṇam, together with his description of the work here, does not immediately indicate the fifteenth-century Tiruvātavūrār purāṇam. In the Genealogia, however, he describes the “Wadúrpuránam” as “an old history book, containing several stories concerning Īcuvaraṉ, which are supposed to have happened in a town called Wadúr when he appeared in the form of a teacher and had a disciple called Teṉṉavaṉ piramarāyaṉ who spent a vast fortune in building temples and tanks, and did great wonders by Isuren’s power” (gmg 51r). Teṉṉavaṉ piramarāyaṉ, “the minister of the Pāṇṭiyaṉ,” is a title referring to Māṇikkavācakar, also known as Tiruvātavūrār, who, when minister to Arimarttaṉa Pāṇṭiyaṉ, took money given to him for the purchase of horses and spent it on temples instead.20 The Tiruvātavūrār purāṇam is not a translation from Sanskrit, but it is based in part on the fifty-eighth chapter of Parañcōti’s Tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam, entitled “Vātavūraṭikaḷukku upatēcitta purāṇam” (“the instruction of Vātavūraṭikaḷ”), which in turn has a Sanskrit source, the Hālāsyamāhātmya.21 Ziegenbalg had a copy of the Tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam also (bm 106), and quotes extensively from it in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, including the chapters on the life of Māṇikkavācakar.

Māṇikkavācakareṉṉum Tiruvātavūrar-Purāṇam, ed. Tiruvaruṇai Capāpatisvāmi (Ceṉṉai: Ā. Irattiṉavēlumutaliyār, 1896).

Hilko Wiardo Schomerus, Šivaitische Heiligenlegenden: Periyapurāṇa und Tiruvātavūrar Purāṇa (Jena: Diederichs, 1925).

89bm 23

90Egamburanaderula, ein Buch von einer sonderlichen Art Verse, darinnen eine Historie erzählet wird von einem Mädchen, so sieben Jahr alt gewesen, und große Liebe zu einer Figur eines Abgotts bekommen hat. Da sich denn allerlei Zufälle begeben haben. Es wird auch darinnen zugleich beschrieben der siebenfache Zustand einer Jungfer.

91bm 23

92Ēkāmparanātar ulā, a book of a particular kind of verse, in which the story is told of a girl who at the age of seven developed a great love for the figure of an idol. As a result all sorts of strange things happened. It also describes the sevenfold condition of a young woman.

“A particular kind of verse” appears to be Ziegenbalg’s euphemism for works of an erotic character. Ulā is a genre of mostly Śaiva works in kaliveṇpa metre, “which describes how women of the seven age groups are love-stricken at the sight of a hero in procession.”22 Ulā was a productive genre in Tamil; more than seventy ulā works are extant,23 and Ziegenbalg had two other ulā texts (Tiruvārūr ulā, bm 37, and Kāyārōṇar ulā, bm 45). He mentions Ēkāmparanātar ulā also in the Genealogia, where he adds that it describes the miracles performed by Śiva in the form of Ēkāmparanātar. The Ēkāmparanātar ulā in praise of Śiva in Kāñci is ascribed to the “twin poets” (Iraṭṭaiyar) Mutucūriyar and Iḷañcūriyar, and dated to the fourteenth-century.

Kāñcīpuram Ēkāmparanātar taivīkavulā, ed. Aruṇācala Mutaliyār (Tañcai: Tēcāpimāṉiaccukkūṭam, 1841).

93bm 24

94Kanden anupudi, unterschiedliche Gesänge über den Abgott Kanden, so gleichfalls derjenige Trommelschläger gemacht, welcher Dirubugel aufgeset

95bm 24

96Kantaraṉupūti, a variety of songs on the idol Kantaṉ, also composed by the drummer who wrote Tiruppukaḻ.

See the entry for Aruṇakirinātar’s Tiruppukaḻ above (bm 21).

Kantaraṉupūti, ed. P. K. Ṣaṇmukanātaṉ (Ceṉṉai: Akila Pārata Caṅkara Sēvā Samiti, 1967).

Fred W. Clothey, Quiescence and Passion: The Vision of Arunakiri, Tamil Mystic (Austin: Winfield, 1996).

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98Abiramiantadi, einige Lieder über eine Göttin Abirami genannt, so da eine Beschützerin ist einer Stadt Tirukarawur genannt, darinnen drei große Pagoden sehr regulariter beisammen gebauet sind, fast nach der Ordnung des Tempels Salamonis. Der erste Eingang ist allen Malabaren gemein, darinnen viel Abgötter stehen, in den andern Eingang dürfen nur diejenigen gehen, so von Sünden gereiniget sind, darinnen die allergrößten Abgötter stehen, der dritte Eingang ist gleich wie das Allerheiligste und hat ganz kleine Bilder in sich, darinnen wird denn der einige Gott ohne Bilder angebetet, welchen sie nennen Barabarawastu oder das Wesen aller Wesen. Ich bin selbst einmal in dieser Stadt gewesen, habe solche gesehen, und einen ganzen Tag daselbst mit etlichen hundert Malabaren, Bramanen und gelehrten Pandaren discouriret, welchen ich zugleich 26 malabarischen Predigten mittheilete, so ich in unserem Jerusalem gehalten hatte.

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100Apirāmi antāti, some songs on a goddess named Apirāmi who is the protectress of a town called Tirukkāṭavūr where three large pagodas have built together very regularly, almost in the manner of Solomon’s temple. The first entranceway, where many idols stand, is open to all Malabarians. The second, where the biggest idols of all stand, is open only to those who have been cleansed of sins. The third is like the holy of holies and contains very small pictures. Here the only God is worshipped without pictures, whom they call Parāparavastu or the being of all beings. I myself was once in this town and saw this, and spent a whole day there in discourse with several hundred Malabarians, Brahmins and Pandarams. I also conveyed to them the twenty-six sermons which I held here in our Jerusalem.24

Tirukkāṭavūr (now Tirukkaṭaiyūr) is only a few kilometres from Tranquebar. Ziegenbalg is likely to have been intensely interested in the worship without images of God conceived as Parāparavastu. In the Genealogia he identifies this as the best Hindu conception of the deity, and the one which most nearly approaches true monotheism. Cuppiramaṇiya Aiyar, also known as Apirāmi Paṭṭar or “the devotee of Apirāmi” was a contemporary of Ziegenbalg. The work is usually dated to the reign of Serfoji I (1712–27).

Apirāmapaṭṭar aruḷiya Apirāmiyantāti: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Cu. A. Irāmacāmip Pulavar (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēlit Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1966).

Francis X. Clooney, Divine Mother, Blessed Mother: Hindu Goddesses and the Virgin Mary (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005).

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102Gnanapostagam, ein Buch von der Heiligkeit, so da handelt von der Reinigung des Leibes und der Seelen, von den Anrufungen der Götter, und wie des Menschen Herz darzu müsse beschaffen seyn: item von unterschiedlichen Gebetsformeln. Dieses Buch ist sehr alt und rar, wird aber in großem Estim gehalten, weil die Malabaren in dergleichen Handlungen ihre Seligkeit suchen.

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104*Ñāṉa puttakam, a book of holiness, which deals with the purification of the body and soul, with the invocation of the gods, and how the heart of man must be prepared for this; also with different prayer formulas. This book is very old and rare, but is held in great esteem, because the Malabarians seek their salvation in these actions.

The title and description would fit many Tamil works and it is difficult to identify any particular work, although cittar works often have titles of this sort. Ziegenbalg glosses a reference to a book one of his Tamil correspondents names Ñāṉapōtakam as “a book which contains the teaching of wisdom” (hb 7: 375).

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106Karanei wurubba tareien walamadel, ein recht atheistisches Buch, so da von einem Ackersmann gemacht, der da von sich selbst zu einem Poeten geworden und nichts anders als Gott spotten können. Sein Endzweck in diesem Buche gehet dahin, daß Niemand glauben solle, als sey ein Gott, oder als wäre dasjenige wahr, was die Alten von göttlichen, himmlischen und ewigen Dingen geschrieben hätten, sintemal man ja weder Gott noch dasjenige sehen könnte, was von dem zukünftigen geschrieben und gesagt würde. Hingegen aber sollte ein jedweder glauben, daß die Wollüste dieser Welt und alles was damit verknüpfet sey, wahre Glückseligkeit geben könne und weil man denn dieses könnte sehen, fühlen und empfinden, jenes aber nämlich das himmlische, weder sehen noch empfinden, so wären diejenigen ja rechte Narren und Thoren, so da dergleichen Wollüste und weltliche Glückseligkeit verließen und um des Himmlischen willen ein so strenges und miserables Leben führeten.

107Dieses Buch halten die Malabaren selbst für ein heidnisch Buch, so sehr schädlich zu lesen wäre.

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109Kāraṇai viḻupparaiyaṉ vaḷamaṭal, a truly atheistic book, written by a farmer who by his own efforts made himself into a poet and could do nothing else except mock God. His purpose in this book is that no-one should believe that there is a God, or that it was true what the ancients wrote about divine, heavenly and eternal things, since one indeed can see neither God nor that which is said or written about the things which will be. Rather everyone should believe that the lusts of this world and everything that is connected with it can give true happiness, and that because these can been seen, felt and experienced but other things—that is, the heavenly—can be neither seen nor felt, those who abandon these lusts and worldly pleasures and lead an austere and miserable life to obtain the heavenly are really knaves and fools. The Malabarians themselves regard this book as a heathen book which is very damaging to read.

Two extant manuscripts ascribe this work to Cayaṅkoṇṭār. Archana Venkatesan argues that the attribution is supported by the numerous references to Kulōttuṅka I and stylistic similarities to Cayaṅkoṇṭār’s Kaliṅkattu paraṇi, which Ziegenbalg also knew (bm 19).25 Like other works in the maṭal genre, Kāraṇai viḻupparaiyaṉ vaḷamaṭal asserts the supremacy of iṉpam (kāmam, sensual enjoyment) over the other nāl-vakai-p-poruḷ (the puruṣārtha: aṟam, poruḷ, iṉpam, vīṭu). Venkatesan suggests that Kāraṇai Viḻupparaiyaṉ, who is both the hero and patron of the poem, is to be identified as Ātinātaṉ, a Jain general in the service of Kulōttuṅka I, otherwise known from a thirteenth-century inscription.26 As Ziegenbalg notes, the poem is critical of all religions and this, together with its low repute among Tamils, is perhaps the reason why he does not cite it anywhere in his own writings. By contrast he regularly cites those Tamil authors who, while critical of much in Hindu religious practice, nevertheless advocate the worship of a supreme being.

Maṭal tiraṭṭu, ed. Es. Cauntarapāṇṭiyaṉ (Ceṉṉai: Araciṉar Kīḻtticaic Cuvaṭikaḷ Nūlakam, 1994).27

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111Koilkalambagam, ein Buch von hundert Liedern über den Abgott Wischtnum, so da in einer Pagode gesungen werden, Namens Schirankum, welche drei Tagereisen von hier gelegen ist. Der Autor dieses Buches ist ein Bramanen, Namens Bulleiperumalayankar, so da vor etliche 40 Jahr gestorben ist.

112bm 28

113Kōyil kalampakam, a book of one hundred songs about the idol Viṣṇu, which are sung in a pagoda called Cīraṅkam [i.e. Śrīraṅgam] situated three days’journey from here. The author of this book is a Brahmin named Piḷḷaipperumāḷ Aiyaṅkār, who died some 40 years ago.

This is the Tiruvaraṅkakkalampakam of Piḷḷaipperumāḷ Aiyaṅkār (also known as Maṇavāḷa Tācar or Aḻakiya Maṇavāḷa Tācar), of the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century. Of the eight pirapantams composed by Piḷḷaipperumāḷ Aiyaṅkār, Ziegenbalg has this and one other, the Tiruvēṅkaṭa mālai (bm 34). In the annotations to the Malabarische Correspondenz, Ziegenbalg notes that, like other such works associated with temples, it is sung by devadāsīs (hb 7: 443). Jeyaraj identifies a palm-leaf manuscript in the mission archives in Halle (tam 80A) as the Tiruvaraṅkakkalampakam, but this is in fact the Citampara kōyil purāṇam, a Tamil version of the Cidambaram Māhātmya, which according to Walther’s catalogue was acquired for the mission in 1730 by Schultze.

Kōyiṟkalampakam eṉkiṉṟa Tiruvaraṅkakkalampakam, ed. Tiru Vēṅkaṭācala Mutaliyār (Ceṉ-ṉai: Carasvati Accukkūṭam, 1835).

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115Dewarum, ein Buch vom göttlichen Lobe, darinnen der Abgott Ispiren durch Gesänge sehr gerühmet wird.

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117Tēvāram, a book of divine praises, in which the god Īcuvaraṉ is greatly lauded in songs.

Although Ziegenbalg twice refers briefly to Tēvāram in the Genealogia (gmg 30r, 251v), his comments do little to suggest the importance of this work, an anthology of Śaiva poems written during the sixth to eighth century by Tiruñāṉacampantar, Tirunāvukkaracar and Cuntaramūrtti, which together form the first seven books of the Tirumuṟai. There must therefore be some doubt about whether he had a copy of the entire Tēvāram or only a part of it.

Tēvāram. Hymnes śivaïtes du pays tamoul, ed. T. V. Gopal Iyer and François Gros (Pondichéry: Institut Français de Pondichéry, 1984–91).

V. M. Subramanya Aiyar, Jean-Luc Chevillard and S. A. S. Sarma, eds., Digital Tēvāram (Pondicherry: Institut Français de Pondichéry/École française d’Extrême Orient, 2007).

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119Banschadandirakadei, fünf listige Historien von klugen Thieren. Dieses Buch ist der Fabel Aesopi gleich, sintemal es durch das Beginnen der Thiere viele moralische Lehren vorstellet. Es bestehet in einer leichten Art von Versen, und wird in Schulen sehr gebraucht.

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121Pañcatantira katai, five crafty stories of cunning animals. This book is similar to Aesop’s Fables since it presents moral lessons through the actions of animals. It is composed of an easy type of verse, and is much used in schools.

There are several translations of the Pañcatantra, a well-known Sanskrit work, into Tamil. Ziegenbalg’s description fits the verse translation by Vīramārttāṇṭatēvar, but this is usually dated to the 19th century. In 1803 August Friedrich Cämmerer, the last of the missionaries of the old Danish-Halle mission, translated the Pañcatantira katai into German (AFSt/M 2 A 2: 14).

Vīramārttāṇta Tēvar, Pañcatantira Pāṭaṟkatai, ed. Mē. Vī. Vēṇukōpālap Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: Puks (Intiyā) Piraivēṭ Liṭ, 1958).

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123Naga Pascha badalam, Kriegshistorie des Wischtnums und Indirutscheiddu, welcher von Jenem mit einem giftigen Pfeil geschossen worden, ohneracht, daß er ein großer Riese und tapferer Held im Streit ist gewesen. Dieses Buch fasset in sich 300 wiruddum oder Versstrophen, und ist sehr schwer zu verstehen. Der Autor ist Kamben, so ein vornehmer Poet gewesen, und den Krieg zwischen dem Abgott Wischtnum und dem mächtigen Riesen Rawanen sehr weitläuftig beschrieben hat, in zwölftausend wiruddum, welches Buch von meinem alten Poeten als ein Abgott veneriret wird, so daß ich ihn einstmals fragte, ob er mir solches wohl verkaufen wollte, er mir darauf antwortete, daß er mit solchem Buch zugleich seine Seligkeit verkaufen würde. Jedoch wollte ers mir zum Abschreiben communiciren oder sonst zu kaufen verschaffen, weil es wegen seiner Größe nicht könnte abgeschrieben werden.

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125Nākapāca paṭalam, story of the war between Viṣṇu and Intiracittu, who was shot by the former with a poisoned arrow although he was a huge giant and courageous hero in battle. This book contains 300 viruttam or stanzas and is very hard to understand. The author is Kampaṉ, a distinguished poet, who has described at great length the war between the idol Viṣṇu and the mighty giant Rāvaṇa, in twelve thousand viruttam. My old poet reveres this book like an idol, such that when once I asked him if he would be willing to sell it to me he replied that with this book he would sell his salvation at the same time. Nevertheless he is willing to give it to me to copy, or otherwise arrange for me to buy it because it cannot be copied due to its size.

The nineteenth chapter of the Yutta kāṇṭam of Irāmāvatāram, Kampaṉ’s translation of the Rāmāyaṇa. Ziegenbalg lists two other chapters (the sixteenth, “Kumpa karuṇa paṭalam,” and the twenty-eighth, “Intiracittu paṭalam”) of this kāṇṭam in the bm (42 and 62). In his list of Vaiṣṇava books in the Genealogia, he lists separately each of these three chapters and then goes on to list “Rāmāyaṇam,” as a book of 12,000 verses, and the “Pālakāṇṭarāmāyaṇam” which he ascribes to Vālmikī.

Kamparāmāyaṇam, ed. Vai. Mu. Kōpālakiruṣṇamāciriyar (Ceṉṉai: Vai. Mu. Kōpālakiruṣṇamāciriyar Kampeṉi, 1962–67).

Kamba Ramayanam, trans. P. S. Sundaram, 6 vols. (Madras: Government of Tamil Nadu, 1989–94).

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127Walliammeiwenpa, zweihundert und fünfundneunzig Lieder über die Göttin Walliammei, so des Subbiramanien Weib ist. Der Autor heißt Bugelendi, so ein wohlerfahrener Poet gewesen, so da vor mehr denn hundert Jahr gelebet, und sehr viel andere Bücher verfertiget hat.

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129*Vaḷḷiyammai veṇpā, two hundred and ninety-five songs on the goddess Vaḷḷiyammai, the wife of Cuppiramaṇiaṉ. The author is called Pukaḻēnti, an accomplished poet who lived more than a hundred years ago and composed many other books.

Neither this nor the other work on Vaḷḷiyammai in Ziegenbalg’s possession (Vaḷḷi ammāṉai, bm 36) is readily identifiable.28 There is a manuscript in Paris entitled Vaḷḷiyammai purāṇam (Bibliothèque Nationale, Tamoul 309) and dated 1736, most likely collected by a Jesuit. Hikosaka and Samuel record several manuscripts, and a published edition, of a Vaḷḷiyammaṉ katai, and note that the story, from the Kantapurāṇam, is a very popular subject for folk ballads.29 In ascribing this and other works to Pukaḻēnti, Ziegenbalg follows Tamil tradition closely; Zvelebil notes that “the absolute majority of Tamil folknarratives,” amounting to “hundreds if not thousands of the most diverse poems and prose-pieces dealing with the most variegated topics,” are thus ascribed.30 Zvelebil attributes the huge number of such ascriptions to the immense popularity of Pukaḻēnti’s Naḷaveṇpā, a work which Ziegenbalg has (bm 86), but does not ascribe to any author.

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131Tschidambaramalei, ein Buch von hundert und zwei Liedern, so da über Ispiren zu singen sind, und fast nichts denn lauter Gleichnisse und metaphorische Redensarten in sich fassen. Der Autor heißt Koganamatschiweier, so da ein sehr heiliger Mann gewesen sein soll und etwa vor hundert Jahr gelebet haben.

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133Citampara mālai, a book of one hundred and two songs to be sung about Īcuvaraṉ which contains almost nothing but similes and metaphorical expressions. The author is called Kukai Namacivāya, who is supposed to have been a very holy man and to have lived about one hundred years ago.

Kukai Namacivāyar is a sixteenth-century poet of Tiruvaṇṇāmalai, the author of Aruṇakiri antāti (BM 83). Kerala University holds a manuscript (2254) entitled Citampara mālai.

134bm 34

135Wenkidamalei, ein Buch von hundert Liedern, so über Wischtnum zu singen sind. Der Autor dessen heißt Bulleiperumalayankar.

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137Vēṅkaṭa mālai, a book of one hundred songs to be sung about Viṣṇu. The author of it is called Piḷḷaipperumāḷ Aiyaṅkār.

Piḷḷaipperumāḷ Aiyaṅkār’s Tiruvēṅkaṭa mālai consists of 104 verses in praise of Viṣṇu at Tirupati. Ziegenbalg had also the same poet’s Tiruvaraṅkakkalampakam (BM 28).

Tiruvēṅkaṭamālai, ed. Tiru Vēṅkaṭācala Mutaliyār and Pākkuppēṭṭai Maturai Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Muttamiḻ Viḷakka Accukkūṭam, 1863).

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139Nilinadagam, das Feldtanzen, darinnen 132 Lieder sind, so die Feldtänzer und Tänzerinnen bei ihrem Feldtanzer zu singen pflegen.

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141Nīli nāṭakam, country dancing, containing 132 songs which the male and female country dancers sing during their dance.

Ziegenbalg’s account of this work in the Genealogia (gmg 174v) and Walther’s catalogue, which gives the title as Paḻaiyaṉūr nīli katai, leave no doubt that this is a version of the story the demoness (pēycci) Nīli.31 Nīli’s story goes back at least as far as Tēvāram, and there are many later versions. Barbara Schuler surveys the many versions of the story in Tamil literature and argues that the Nīli tradition has diverged into two primary lines.32 Based on the details in Ziegenbalg’s account of the story in the Malabarisches Heidenthum (mh 154–58), it would appear the version he had belonged to the northern line. The southern line is associated with performances of the text as a villupāṭṭu or “bow song.”33

Paḻaiyaṉūr Nīli katai, ed. Cu. Caṇmukacuntaram (Madras: Maṇimēkalao Piracuram, 1978).

Barbara Schuler, Of Death and Birth: Icakkiyammaṉ, a Tamil Goddess, in Ritual and Story (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2009).

142bm 36

143Walliammanar, ein Buch von sehr angenehmen Versen über die Göttin Walliammei, darinnen ihre ganze Historie enthalten ist.

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145*Vaḷḷi ammāṉai, a book of very pleasant verses on the goddess Vaḷḷiyammai, in which her whole story is contained.

Vaḷḷi is the subject of at least two works in the ammāṉai genre, but both are too late to be the work in Ziegenbalg’s catalogue.34 In the Genealogia, Ziegenbalg briefly recounts Vaḷḷi’s story on the basis of a letter from one of his correspondents (GMG 79v-80v).35

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147Diruwarurula, eine sonderliche Art Verse, gemacht auf den Abgott, so da in einer Landschaft Diruwarur seine Pagoden haben soll, sein Name heißt Diagarascher, dessen Bild vom Himmel soll gefallen sein, aus purem Golde verfertiget, so annoch daselbst in seiner Pagode verwahret stehet, und angebetet wird.

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149Tiruvārūr ulā, a particular kind of verse, written about the idol who is supposed to have his pagodas in the Tiruvārūr region; his name is Tiyākarācar; an image of him, made of pure gold, is supposed to have fallen from heaven, and to still be kept standing and to be worshipped in his pagoda.

A work by the seventeenth-century blind poet Antakakkavi Vīrarākava Mutaliyār. Ziegenbalg also has another work (bm 94) which he ascribes to him.

Antakakkavi Vīrarākava Mutaliyār iyaṟṟiya Tiruvārūrulā, ed. U. Vē. Cāminātaiyar (Maturai: Tamiḻc caṅka muttirā cālai, 1925).

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151Bullei damel, einige Lieder, darinnen die Art der kleinen Kinder abgemalt wird, um Gott dadurch zu preisen, der so wunderbarlich mit den Menschenkindern zu spielen pfleget.

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153Piḷḷaittamiḻ, some songs, in which the ways of small children are portrayed, in order thereby to praise God who plays so wonderfully with the children of men.

Piḷḷaittamiḻ is the name of a very productive genre of texts and while Ziegenbalg’s characterisation of the genre is apt it is too vague to permit indentification of a specific work. Of the three piḷḷaittamiḻ works (bm 38, 39, 66) in Ziegenbalg’s collection, only one can be securely identified.

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155Komarer bulleidirunamum, hundert Lieder über Ispiren’s Sohn, Komarer genannt, so da die Macht über alle Teufel hat, und sie unter seiner Direction hält, daß sie denn Menschen ohne seinen Willen nichts Bößes thun können. Der Autor dieser Lieder heißt Komara Kurubam pantarum, so ein sehr gelehrter Mann und annoch lebet. Er soll dergleichen Verse in seinem sechzehnten Jahre gemacht haben, und nachdem von dieser Küste Cormandel nach Bengalen gegangen sein, allwo er bis hieher viele Bücher in Versen verfertiget hat.

156bm 39

157Kumarar piḷḷai tirunāmam, a hundred songs on Īcuvaraṉ’s son called Kumarar, who has power over all the devils and keeps them under his direction so that they are not able to do any evil to humans unless he wills it. The author of these songs is called Kumarakurupam paṇṭāram, a very learned man who is supposed still to be alive. He is said to have written these verses in his sixteenth year, and later to have left this Coromandel coast and gone to Bengal, where up to the present he has written many books in verse.

This is Puḷḷirukkuvēḷūr muttukkumāracāmi piḷḷaittamiḻ on Murukaṉ at Vaitīcuvaraṉkōyil, some 20 kilometres north of Tranquebar, one of the best-known of the many piḷḷaittamiḻ works. Kumarakuruparar in fact died in 1688, twenty years before Ziegenbalg’s catalogue, but the hagiographic details he records are otherwise accurate.

Muttukkumāracuvāmi piḷḷaittamiḻ: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. S. Rangaswami (Tiruccirāppaḷḷi: Yuṉaiṭeṭ papliṣars, 1970).

158bm 40

159Kanschen ammanar, ein sehr großes Buch in angenehmen und wohlfließenden Versen, darinnen die ganze Historie des Wischtnum enthalten ist, so sich mit ihm in seiner sechsten Verwandelung auf der Welt zugetragen hat. Dieses Buch wird sehr hoch aestimiret, und ist sehr wohl zu verstehen. Sein Alter ist über zweihundert Jahr.

160bm 40

161Kañcaṉ ammāṉai, a very large book in pleasant and fluent verses, containing the whole history of Viṣṇu and all that happened in connection with him during his sixth transformation in the world. This book is highly esteemed, and very easy to understand. Its age is over two hundred years.

Kañcaṉ (Kaṃsa) is the brother of Devakī, Kṛṣṇa’s mother, who attempts to prevent Kṛṣṇa’s birth and is eventually slain by him. Although Ziegenbalg’s lists of avatāras in both his major works on Hinduism have Buddha as the sixth and Kṛṣṇa as the ninth avatāra of Viṣṇu, he was aware of the variations in order in different texts (gmg 85r), and in these later works appears to have chosen to follow the order given in a letter to him by one of his Hindu correspondents.

Kañcaṉammāṉai, ed. Ki. Kōtaṇṭapāṇi (Tañcāvūr: Tañcai Caracuvati Makāl Niruvāka Kamiṭṭi, 1976).

162bm 41

163Perumal ammanar, ein weitläuftiges Buch in wohlklingenden Versen, darinnen die vierte Verwandelung des großen Abgotts Wischtnum enthalten ist, mit allen seinen Begebungen. Diese und dergleichen Bücher sind bei den Wischtnumianern das Fundament ihrer Religion, daraus alle andere Bücher geflossen sind und darauf gründen.

164bm 41

165Perumāḷ ammāṉai, a lengthy book in mellifluous verses, containing the fourth transformation of the great idol Viṣṇu, with everything that happened to him. This book and others like it are the foundation of their religion for the Vaiṣṇavas, from which all other books are drawn and on which they are based.

No edition has been published, but there are manuscripts with this title in the Sarasvati Mahal Library (Vol. III, no. 1124) and the Tamil University (accession no. 850), both in Tañcāvūr.

166bm 42

167Komba Karana padalam, ein weitläuftige Historie von den Kriegen eines Riesens Komba karunen gennant, so des Rawanen Bruder gewesen. Diese Historie bestehet in Versen, welche zugleich mit gemeinen Malabarischen erkläret sind für diejenigen, so die Verse nicht verstehen können, wie denn unter den Malabaren sehr viel Bücher gefunden werden, die da in Versen anfänglich geschrieben, und nachmals erkläret worden sind, und zwar so accurat, daß man sich darüber verwundern muß. Der Autor dieser Historie ist der vorgemeldete Kamben, der sich sonderlich in Historicis unter den Malabaren bekannt gemacht. Diese Kriege sind in der ersten Weltzeit gehalten worden, welche die Malabaren Kiredaujum nennen, darauf nachmals Diredaujum und Duawuraujum erfolget ist, welche drei Weltzeiten nach ihrer Rechnung schon verflossen sind, die jenige Weltzeit aber nennen sie Kaliujum, so da 4480 Jahr gestanden haben soll.

168bm 42

169Kumpa karuṇa paṭalam, a lengthy history of the wars of a giant called Kumpa karuṇaṉ, who was the brother of Rāvaṇa. This history is told in verse and at the same time explained in common Malabarian for those who cannot understand the verse. There are very many books like this found among the Malabarans which are first written in verse and later explained, and that so accurately that one can only wonder at it. The author of this history is the aforementioned Kampaṉ, who has made a name for himself among the Malabarians for history in particular. These wars took place in the first age of the world, which the Malabarians call Kirētāyukam, after which came the Tirētāyukam and the Tuvāparayukam. According to their reckoning, these three ages of the world have already passed, and they call the present age of the world the Kāḷiyukam, of which 4480 years are supposed to have passed.

The sixteenth chapter of the Yutta kāṇṭam of Kampaṉ’s Irāmāvatāram (bm 31).

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171Annumàr amanár, ein sehr großes Buch in sehr leichten und angenehmen Versen in sich fassende die Historie eines Affens Anumar genannt, der da mit seinem Affenheer in dem Kriege zwischen Wischtnum und Rawanen unzählige große Thaten und Wunder gethan, so daß er deswegen unter die Zahl der vornehmsten Abgötter gerechnet wird und sehr großen Ruhm in der Welt hat. Dieses Buch bestehet aus 4284 Versen und ist sehr erudit eingerichtet. Der Autor dessen heißt Bugelendi, so viel andere Bücher in dergleichen Versart gemacht hat. Dessen Alter ist ungefähr 300 Jahr, aber die Historie soll sich vor viel tausend Jahr zugetragen haben, und zwar auf der Insel Ceylon, allwo Rawanen seine Residenz und Castel gehabt hat.

172bm 43

173*Aṉumār ammāṉai, a very large book in very easy and pleasant verses, comprising the story of a monkey called Hanuman who with his monkey lords did innumerable great deeds and wonders in the war between Viṣṇu and Rāvaṇa so that he is reckoned among the foremost idols and his fame in the world is very great. This book consists of 4284 verses and is laid out in a very erudite manner. Its author is called Pukaḻēnti, who wrote many other books in the same metre. Its age is about 300 years, but the story is supposed to have happened many thousands of years ago, on the island of Ceylon where Rāvaṇa had had his capital and fortress.

This work is not immediately identifiable, but Hanuman’s exploits in the war against Rāvaṇa are a popular subject for folk narratives.36 On the ascription to Pukaḻēnti see the comments above (on bm 32).

174bm 44

175Aschara Kowei, ein Buch von hundert Liedern oder Versen handelnd von allerlei Ceremonien, so unter den Malabaren gebräuchlich sind, in ihrem Umgang der Götter und Menschen. Der Autor heißt Kankaddu maragnana Pandarum, so da 8 Tagereisen von hier gewohnet hat und stets seine Augen mit einem Tuche verbunden hat, um daß er die Eitelkeiten der Welt nicht anschauen möge, noch von selbiger sich verführen ließe, als einstmals sein Priester, der da nahe allhier gewohnt hat, unversehener Weise ein Bein gebrochen, so hat er solches dieselbige Stunde wissen können, uneracht daß er sehr weit von ihm gewohnet hat. Er wird von den Malabaren sehr heilig gehalten, sintemal er auch nebst diesem Buche noch viele andere moralische Bücher geschrieben hat. Er ist gestorben vor etliche 40 Jahr.

176bm 44

177Ācārakōvai, a book of one hundred songs or verses dealing with various ceremonies which are in use among the Malabarians in their intercourse with gods and humans. The author is called Kaṇkaṭṭi maṟaiñāṉa paṇṭāram, he lived eight days’journey from here and always had a cloth tied over his eyes in order that he might not look upon the vanities of the world, or let himself be led astray by them. Once when his priest, who lived near here, suddenly broke a leg he was able to know about it the very same hour even though he lived far from him. He is regarded as very holy by the Malabarians especially as apart from this book he has also written many other books of morality. He died some 40 years ago.

Ācārakōvai, one of the patiṉeṇkīḻkkaṇakku, is ascribed to Peruvāyiṉ muḷḷiyār and dated to the eighth or ninth century. The author mentioned by Ziegenbalg is Kaṇkaṭṭi Maṟaiñāṉa Paṇṭāram, who wrote a number of small Śaiva works in the sixteenth or seventeenth century. Gaur suggests Ziegenbalg may refer to a commentary by Kaṇkaṭṭi Maṟaiñāṉa Paṇṭāram on the Ācārakōvai. Although no such work by Kaṇkaṭṭi Maṟaiñāṉa Paṇṭāram is known, there is a commentary by an unknown author. Ziegenbalg several times quotes from Ācārakōvai in his Malabarisches Heidenthum, mainly on matters relating to ritual.

Ācārakkōvai, ed. T. Celvakkēcavarāya Mutaliyār (Madras: Diocesan Press, 1923).

178bm 45

179Kaiaronerulà, eine Beschreibung des Abgotts Kaiaroner, so in der holländischen Stadt Nagapatnam angebetet und verehret wird von den Malabaren. Darinnen werden die großen Thaten und Wunde desselbigen Abgotts erzählet und sehr hoch gerühmet. Wie denn in diesem Lande eine jedwede Stadt und ein jedwedes Dorf seinen sonderbaren Abgott hat, der vor andern sich ihnen insonderheit geoffenbaret und große Hülfe geleistet hat. Der Autor dieses Buchs heißt Ralamega nainár, so ein Bramanen gewesen und ungefähr vor 50 Jahr gelebet hat.

180bm 45

181*Kāyārōṇar ulā, a description of the idol Kāyārōṇar, who is worshipped and venerated by the Malabarians in the Dutch town Nākappaṭṭiṉam. The mighty deeds and wonders of this god are described in it, and very highly praised. For in this country each town and each village has its particular idol who, more than the others, has revealed him or herself and offered special help. The author of this book is called Kāḷamēkam nayiṉār, he was a Brahmin who lived about fifty years ago.

182Nākappaṭṭiṉam is referred to as Nākaikkārōṇam, “in token of Civaṉ’s taking souls into Himself at the time of His destruction of the world.”37 Kāḷamēkam is a prolific fifteenthcentury Brahmin poet. Although there is no Kāyārōṇar ulā among Kāḷamēkam’s known works, he is the author of a work in the ulā genre (the Tiruvāṉaikkā ulā, on Tiruvanaikkaval near Srirangam). One of those who procured books for Ziegenbalg seems to have come from Nākappaṭṭiṉam (cf. the entry for a Varukka kōvai bm 91) and he has other works connected with the town (Kīḻvēḷūr kalampakam bm 46 and Varuṇakulātittaṉ maṭal bm 89). Ziegenbalg quotes (gmg 203) from a letter, perhaps from the same person, recounting how Puṇṭarīka Makāriṣi, having performed arduous austerities at the Kāyārōkaṇar temple, was taken up into the liṅkam.38

183bm 46

184Kilwelur Kalambagam, eine Beschreibung der Landschaft Kilwelur, darinnen gezeiget, was für Pagoden oder Kirchen daselbst sind, was sich mit den Göttern und heiligen Leuten daselbst sind, was sich mit den Göttern und heiligen Leuten zugetragen hat, was für Wunder daselbst geschehen sind etc. Dieses Buch fasset hundert Versstrophen in sich und ist von einem Ackermann gemacht worden Namens Nainaddamodali, so da vor 40 Jahr gestorben.

185bm 46

186*Kīḻvēḷūr kalampakam, a description of the Kīḻvēḷūr region, describing what pagodas or churches are there and which gods and holy people are connected with them and what happened with the gods and holy people, what wonders took place there etc. This book consists of a hundred stanzas and was composed by a farmer named Neynāṭa [or Nainappa] Mutali, who died forty years ago.

Kalampakam is “a rather untidy and bizarre” but “immensely productive” hypergenre in which one hundred poems about a deity, temple or guru in fourteen or eighteen different genres are compiled in antāti arrangement.39 Neither the text nor the author mentioned by Ziegenbalg has been identified; Jeyaraj suggests the Puḷḷirukkuvēlūrk kalampakam, but Puḷḷirukkuvēlūr refers to Vaittīcuvaraṉkōyil (see bm 39) and not to Kīḻvēḷūr, which is near Nākappaṭṭiṉam. In the Genealogia, Ziegenbalg identifies this as a Vaiṣṇava work, but the main temple in Kīḻvēḷūr is Śaiva, as the reference to Murukaṉ’s spear (vēḷ) in the name of both town and text suggests. In his entry on another text connected with Nākappaṭṭiṉam, a Varukka kōvai (bm 91) Ziegenbalg states that Viṣṇu rules the Nākappaṭṭiṉam region.

187bm 47

188Nidischarum, ein Büchlein von der Sittenlehre, so da im Kirendum oder der malabarischen Sprache geschrieben ist, nebst der Erklärung in der tamulschen Sprache. Es bestehet in hundert Versstrophen und also auch in hundert Sitten-Lehre. Der Autor dessen ist ein Bramanen gewesen.

189bm 47

190Nīti cāram, a booklet of moral philosophy, written in Kirentam or the Malabarian language40 together with explanation in the Tamil language. It consists of a hundred stanzas and thus also a hundred points of moral philosophy. The author was a Brahmin.

This is the Tamil adaptation of a Sanskrit didactic anthology, the Nītisāra of Kāmandaki (seventh-eighth century). In the Genealogia, Ziegenbalg lists Nīti cāram together with Ñāṉa veṇpā (bm 48), Civavākkiyam (bm 51–53) and Tirukkuṟaḷ (bm 7) as the most important works of the ñāṉikaḷ, those who annihilate (“vernichten”) all idolatry, worship the single divine being without images, and whose books prescribe a virtuous life as worship of the only God.41 In Malabarisches Heidenthum, he writes that on first reading these works he thought that “their authors were perhaps Christians” (mh 42). A later missionary scholar, Robert Caldwell, argued that the ideas of cittar writers like Civavākkiyar were the result of Christian influence.42

Vākkuṇṭām, Nalvaḻi, Naṉṉeṟi, Nīticāram, ed. Kā. Namaccivāya Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Tamiḻkkaṭal Āpis, 1931).

191bm 48

192Janawenba, ein Büchlein vom gottseligen Leben nebst unterschiedlichen Gebetsformeln. Der Autor dessen heißt Kurunamatschiweier, so viele dergleichen Bücher geschrieben hat.

193bm 48

194*Ñāṉa veṇpā, a booklet on the life that is pleasing to God, together with various prayer formulas. The author is called Kuru Namacivāyar, who has written many books of this kind.

As Ziegenbalg writes, the sixteenth-century Kuru Namacivāyar wrote several works in veṇpā metre. No single work entitled Ñāṉa veṇpā is among those ascribed to him, but the title may well have been used for a collection of such works. Several manuscripts of this sort are in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library (GOML R-3417, 4241, 4799). R-3147 deals with the pañcāṭcara mantra and the four paths (pātanāṉku) leading to liberation. Ziegenbalg quotes from the Ñāṉa veṇpā several times in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, notably in the third chapter of the first part, where he seeks to demonstrate that Hindus have a genuinely monotheistic conception of God as the Supreme Being.

195bm 49

196Maneisastiram, die Wissenschaft zu bauen, darinnen gezeigt wird, was man beim Bauen zu observiren hat; ist nur eine ganz kleine Anweisung von lauter Aberglauben.

197bm 49

198Maṉaicāstiram, the art of building, showing what is to be observed when building; just a very small manual full of superstitions.

Though “mostly astrological in character,” the Maṉaicāstiram also gives “some information about the timber to be used in the construction of houses and about the manner of construction for the accommodation of people of different castes.”43
Maṉai nūl, ed. Pū. Cuppiramaṇiyam (Ceṉṉai: Ulakat Tamiḻārāycci niṟuvaṉam, 1981).

199bm 50

200Uddira podagam, ein Lied über den Abgott zu Sanct Thomas, dessen Name Mailabburischen heißet.

201bm 50

202Uttara pōtakam, a song about the idol at San Thome, the name of which is Mayilāppūrīcaṉ.

Mayilāppūrīcaṉ, “the Lord of Mylapore” is a form of Śiva. There are two manuscripts of a Śaiva work with this title in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library (D–1227 and 1228). The work, which has not been published, consists of 49 stanzas on the role of a guru in achieving salvation, in the form of a conversation between a guru and his disciple.44

203bm 51

204Tschiwapaikkiam, die Glückseligkeit des Lebens darinnen lauter artige moralia begriffen sind, bestehend in 48 Versstrophen. Der Autor hat sich selbst den Namen Tschiwapaikkiam gegeben, welches so viel heißt, als die Glückseligkeit des Lebens, er hat noch sehr viele andere Verse gemacht von der Sittenlehre. Er ist zwar ein Malabar gewesen, hat sich aber zu keiner Religion bekannt, allein weisend auf ein tugendsames Leben. Wie er denn die Thorheit der Menschen sehr artig weiß vorzustellen und selbige zu corrigiren. Er hat sehr viele Anhänger annoch heutiges Tages, die nichts anders als nur seine Schriften lesen, wenig achtend die äußerlichen Ceremonien der Abgötter und so da in den Pagoden geschehen. Mit dergleichen Personen habe ich sehr vielfältig geredet, da sie denn in alle demjenigen mit mir eingestimmt haben, was ich ihnen von den Tugenden gesaget; aber wie sie von ihren Abgöttern und den Streitigkeiten in ihrer Religion nichts halten, so wollen sie denn auch von Christo und von dem Unterschied der christlichen Religion wenig hören. Dergleichen Leute habe ich auch unter den Mohren und Mahometanern angetroffen. Sie sind von einem eingezogenen Leben und werden immerdar von Tugenden reden.

205bm 51

206Civavākkiyam, the blissfulness of life, which contains nothing but articles of good morality, in 48 stanzas. The author gave himself the name Civavākkiyam, which means the blissfulness of life, and he has written many other verses on moral philosophy. Although he was a Malabarian, he confessed no religion but advocated only a virtuous life. He knew very well how to portray the blindness of humanity, and how to correct it. To this day, he has many followers, who read nothing but his work and show little regard for the outward ceremonies of the idols which take place in the pagodas. I have very often spoken with people of this sort, who agree with me in everything in all that I say of the virtues but just as they think nothing of their idols and the disputes in their religion, so they will not hear either of Christ and of the uniqueness of the Christian religion. I have also met with the same type of people among the Moors and Mahometans. They lead a very austere life and are forever talking of virtue.

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208Tschiwapaikkiam, die Glückseligkeit des Lebens, bestehend in hundert und drei Versstrophen, gemacht von jetztgedachten Autor.

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210Civavākkiyam, the blissfulness of life, consisting of 103 stanzas, by the author just mentioned.

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212Tschiwapaikkiam, die Glückseligkeit des Lebens, bestehend in 65 Versstrophen. Dergleichen Theile von dem Tschiwapaikkiam findet man sehr viele under den Malabaren und nachdem des Autors Schüler wissen, daß ihres Lehrmeisters Namen unter den Malabaren sehr gültig ist, so machen sie selbst sehr viele moralia und geben sie unter dessen Namen heraus, wie dergleichen auch oftmals in Europa zu geschehen pfleget.

213bm 53 Civavākkiyam, the blissfulness of life, consisting of 65 stanzas. Sections of Civavākkiyam like this are very often found among the Malabarians, and once the disciples of an author know that their teacher’s name has some currency among the Malabarians, they make many moral precepts themselves and bring them out under his name, just as often happens in Europe.

No Tamil work is quoted more often in Ziegenbalg’s own writings, especially the Malabarisches Heidenthum, than Civavākkiyam. Although Ziegenbalg describes Civavākkiyar as having confessed no particular religion, it was precisely his advocacy of an austere monotheism, devoid of outward ceremonial and superstitious observances such as caste, which attracted Ziegenbalg to his work. Civavākkiyar’s style, using forms found in speech, influenced Ziegenbalg’s own style in Tamil in his translation of the Bible and other works.

Patineṇ cittarkal periya ñānakkōvai, ed. Vā. Caravaṇamuttup Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: B. Irattina Nāyakar, 1975).

214bm 54

215Kumarerperil wannam, ein musicalisches Lied über Ispiri Sohn, so sehr künstlich gesungen wird.

216*Kumarar pēril vaṇṇam, a musical song on Īcuvaraṉ’s son, which is sung very artistically.

217bm 55

218Wischtnum dewannam, ein Lied über Wischtnum, so allein von den Musicis gesungen werden kann.

219*Viṣṇu mēl vaṇṇam, a song about Viṣṇu, which can only be sung by musicians.

220bm 56

221Annamalei nader wannam, ein Lied über Ispiren.

222Aṇṇāmalainātar vaṇṇam, a song about Īcuvaraṉ.

223bm 57

224Udelkuddu wannam, ein Lied über die Beschaffenheit des menschlichen Lebens.

225Uṭalkuṟṟu vaṇṇam, a song about the nature of human life.

226bm 58

227*Schuwami perile wannam, zwei Lieder über Gott.

228Cuvāmi pēril vaṇṇam, two songs about God.

Vaṇṇam is a genre of short but sophisticated poems in eight stanzas, which flourished from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century. Of the five works here, only Aṇṇāmalainātar vaṇṇam and Uṭalkuṟṟu vaṇṇam can be identified with confidence. Cēṟai Kavirāca Piḷḷai’s vaṇṇam on Śiva as Lord of Aṇṇāmalai is one of the most accomplished of the genre. Of the several Uṭalkuṟṟu vaṇṇam, the best known are those of Aruṇakirinātar and the fifteenthcentury cittar Paṭṭiṉattār, both of which are reflections on the vanity of human life.

“Aṇṇāmalaiyār Vaṇṇam”, in Palavittuvāṉkaḷ pāṭiya Vaṇṇattiraṭṭu, ed. Kā. Ra. Kōvintarāja Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Māṟaṉ Accukkūṭam, 1926), 29–31.

Vā. Caravaṇamuttup Piḷḷai, ed., Patiṉeṇcittarkaḷ periya Ñāṉakkōvai (Ceṉṉai: Vittiyāratnākara Accukkūṭam, 1927).

229bm 59

230Dadduwa wilakkam, ein philosophisches Buch, darinnen gezeiget wird die ganze Beschaffenheit des Menschen Leibes und der Seelen, sammt alle demjenigen, was zu dem Wesen des Leibes und der Seelen gehört, da dann nachmals von dem Erkenntniß des Menschen gezeiget wird, wie Gott zu erkennen sei. Es ist ein sehr schweres Buch sowohl seiner Materie nach als auch wegen seiner Versart. Diese und dergleichen Bücher werden anietzo nicht mehr von den Malabaren geschrieben, sondern sind alle vor uralten Zeiten von denjenigen geschrieben worden, die sie Propheten nennen. Dergleichen philosophische Wissenschaften haben sie 96, deren ich mich aber noch nicht recht erkundigen können.

231bm 59

232Tattuva viḷakkam, a philosophical book, in which the whole nature of the human body and soul is described, together with all that which pertains to the nature of the body and soul. Afterward it is shown how recognition of human nature should lead to recognition of God. It is a very difficult book both with respect to its content, and because of the type of verse. Books like this are now no longer written by the Malabarians, rather they have all been written in the olden days by those they call prophets. They have 96 philosophical sciences of this sort, but I am not yet able to give a proper account of them.

There are several works with this title, but Ziegenbalg’s entry suggests that what he had was the Tattuva viḷakkam ascribed to Campanta caraṇālayar (fifteenth century, also known as Kaṇṇuṭaiya Vaḷḷalār), a Caiva Cittānta work in 51 verses. The work is listed in Walther’s catalogue in 1731 as “Parāparatattuvam or Tattuvaviḷakkam” and was one of only 20 works in the Bibliotheca Malabarica still remaining in the mission library in 1754.

Tattuva viḷakkam: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Irāma Kōvintacāmi Piḷḷai (Tañcāvūr: Caracuvati makāl nūl nilaiyam, 1990).

233bm 60

234Nalenkadei, eine weitläufige Historie eines berühmten Königes Nalen gennant, so da mit seinem Bruder die ganze Welt soll beherrscht haben. Es ist solche Historie in schweren Versen geschrieben, und hält solche Sachen in sich, die die neugierigen Malabaren gerne hören mögen. Der Autor dessen heißt Adiwiraramen, so da ein König gewesen und die Poesie wohl verstanden haben soll.

235bm 60

236Naḷaṉ katai, a lengthy story of a famous king called Naḷaṉ, who together with his brother is supposed to have ruled the whole world. This story is written in difficult verses and includes the sort of things which the curious Malabarians like very much to hear. The author is called Ativīrarāmaṉ, who is supposed to have been a king and to have had a good understanding of poetry.

An episode from the Mahābhārata, the story of Naḷaṉ and his queen Tayamanti. There are several Tamil versions, including the fourteenth-century Naḷaveṇpā of Pukaḻēnti, of which Ziegenbalg also had a copy (bm 86). The sixteenth-century version ascribed to Ativīrarāmaṉ Pāṇṭiyaṉ is known as Naiṭatam. There is a manuscript entitled Naḷaṉ katai in Paris (Tamoule 562), and David Shulman describes “an undatable Tamil folk version printed in chapbook form as the Naḷaccakkiravartti katai.”45
Naiṭatam: mūlamum uraiyum (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1962).

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238Wanen Kowei, eine historische Beschreibung des Königreichs Tanjour, allwo ehemals ein König Namens Wanen regieret hat, darinnen ist enthalten die Art der Weibspersonen daselbst, wie sie nämlich geschminket und gekleidet gingen, item die schönen Situationes, die wohlliegenden Berge und deren Einwohner etc. Dieses alles ist sehr zierlich in 400 Versstrophen verfasset wordern, und wird von den Einwohnern daselbst gesungen zum Zeitvertreib. Der Autor heißt Ambiabadi, so ein sehr vornehmer Poet gewesen und über alle alte Könige Verse gemacht hat. Es werden sonst von ihm sehr viel Historien erzählet, die aber allhier nicht können angeführet werden. Er ist des berühmten Poeten Kamben Sohn gewesen.

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240Vāṇaṉ kōvai, a historical description of the kingdom of Tañcai [Tañcākkūr] where once there reigned a king named Vāṇaṉ. It includes the ways of women, that is, how they were made up and dressed, also beautiful scenes, the well-located mountains and their inhabitants, etc. This has all been composed very elegantly in 400 stanzas, and is sung by the inhabitants themselves to while away the time. The author is called Ampikāpati, a very distinguished poet who wrote verse on all the old kings. Many stories are told of him besides, which however cannot be recited here. He was the son of the famous poet Kampaṉ.

Tañcaivāṇaṉ kōvai is a thirteenth-century panegyric on Vāṇaṉ (Cantirvāṇaṉ), a Pāṇḍya chieftain of Tañcākkūr in the far south of Tamil Nadu. Tañcai is the short form of both Tañcākkūr and Tañcāvūr, the region surrounding Tranquebar, and Ziegenbalg’s interest in the work might have been prompted by a confusion of the two. Tañcaivāṇaṉ kōvai, one of the most famous kōvai works, is ascribed to Poyyāmoḻi pulavar and designed to illustrate the principles of Nāṟkavirācanampi’s Akapporuḷ viḷakkam, a work on akam poetics. Tañcai vāṇaṉ kōvai mūlam, ed. Kuṉṟattūr Aṭṭāvatāṉi Cokkappa Mutaliyār, Tirumayilai Teyvacikāmaṇi Mutaliyār and Tirumayilai Caṇmukam Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: Amerikaṉ Accukkūṭam, 1893).

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242Indira tscheiddu báralam, eine Historie von den Heldenthaten des Indiratscheiddu, so des Rawanen Sohn gewesen. Dieses Buch ist in schweren Versen geschrieben: dessen Autor ist der oft gedachte Kamben.

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244Intiracittu paṭalam, a history of the heroic deeds of Intiracittu, who was the son of Rāvaṇa. This book is written in difficult verses; the author of it is the oftmentioned Kampaṉ.

The twenty-eighth chapter of the Yutta kāṇṭam of Kampaṉ’s Irāmāvatāram (bm 31).

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246Ambigeimalei, ein Schulbüchlein von 30 Versstrophen, darinnen das Lob der Göttin Párbadi enthalten ist, die da angerufen wird, daß sie bei ihrem Manne, dem großen Abgott Ispiren, stets gute Intercession einlegen soll. Dieses Büchlein ist vor hundert Jahren von einem Bramanen gemacht worden.

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248Ampikai mālai, a little schoolbook of thirty stanzas, containing the praise of the goddess Pārvatī, who is implored always to intercede with her husband, the great idol Īcuvaraṉ. This booklet was written a hundred years back by a Brahmin.

Kulacēkara Pāṇṭiyaṉ’s Ampikai mālai, thirty verses on Ampikai (the goddess Mīṉāṭcī at Madurai) is indeed thought to have been written about a century before Ziegenbalg was writing.46

Maturāpuri Ampikai mālai, ed. El. Ē. Veṅkucāmi Aiyar (Maturai: Vivēkapānu Acciyantiracālai, 1914).

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250Baramaráschiamalei, Anrufung des Ispiren, bestehend in 100 Liedern. Der Autor heißt Kuru namatschiweier dessen oben gedacht worden.

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252Paramarakaciya mālai, an invocation of Īcuvaraṉ, consisting of a hundred songs. The author is Kuru Namacivāyar, who has been mentioned above (bm 48).

Ziegenbalg quotes a dozen of the hundred verses of Kuru Namacivāyar’s Paramarakaciya mālai in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, repeating two of them in the Genealogia.47 The mission archive in Halle holds a palm-leaf manuscript (tam 89G) of Paramarakaciya mālai copied in 1735, most likely from the copy in the mission library in Tranquebar recorded in Walther’s 1731 catalogue.48 It is one of only eight works in Ziegenbalg’s original collection which are still held in manuscript in the mission archives in Halle.49

Paramarāciyamālai mūlapāṭam, ed. Kōkulapuram Caravaṇa Paṇṭitar and C. Vīrācāmi Nāyuṭu (Ceṉṉai: Vityāviṉōta Accukkūṭam, 1880).

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254Kuschalawen kadei, eine Historie von des Wischtnum Sohne dem Kuschalawen, so da von der Göttin Tschidadewi geboren worden, und mit seinem eigenen Vater, dem Wischtnum, Krieg geführet hat, nicht wissend, daß er sein Sohn sey, indem er in der Wildniß von einem Propheten auferzogen worden. Diese Historie bestehet in 400 Versstrophen, so da von Kamben gemacht worden.

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256Kucalavaṉ katai, a history of Viṣṇu’s son, Kucalavaṉ, who was born of the goddess Sītā Devī, and waged war upon his own father, Viṣṇu, not knowing that he was his son as he had been raised in the wilderness by a prophet. This history consists of 400 stanzas, written by Kampaṉ.

This is a folk version of the story of Kuca and Lavā, the sons of Rāmā, but it is not by Kampaṉ, who did not include the Uttara kāṇṭam in his Irāmāvatāram. Oṭṭakkūttar translated the Uttara kāṇṭam into Tamil. A manuscript (IAS 22) and a published edition are available, but Hikosaka and Samuel note that the story in this manuscript differs from Oṭṭakkūttar’s version. Sīta gives birth first to one son, Kucalavaṉ, and a second, Acalavaṉ, is created by Vālmīki (Descriptive Catalogue 4: 369–70). The editor of the edition published by the Saraswati Mahal Library ascribes it to Viṉaitīrttāṉ.

Kucalavaṉ katai, ed. Ca. Tilakam (Tañcāvūr: Tañcāvūr Makārājā Carapōjiyiṉ Caracuvati Makāl Nūl Nilaiyam, 1983).

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258Tschamanda bullei dirunamum, die Beschaffenheit des Menschen nach seinem unterschiedlichen Alter bestehende in 100 Liedern, wie denn von den Malabaren alle Verse gesungen werden als Lieder, der Autor dieses Buchs heißt Dirumankeialwar, so da lange Zeit ein König gewesen, aber nachmals sein Königreich verlassen hat, und sich nur der Weisheit beflissen im Leben, Reden und Schreiben, welches alles in der ersten Weltzeit geschehen seyn soll.

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260*Cammanta piḷḷai tirunāmam, the nature of a man through the different periods of life, consisting of a hundred songs. All poetry is sung by the Malabarians as songs. The author of this book is called Tirumaṅkai Āḻvār, who for a long time was a king, but later renounced his kingdom and devoted himself to wisdom in life, speech and writing. This is supposed all to have taken place in the first age of the world.

This work is difficult to identify. Piḷḷaittirunāmam is another name for the piḷḷaittamiḻ genre, which usually consists of one hundred verses in ten sections. Jeyaraj suggests the title be taken as a reference to Camantakam, a jewel worn by Kṛṣṇa around his neck, but there are only 20 verses in piḷḷaittamiḻ style in Tirumaṅkai Āḻvār’s works and none refer to Camantakam.50 Ziegenbalg’s description of the work coheres with the traditional account of Tirumaṅkai’s life, suggesting that this could be a work about him, rather than by him, based on autobiographical details in his poetry.

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262Egateschipuranum, ein altes Buch von den Fasten der Malabaren, so alle halbe Monden geschiehet. Es ist darinnen enthalten eine Historie eines Königes Namens Rukkuman Kuden, der allezeit nach Verfließung eines halben Mondes gefastet hat, und von Wischtnum deswegen in die Seligkeit aufgenommen worden. Dahero weil alle Malabaren gerne wollen selig werden, so pflegen sie allezeit dieselben 2 Tage im Monat zu fasten.

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264*Ēkātaci purāṇam, an old book on the Malabarians’fast which takes place every half-moon. It contains the history of a king named Rukmāṅkataṉ, who fasted at the passing of every half-moon and was therefore granted salvation by Viṣṇu. Thus since all Malabarians keenly want to be saved, they are in the habit of fasting on the same two days of the month.

There is an purāṇam on the Ēkātaci fast observed by Vaiṣṇavas by Varata Paṇṭitar, an eighteenth-century Brahmin from Jaffna, who also composed a Civarāttiri purāṇam on a similar fast observed by Śaivas.51 Ziegenbalg has a Civarāttiri purāṇam (bm 95) but the works by Varata Paṇṭitar are probably later than the Bibliotheca Malabarica and Ziegenbalg does not mention him in connection with either of them. Ziegenbalg summarises the story of each purāṇam in the Malabarisches Heidenthum (mh 86–87, 89).

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266Kerudabanschatscharam, abergläubische Anbetung eines Vogels Keruden genannt, darauf Wischtnum als auf einem Wagen fahren soll. Vermöge dieser abergläubischen Gebetsformeln soll einer mächtig seyn alle Schlangen zu greifen, ohne daß er von ihr gestochen wird. Dieses Büchlein soll Wischtnum selbst gemacht haben, daher wird es denn auch als ein großes Heiligthum gehalten von den Wischtnumianern. Mein Poet, den ich anjetzo bei mir habe, hat selbst vermöge dieser Hexerei viele Schlangen gefangen und kann noch alle Schlange angreifen, ohneracht daß er blind ist.

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268Karuṭa pañcāṭcaram, superstitious worship of a bird called Karuṭa on whom Viṣṇu is supposed to travel, as on a vehicle. By virtue of these superstitious mantras one is supposedly empowered to handle all snakes without being bitten by them. Viṣṇu himself is supposed to have written this little book, for which reason it is regarded as very holy by the Vaiṣṇavas. My poet, who I have with me now, has caught many snakes by this sorcery and can handle all snakes despite the fact that he is blind.

Hikosaka and Samuel record a manuscript of this work in 57 verses (IAS 377; Descriptive Catalogue 4: 319) which “reveals the methods to make antidotes for [snake] poison through mantras.”

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270Tschiran kareier ammanei, ein sehr weitläuftiges Buch in sehr wohlklingenden und fließenden Versen, darinnen die ganze Historie des Wischtnum enthalten ist. Der Autor dessen ist ein vornehmer Kayser gewesen, so über alle Königrieche und Fürstenthümer das Oberhaupt gewesen. Sein Name heißt Tschirankureier, von dessen Familie annoch einer allhier auf dieser Küste Coromandel den Titel eines Kaisers führet, aber dergleichen Herrschaft nicht mehr hat; sintemal der große Mogul ihm nur ein Land von zwei Tonnen Goldes eingeräumet hat, davon er seinen Staat führen muß.

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272Cīraṅka rāyā ammāṉai, a very lengthy book in very mellifluous and fluent verses, containing the whole history of Viṣṇu. The author of it was a noble emperor, the overlord of all kingdoms and principalities. His name was Cīraṅkarācā, and his family here on this Coromandel coast still bear the title of emperor, but no longer have the same power for the great Mogul has only ceded to him land worth two tonnes of gold from which he must sustain his state.

Three emperors of the Aravidu dynasty of the Vijayanagara empire bore the name Śrīraṅka, but none is known to have composed an ammāṉai. There is however a manuscript with this title in the Sarasvati Mahal Library (SML Vol. III 491).

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274Kischtnen Tudu, ein historisches Buch von dem Abgott Kischtnen, darinnen von lauter Kriegesfachen gehandelt wird. Es bestehet in 260 Versstrophen nebst Erklärung eines jedweden Verses. Der Autor dessen heißt Willipuddualwar, so da ein Ackermann gewesen, dessen Sohn annoch am Leben ist, und sich durch seine Poesie sehr bekannt gemacht hat.

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276Kiruṣṇaṉ tūtu, a historical book on the idol Kiruṣṇaṉ, dealing with topics of warfare. It consists of 260 stanzas together with commentary on each verse. The author is called Villiputtūr Āḻvār, he was a farmer. His son is still alive, and made himself very famous through his poetry.

“The Embassy of Kiruṣṇaṉ” is an episode from the Uṭṭiyōka paruvam of Villiputtūr Āḻvār’s Pāratam, in which Kiruṣṇaṉ unsuccessfully attempts to mediate between the warring parties. The episode is performed as a terukkūttu, a ritual theatre performed in villages, the most important of which re-enact the Pāratam over eighteen days. “Although the episode is presented and interpreted as a terukkūttu, the text of the composed portions is drawn almost entirely from the Villiputtūr Pāratam.”52 The episode is popular and has been published separately. According to Tamil tradition, Villiputtūr’s son completed his unfinished work, but Villiputtūr lived perhaps 400 years before Ziegenbalg’s time.

Śrīvilliputtūrāḻvār aruḷiya Śrī Kiruṣṇaṉ tūtu mūlamum, Kāñcipuram kumāracuvāmi Tēcikaravarkaḷ iyaṟṟiya poḻippuraiyum (Ceṉṉai: Pūmakaḷ vilāca accukkūṭam, 1934).

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278Nellemalei, ein Buch von Liebesversen oder Liedern, welches den unzüchtigen Versen des Ovid nicht unähnlich ist.

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280Nellai mālai, a book of erotic verse or songs, not without resemblance to the unchaste verses of Ovid.

Taylor records a manuscript with this title in the Mackenzie Collection (Vol. III, p. 63), but makes no comment on erotic content although he seldom fails to do so with other works. There are a series of works about Nellaiyappar (Śiva in Tirunelvēli) which make reference to the myth of Śiva as Bhikṣāṭana, the beggar whose beauty seduced the wives of the ascetics in the forest.53 Ziegenbalg’s text is most likely the Nellai varukka kōvai (or varukka mālai) of Virai Vētiyaṉ Ampikāpati.

Ampikāpati iyaṟṟiya Nellai varukkak kōvai, ed. L. Ulakanātapiḷḷai (Tañcai: Kūṭṭuṟavup Patippakam, 1936).

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282Keschendiramodschum, die Seligkeit eines Elephanten Namens Keschendirum, welcher von einem Krokodil gefangen, aber von Wischtnum wieder erlöset und in die Seligkeit eingeführet worden. Diese Historie wird in Versen sehr artig vorgetragen, hat aber lauter Ungereimtheiten in sich. Es ist dieses Buch anfänglich in Kirendum geschreiben worden von Baráschara brummarischi. Nachmals aber in malabarische Verse versetzt von Kischtnamarascha, so da ein vornehmer Edelmann gewesen, und sehr viele andere poetische Bücher geschrieben hat. Er ist gestorben vor 60 Jahren.

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284Kajēntiramōṭcam, the salvation of an elephant named Kajēntira, who was caught by a crocodile but then freed again by Viṣṇu and granted salvation. This story is set out in verse very well but is full of absurdities. This book was originally written in kirantam by Paraca Pirammariṣi. Later it was translated into Malabarian verse by Kiruṣṇamarācar, a distinguished nobleman who wrote very many other poetic books. He died sixty years ago.

Viṣṇu’s rescue of the elephant Kajēntira (Gajendra) appears in many Sanskrit sources, but was especially popular in the south. Paraca Pirammariṣi (Parāśara Brahmaṛṣi) is the speaker of the Viṣṇu Purāṇa which, however, does not include the story of Kajēntira. Ziegenbalg’s Kiruṣṇamarācar cannot be identified, but Shulman notes that “Raghunātha Nāyaka of Tanjore (1614–33), the great poet-king, composed a Telugu dance-drama (yakṣagāna) on this theme.”54 There is a Tamil version of the story entitled Kajēntira mōṭcam ascribed to Tiruvaṭitācar.

Tiruvaṭitācar aruḷicceyta Kajēntiramōṭcam: mūlapāṭam, ed. Ū. Puṣparata Ceṭṭiyār (Ceṉ-ṉapaṭṭanam: Kalāratnākaram Accukkūṭam, 1890).

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286Tscharanul, ein Buch von der Wahrsagerkunst, so in 52 Versstrophen bestehet, welche alle erkläret sind. Es fehlen einige Verse am Ende, wie viel aber kann ich nicht wissen. Diese Geheimnisse soll Ispiren seinem Weibe entdecket haben der Parbadi, welche nachmals dergleichen Buch einem Propheten in den Griffel dictiret, so daß solche Wissenschaft nachmals unter die Menschen gekommen.

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288Caranūl, a fortune-telling book, consisting of fifty-two stanzas, all of which are explained. Some verses are missing at the end, but I am unable to find out how many. Īcuvaraṉ is supposed to have revealed these secrets to his wife, Pārvatī, who then dictated the same book to a prophet so that this science would later be known to humanity.

This is a short text on predicting a person’s future by observing their breathing. It is set in the form of an answer by Śiva to Pārvatī’s question. There are several manuscripts and editions, all about the same length as Ziegenbalg’s manuscript, suggesting that not many verses, if any, were missing from his copy. It is included among the works of the cittar.

Vā. Caravaṇamuttup Piḷḷai, ed., Patiṉeṇcittarkaḷ periya Ñāṉakkōvai (Ceṉṉai: Vittiyāratnākara Accukkūṭam, 1927).

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290Madananul, ein sehr unflätiges Hurenbuch, darinnen der Hurengeist mit rechten Farben abgemalet ist, der unter diesen heidnischen Malabaren die Herrschaft hat, sintemal sie zu keiner Sünde mehr geneiget sind als zu der Sünde wider das sechste Gebot, wozu sie sowohl ihr eigen sündlich Fleisch und Blut, als auch sonderlich die Historie ihrer Abgötter verleitet, als welche alle dergleichen Sünden ergeben sind, dahero wird dergleichen Sünde nicht eben für eine große Sünde gehalten.

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292Mataṉanūl, a very obscene book of whores, in which the spirit of whoring which rules among these heathen Malabarians is shown in its true colours, for they are inclined to no sin more than the sin against the sixth commandment, to which they are led not only by their own sinful flesh and blood but also especially by the stories of their idols, all of whom are given over to the same sins, and thus these sins are not even regarded as serious.

A translation of the Rati rahasyam, a Sanskrit work on erotics atttributed to Kokkōkar. The editor of the edition cited here attributes the Tamil translation to Varatuṇkarāma pāṇṭiyaṉ.

Kokkōkamum mataṉalīlaiyum, jalakkirīṭaiyum aṭaṅkiyirukkiṉṟaṉa, ed. Pālakkāṭu Cuppumutaliyār (Cintātarippēṭṭai: Vivōtaya Accukkūṭam, 1909).

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294Ullamudeian, die Wahrsagereikunst, so von den Bramanen und Pantarum gelernet wird, die da nachmals von andern gemeinen Leuten dessen befraget worden, wenn sie etwa etwas bauen wollten oder sonst etwas Wichtiges vorhaben, daß sie möchten erfahren, ob es möge gut oder böse sein, und ob es wohl oder übel von Statten gehen würde, sie sagen, daß wer dergleichen Buch recht verstünde und nach selbigem alles wohl ausrechnen könne, der würde befinden, daß niemals einige Wahrsagung fehlschlagen würde. Es ist aber dergleichen Kunst in sehr intricaten Versen vorgetragen, so daß man sie ohne Anweisung von sich selbst schwerlich erlernen kann; wie sie denn auch eine von Gott verbotene Kunst ist, so da mehr Schaden als Nutzen in der Welt hat angerichtet. Der Autor dessen heißt Daumandiri, so ein berühmter Poet gewesen und sehr viel dergleichen Bücher geschrieben hat.

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296Uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ, the art of fortune-telling, as learned by the Brahmins and paṇṭārams who are then questioned by the other common people when they want to build something or otherwise plan something important so that they may know if it will turn out well or badly and whether it will go to plan or not. Thus whoever understands this book properly and is able to make calculations according to it will find that his prophecies never fail. This art is, however, set out in very intricate verses, so that without instruction it is very hard to learn on one’s own. Moreover this is an art forbidden by God, and has caused more harm than benefit in the world. The author is called Taṉvantiri, he was a famous poet and has written very many books of this kind.

As Ziegenbalg makes clear in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, Uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ is an astrological work (mh 232). There are two works entitled Uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ Cūṭāmaṇi (or Cūṭāmaṇi Uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ). One is ascribed to Maṇṭalapuruṭaṉ, the sixteenth-century Jaina author of Cūṭāmaṇi nikaṇṭu. The author of the other is known only as Uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ; Zvelebil assigns him to the twelfth or thirteenth century. Ziegenbalg also attributes another astrological work (bm 81) to Taṉvantiri. Taṉvantiri is a cittar, said to dwell at Vaitīcuvaraṉkōyil.55 Germann reads the Halle ms. here as “Daumantiri” and at bm 81 as “Danmantiri.” Gaur similarly reads the Sloane ms. as “Daúmandiri” and “Danmandiei,” and my own examination of the mss. suggests they are correct to read the fourth character as “m.” Nevertheless, no Taṉmantiri is known and it seems likely that Taṉvantiri is intended, even if Ziegenbalg wrote something like “Danmantiri.”

Maṇṭalapuruṭaṉ aruḷicceyta periya uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ eṉkiṟa, cūṭāmaṇi uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Citamparam Poṉṉucāmi Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Vittitāviṉōta accukkūṭam, 1890).

Cōtiṭakiraka cintāmaṇi, eṉṉum, Vīmēcura uḷḷamuṭaiyāṉ: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Ci. Taṅkavēlu Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Saṉ āp Intiyā Piras, 1923).

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298Nimidda Tschutamani, ist gleichfalls ein Wahrsagerbuch, so eben fast als wie die Punctirkunst eingerichtet ist, und von allen Malabaren consuliret wird, wenn etwas Wichtiges soll vorgenommen werden. Es gehöret eine sonderbare Rechenkunst darzu, außer welcher sonst Niemand dergleichen verstehen kann. Solche Wahrsagebücher findet man unter dergleichen Heiden sehr viel; wie solches denn auch ihr Aberglaube mit sich dringet, daß sie nichts anfangen zu thun, sie haben sich denn befraget, ob’s ein guter oder böser Tag sey, item, ob’s ein gut oder böses Zeichen sey etc.

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300Nimitta cūṭāmaṇi, is also a fortune-telling book, set out almost like divination by dots, and is consulted by all Malabarians when something important is to be undertaken. A special form of counting is involved without which no-one can understand this book. One finds very many fortune-telling books of this sort among these heathens. Their superstition means they do not begin anything without having asked whether it is supposed to be a good or evil day, whether the omens are good or evil etc.

In the Malabarisches Heidenthum, Ziegenbalg describes another work of divination, Cāttira muṭṭi, which involves mathematical manipulation (mh 240, see also below, 131), but it is not clear whether this is the same as the “special form of counting” which he mentions here. Like other works of this sort (including Kevuḷi kātal; bm 82), Nimitta cūṭāmaṇi is traditionally ascribed to Cakātēvar, the fifth Pāṇḍava.

Cakātēva nūl, eṉṉum, Cakātēva nimitta cūṭāmaṇi: ārūṭa cāttiram, ed. Ciṉṉaiyā Kōvintarācaṉār (Tañcāvūr: Tañcāvūr Makārājā Carapōjiyiṉ Caracuvati Makāl Nūl Nilaiyam, 1986).

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302Torundawaschagum, eine Historie von einem Könige Namens Tschorarascha, so da in allen Dingen sehr genau nach Gerechtigkeit verfahren, so daß er auch seinem eigenen Sohn das Leben hat nehmen lassen, als er nur etwas Geringes gethan, so da wider seine Gerechtigkeit gelaufen. Der Autor dessen heißet gnana boragaschapantarum.

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304Tērūrnta vācakam, the story of a king named Cōḻarāja, who conducted himself in all things strictly in accordance with righteousness, so that he even had his son’s life taken when he did even the least thing which ran counter to his righteousness. The author is called Ñāṉappirakācar Paṇṭāram.

Ziegenbalg recounts the story of Maṉunītikaṇṭacoḻaṉ at some length in the Malabarisches Heidenthum (119–23), as an example of the idolatrous veneration of the cow. The story appears first in Cilappatikāram,56 and is expanded in Periya purāṇam.57 Kamalai Ñāṉappirakācar (sixteenth century) is associated with Tiruvārūr, where the story is set, and Ziegenbalg had another work of his which is also set there (the Tiyākarāca paḷḷu or Tiruvārūr paḷḷu; bm 90), but no Tērūrnta vācakam by Ñāṉappirakācar is known. There are several mss. entitled Tērūrnta vācakam in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library (d–410 to d–415).58 The story is well-known and there are other later retellings, for example, a Tērūrnta cōḻan kaṭai.59

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306Barada Sastirum, die Musikkunst in Singen, Tanzen und Spielen, darinnen alles nach sonderlichem Tact eingerichtet ist. Dieses Büchlein wird in Schulen von der Jugend gelernet, sonderlich von denjenigen Mädchen, so da in den Pagoden vor den Abgöttern dienen und vor selbigen singen und tanzen sollen. Sintemal diese allein die malabarische Sprache lesen und schreiben lernen, da man sonst unter den Malabaren keine Frauenspersonen siehet, die sich sonst dessen beflissen, ohne allein königliche und fürstliche Personen. Ich aber habe im Hause eine malabarische Schule eingerichtet, darinnen mehr Mädchen als Knaben sind, davon ich gute Hoffnung habe, daß sie mit den Knaben werden gleich fortkommen können.

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308Pārata cāttiram, the art of music in singing, dancing and performing, each of which has a particular rhythm. This booklet is learned by the youth in schools and especially by those young girls who serve before the idols in the pagodas and are supposed to sing and dance before them. They alone learn to read and write the Malabarian language; apart from them one sees no women among the Malabarians occupied with this, with the exception of royal or noble people. In my house, however, I have set up a school in which there are more girls than boys and I am hopeful that they will soon be able to hold their own with the boys.

The Tamil Pārata cāttiram of Arapatta Nāvalar dates from the sixteenth century. While Ziegenbalg displays the usual missionary disgust for those he calls “dancing whores” (see the entry on Pala kavi cuvaṭi below), when commenting on Pārata cāttiram in the Malabarische Correspondenz (hb 7: 442) he has the grace to acknowledge that his Tamil contemporaries in turn regard European dancing as “unchaste” because men dance with women.

Parata cāstiram: uraiyuṭaṉ, ed. Cantiracēkara Paṇṭitar (Ceṉṉai, 1876).

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310Madumei malei, ein Liederbüchlein über die Göttin Madumei genannt, so da eine von den größten Göttinnen ist. Der Autor dessen ist Kannappar pataram, so da vor wenig Zeit gestorben.

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312*Mātumai mālai, a little book of songs on the goddess called Mātumai, who is one of the greatest goddesses. The author of it is Kaṇṇappa paṇṭāram, who died a short time ago.

Mātumai is, as Ziegenbalg notes in the Genealogia (gmg 59v), a form of Pārvatī. The work has not been identified. Although, with Germann, we read the Halle manuscript as “Kannabbar pataram,” or “pātaram,” this is probably a mistake for “paṇṭāram.”

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314Banscha patschi, Wahrsagerkunst von fünf Vögeln, deren Fliegen, Essen und Schlafen wohl observiret werden muß.

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316Pañcapaṭci cāttiram, fortune-telling from five birds, whose flying, eating and sleeping must be observed closely.

This sort of divination is based on correlations between five birds, five states (eating, walking, ruling, sleeping, dying) that they may be in during five periods of the day, and which of the lunar mansions the moon was in on the day of a person’s birth.60 The work is variously ascribed to Akkatiyar or to Pōkar, and has a Caiva Cittānta orientation. A manuscript in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library in Chennai (d–1996) notes that it was formerly in the possession of “the relatives of one ‘Kaliṅga Rāya Piḷḷai of Tayangambadi’ (probably Tranquebar).” Pañcapaṭci cāstiramūlamum ataṟkiyainta cakkaraṅkaḷum. Caṅkaraṉār Umāmayēsvaṟik kupatēcitta Ñāṉacaranūlmūlamum uraiyum, ed. Ka. Pī. Ātamrāvuttar (Ceṉṉai: Meyññāṉacūriyōtayavilāca Accukkūṭam, 1867).

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318Nawakkiraga tschintamani, Wahsagerkunst nach den Planeten, so da in sehr intricaten Versen geschrieben ist. Der Autor dessen heißt Danmandiri, der viele dergleichen Bücher geschrieben hat und ein guter Astronomus gewesen.

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320Navakkiraka cintāmaṇi, fortune-telling by the planets, written in very intricate verses. The author of it is called Taṉvantiri, who has written many books of this sort and was a good astronomer.

On Taṉvantiri, to whom Ziegenbalg ascribes also another work in his collection, see above (bm 75). Like other works of astrology, this text is traditionally ascribed to Cakātēvar, the fifth Pāṇḍava.

Navakkiraka cintāmaṇi eṉṉum Cātaka cūṭamaṇi, ed. Cuppiramaṇiya Cuvāmi (Ceṉṉai: Sri Patmavilāsa Accukkūṭam, 1892).

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322Kewulikadei, Wahrsagekunst aus dem Rufen der Vierbeine, der Schlangen und dergleichen Thiere.

323Kevuḷi kātal, fortune-telling from the calls of lizards, snakes, and the like.

Divination based on the direction and timing of noises made by house lizards.61

Kevuḷi cāstiram, ed. I. Mā. Kōpālakiruṣṇak Kōṉ (Maturai, 1946).

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325Arunágiri antádi, hundert Lieder über den großen Abgott Ispiren. Der Autor dessen heißt Arunagiri náden, so da anfänglich ein Trommelschläger gewesen an der Pagode, und ein sehr hurisches und gottloses Leben geführet, wird aber nachmals bekehrt, da er dann desto größere Buße gethan, je ärgerlicher er vorher gelebet hatte, so daß ihm deswegen der Abgott Subbiramanien große Weisheit gegeben, nach welcher er nicht nur allein ein sehr eingezogenes Leben geführet, sondern auch sehr viele Liederbücher in schönen Versen angefertiget hat. Dergleichen Bücher werden in Schulen von der Jugend gelernet, und in allerlei Zufällen gesungen.

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327Aruṇakiri antāti, a hundred songs on the great idol Īcuvaraṉ. The author is called Aruṇakirinātar, who was originally a drummer in the pagodas and led a very lascivicious and godless life. Later, however, he was converted and his subsequent penances were as great as his former life was vexatious. As a result that the idol Cuppiramaṇiaṉ gave him great wisdom in accordance with which he not only led a very austere life but also wrote very many songbooks in beautiful verses. These books are learned in schools by the youth, and sung on all occasions.

This is the Aruṇakiri antāti on Śiva as Aruṇakirinātar, or Tiruvaṇṇāmalaiyār, in a hundred verses by the sixteenth-century Kukai Namacivāyar of Tiruvaṇṇāmalai. Ziegenbalg appears to have taken the reference to Aruṇakiri (the hill at Tiruvaṇṇāmalai) in the title to refer to the author (Aruṇakirinātar, whom Ziegenbalg describes in similar terms in his entry on Tiruppukaḻ) and not the subject of the poem (Śiva as Aruṇakirinātar, Lord of Aruṇakiri). Ziegenbalg did, however, know of Kukai Namacivāyar, and ascribes a Citampara mālai (bm 33) to him.

Teyvattaṉmai viḷaṅkiya Kukainamacivāyatēvar aruḷicceyta Aruṇakiriyantāti mūlam, ed. Vē. Āṟumuka Mutaliyār and Tirumayilai Caṇmukam Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: Mīṉāṭciyammai Kalāniti Accukkūṭam, 1887).

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329Schawundara lágari, die Trunkene Schönheit, bestehend in hundert Liedern über die Göttin Baramesuri, so da von einem Bramanen Putpatenden gemachet worden. Dieser Autor, als er in zwanzig Liedern die Brüste dergleichen Göttin so hoch gerühmet und sehr unzüchtig davon geschrieben hatte, so wird er zur Stelle stumm, als er aber deswegen sich das Leben nehmen will, so erscheinet ihm die Gottin Baramesuri, ihn fragend, warum er doch so unkeusch von ihr geschrieben hätte? Er giebet zur Antwort, daß Solches die Manier der Poeten wäre, und daß er von seinem Lehrmeister also wäre angeführet worden. Darauf saget sie, solches würde ihr zum großen Schimpf und Verachtung gereichen, wenn unzüchtige Leute dergleichen Verse lesen würden; schneidet also die zwanzig Verse auf kleine Stücken, und machet selbst an deren Statt andere zwanzig Verse.

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331Cavuntariya lakari, the intoxicating beauty, consisting of one hundred songs on the goddess Paramēcuvari written by the Brahmin Puṭpatantam. When this author wrote twenty very obscene songs in which the breasts of this goddess were highly praised he was struck dumb on the spot. He was about to take his own life because of it when the goddess Paramēcuvari appeared to him, asking him why he had written so unchastely about her? He answered that this was the manner of the poets and that he had been taught this way by his mentor. To this she replied that if unchaste people should happen to read these verses they it would bring her into great disrepute and contempt. She therefore shredded the twenty verses into tiny pieces and wrote another twenty verses herself to replace them.

The Sanskrit Saundarya Laharī is known widely and is popular especially in the south. The Tamil translation is ascribed to Vīrai kavirācapaṇṭitar (Nallūr Vīraṉ Ācukavirāyar). Stanza 75 refers to the “Draviḍa child” becoming a master poet after tasting “the ocean of the milk of poesy,” which flowed from the goddess’s breasts,62 and Brooks notes a version of the text’s origin myth which involves a yakṣa named Puṣpadanta (Puṭpatantam) who overheard the text being sung by Śiva63 but this and the other details reported by Ziegenbalg are not part of the Sanskrit tradition surrounding Saundarya Laharī, which is traditionally, if implausibly, ascribed to Śaṅkara.

Cauntariya lakari, ed. S. Aṉavaratavināyakam Piḷḷai (Ceṉṉai: Matarās Rippaṉ Acciyantiracālai, 1916).

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333Naraiana tschadagom, hundert Lieder über den Abgott Wischtnum, so sehr künstlich zu singen eingerichtet. Der Autor heißt Karimara pirau so da in seinem sechszehnten Jahre Vater und Mutter verlassen und sich in eine Pagode zu leben gegeben hat. Da er dann ein sehr strenges Leben geführet und dabey viel Bücher geschrieben hat. Er ist vor sehr kurzer Zeit nicht weit von hier gestorben.

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335Nārāyaṇa catakam, a hundred songs on the idol Viṣṇu, arranged to be sung very artfully. The author is called Kārimāṟaṉ pirapu, who left his father and mother in his sixteenth year and gave himself up to life in a pagoda. There he led a very austere life and thus wrote many books. He died a very short time ago, not far from here.

Kārimāṟaṉ pirapu refers to Nammāḻvār and, except for the statement about his recent death, the account given of the author’s life also fits Nammāḻvār. There are several texts with this title, and it is difficult to be certain which one Ziegenbalg had. It is perhaps most likely to be the Nārāyaṇa catakam of Maṇavāḷa, a sixteenth century work consisting of a hundred verses in praise of Viṣṇu which was widely circulated and used in schools by older children. Ziegenbalg had many such texts, perhaps because his first Tamil teacher was a former schoolmaster.

Veṇmaṇi Nārāyaṇa Pāratiyār aruḷicceyta Maṇavāḷa Nārāyaṇa catakam, eṉṉum, Tiruvēṅkaṭa catakam, 3rd ed., ed. Kāñcipuram Irāmayōkikaḷ (Ceṉṉai: Matarās Rippaṉ Acciyantiracālai, 1921).

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337Nalenwenpà, eine Historie von einem Könige, so da in sehr fließenden Versen geschrieben.

338Naḷa veṇpā, the story of a king written in very fluent verses.

The Naḷaveṇpā of Pukaḻēnti, a fourteenth-century poet, is widely admired.64 Ziegenbalg has two other works which he ascribes to Pukaḻēnti (bm 32 and bm 43), but he seems to have had little interest in this work. When one of his correspondents (hb 7: 432) mentions the story of Naḷa, Ziegenbalg refers to the later version ascribed to Ativīrarāmaṉ Pāṇṭiyaṉ (bm 60).

Pukaḻēntip Pulavar iyaṟṟiya Naḷaveṇpā: mūlamum, ed. Ce. Re. Irāmacāmi Piḷḷai (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēlit Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1963).

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340Tscherudunda Kadei, eine Historie von einem Ackermann, der sehr strenge gelebet and viel Wohlthaten gethan aber von Göttern sehr versuchet worden, so daß einstmals seinen eigenen Sohn hat schlachten müssen, welchen er aber nachmals wieder lebendig bekommen, und deswegen sehr begnadigt worden.

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342Ciṟuttoṇṭar katai, the story of a farmer who lived a very strict life and did many good deeds but was severely tried by the gods, so that once he had to slaughter his own son. Afterwards however he received him back alive and because of this was greatly blessed.

Ciṟuttoṇṭar, the “little devotee” is mentioned by the Tēvāram poets Campantar and Cuntarar but his story is first elaborated in Periya purāṇam.65 The story is well-known and there are many later versions, including a Ciṟuttoṇṭapattaṉ katai which has been reprinted several times.66 There is also an incomplete manuscript of a folk ballad entitled Ciṟutoṇṭar katai (IAS 252).

343bm 88

344Markanda puranum, eine Historie von einem Bramanensohn, dessen bestimmte Lebenszeit nicht länger als sechszehn Jahre gewesen, als er denn nun von dem Könige des Todes soll abgeholet werden, so nimmt er seine Zuflucht zum Zeichen der Abgötter in einer Pagode, da er denn nicht hinweg genommen werden kann. Da aber der König des Todes an ihm Gewalt brauchen will, so kommt Ispiren selbst aus demselbigen Zeichen und tödtet den König des Todes. Darüber kommen alle dreiunddreißigmalhunderttausend kleine Abgötter zusammen und legen Intercession ein wegen des Königs des Todes, sagend, daß er ja selbst dem Knaben nicht mehr als sechszehn Jahr zu leben bestimmt hätte. Er aber, nämlich der Ispiren, sagt, daß er dem Knaben hätte die Macht gegeben immer sechszehn Jahr alt zu seyn und niemals zu sterben, wecket endlich den König des Todes wieder auf und giebet ihm einen scharfen Verweis, daß er hinführo die tugendsame Leute nicht so bald antasten sollte, wenn er nicht vorhero einen ausdrücklichen Befehl hätte.

345Dieses ist geschehen in einer Stadt, so eine Meile Weges von hier gelegen, darinnen ich selbst einmal gewesen und mir solches erzählen lassen.

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347Mārkkaṇṭa purāṇam, the story of the son of a Brahmin whose preordained lifespan was no more than sixteen years. When the King of Death came to take him away, he took refuge in the sign of the idol in a temple, so that he could not be taken away. As the King of Death was going to use violence on him Īcuvaraṉ himself emerged from the same sign and killed the King of Death. Then all 33,000,000 minor idols came together to intercede on behalf of the King of Death, saying that he himself had preordained that the boy should not have more than sixteen years to live. But he, that is, Īcuvaraṉ, said that he had given the boy the power always to be sixteen years old and never to die. Finally he reawakened the King of Death and ordered him sharply that henceforth he should not so quickly apprehend virtuous people without having previously received an explicit order.

348This happened in a town situated just a mile distant from here. I myself have been there once and had this story told to me.

The town mentioned by Ziegenbalg is Tirukkaṭavūr (now Tirukkaṭaiyūr), close to Tranquebar, where the Tamil versions of the myth place Mārkkaṇṭēyaṉ.67 The Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa was translated into Tamil by Toluvūr Vēlāyutamutaliyār, but this is a nineteenthcentury work, and cannot be the version Ziegenbalg knew. Na. Ci. Kantaiyāpiḷḷai refers to another Tamil version, by Kuḻantai vēlu kavirāyar, but gives no date.68

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350Warunakuladidden, eine sonderliche Art Verse über einen Ackermann Warunakuladidden gennant, so eine Kayserstochter gemacht hat, als welche durch sonderlichen Zufall nebst andern zwei Frauenspersonen an einen Ort drei Meilen von hier kömmt und um sich zu ernähren, auf dem Markte Holz verkauft. Da denn nun dieser Ackermann sich in einem Palanquin tragen lässet und vor dieser Holzträgerin vorübergehet, so bekommt er große Geneigtheit zu ihr, läßt sie zu sich rufen, und da er vernimmt, daß sie von Kaisers Abkommen sey, so nimmt er sie zu sich und giebet ihr gute Unterhaltung, als aber der Kaiser vernimmt, daß seine Tochter weit von ihm gekommen und in dergleichen Elend gerathen, so läßt er sie alsbald wieder zu sich rufen und verheirathet sie an einen König, weil sie aber eine gute Poetin war und die Wohlthaten nicht vergessen konnte, die ihr der Ackermann gethan, so machet sie diese Verse über ihn. Hiernebst hat sie auch sehr viel andere Bücher gemacht, deren sich die Poeten in ihren Versen sehr bedienen, sintemal ihresgleichen nicht gewesen.

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352Varuṇakulātittaṉ maṭal, verses of a particular kind about a farmer called Varuṇakulātittaṉ, written by the daughter of an emperor who by strange chance is supposed to have ended up, together with two other women, in a place three miles from here where they sold firewood to support themselves. It happened that this farmer was being carried in a palanquin and when he passed before this woodseller he conceived a great liking for her and called her to him. Learning that she was of imperial descent he is supposed to have taken her to himself and given her a good upbringing. However when the emperor heard that his daughter had been taken far away from him and fallen into such need he immediately had her called back to him and married her to a king. But because she was a good poetess, and could not forget the good deed which the farmer had done for her, she wrote these verses about him. Besides this she wrote very many other books, which the poets make great use of in their verses, since they are without equal.

Varuṇakulātittaṉ maṭal ascribed to both Kāḷimuttu and Ammaicci, both of whom are said to have been devadāsīs. It is one the best known and most popular ulāmaṭal poems, a genre of poems in kaliveṇpā metre in which a man falls in love with a woman he dreams about or chances to meet and vows to ride a horse of palymra leaves (a revival of a caṅkam trope). Varuṇakula Āttitaṉ Kāttāṉ, the hero of this poem, is said to have been a wealthy man from Nākappaṭṭiṉam. Zvelebil suggests it owes its great popularity in part to its explicit eroticism,69 here signalled by Ziegenbalg’s euphemistic description of it as “verses of a particular kind.”

Varuṇakulātittaṉulāmaṭal, ed. Tillaiyampūr Cantiracēkara Kavirāja Paṇṭitar and Tampucāmi Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Ilakṣmīvilāsa accukkūṭam, 1875).

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354Diaga rascha pallu, ein Büchlein vom Landleben und Ackerbau, darinnen allerlei Lieder sind, welche die Pflüger, die Säemänner, die Schnitter, die Kuhhirten und alle diejenigen Leute zu singen pflegen, die da im Felde oder in Wäldern etwas zu arbeiten haben; je nachdem einer dieses und jenes zu thun hat, so ist auch sein Gesang darauf eingerichtet. Der Autor dessen ist der obengedachte Gnanaboragáscha pantaram, der sich alle Zeit auf einem Palanquin hat tragen lassen und zwar solcher Gestalt, daß nur an einer Seite der Palanquin von einigen Männer ist gehalten worden, die andere Seite ist durch seine Kunst gehalten worden, als wenn sie von Leuten getragen würde.

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356Tiyākarāca paḷḷu, a little book on country life and farming, containing all sorts of songs which the ploughmen, sowers, reapers, cowherds and people of that kind sing when they have work to do in the fields or forests; whatever one has to do, there is a song for it. The author is the above-mentioned Ñāṉappirakācar Paṇṭāram (bm 77), who always had himself carried about in a palanquin, moreover in such a manner that only one side of the palanquin was held by men, the other side being held up by his power, just as if it were born by people.

Paḷḷu is a somewhat satirical genre of literature about the Paḷḷas, an agricultural caste. Dramatis personae are a Paḷḷaṉ man and his two arguing wives, one Śaiva and one Vaiṣṇava, and their landlord, of a Veḷḷāḷar or other high Śūdra caste, also presented satirically. The nominal hero is often a god, in this case Tiyākarācar at Tiruvārūr. Kamalai Ñāṉappirakācar’s Tiyākarāca paḷḷu (or Tiruvārūr paḷḷu) is the one of the earliest of the genre which flourished from the sixteenth century. Through his disciple, Kuru Ñāṉacampantar, Kamalai Ñāṉappirakācar founded the Tarumapuram maṭam. The right of the heads of the maṭam to be carried in a palanquin is an important symbol of their status.70

Tiruvārūr paḷḷu, ed. Ca. Cōmacuntara Tēcikar (Madras: B.N. Press, [194-?]).

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358Warukka Kowei, allerlei Lieder von der Beschaffenheit der Nagapatnamischen Landschaft sammt deren Einwohnern. Diese Lieder werden Wischtnum zu Ehren gesungen, weil er für den Regierer desselbigen Landes gehalten wird. Der Autor dessen ist gewesen der Vater des hiesigen Manniakaren oder Zöllners Kaliabbullei genannt, welcher mir unterschiedliche sein Bücher verschaffet, sintemal er allhier gleichsam das Oberhaupt ist unter den Malabaren, und mir also wohl noch zu vielen mehrern können behülflich seyn, wenn er nicht von Andern deswegen sehr angefeindet worden.

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360*Varukka kōvai, all sorts of songs about the Nākappaṭṭiṉam region and its inhabitants. These songs are sung in honour of Viṣṇu, as he is regarded as the ruler of that country. The author was the father of the Maṇiyakkāraṉ, or tax collector, called Kaḷiyapiḷḷai, who provided me with various of his books. Since he is also the headman among the Malabarians he could well be useful to me in many other things too, if he did not encounter so much hostility from others on this account.

Varukka kōvai is the name of a genre of poems, usually about a town or temple, in which verses are arranged alphabetically. No Varukka kōvai on Nākappaṭṭiṉam has been identified. The Tirunākaikārōṇa purāṇam records a myth in which Śiva grants Ādiśeṣa’s request that Nākappaṭṭiṉam be named after him, which may perhaps be the source of Ziegenbalg’s idea that Viṣṇu is the ruler of the Nākappaṭṭiṉam region.

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362Tschiwa Kamaschawundirimalei, hundert und zwei Gesänge über die Göttin Tschiwa Kamaschawundiri.

363Civakāmacavuntari mālai, 102 songs on the goddess Civakāmacavuntari.

Civakāmacavuntari, “Śiva’s lovely beloved,” is the goddess Pārvatī at Chidambaram. In the Genealogia, Ziegenbalg notes that Civakāmacavuntari is a form of Pārvatī, but does not mention her connection to Chidambaram. No edition has been identified, but there is a manuscript with this title in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library (R–8392).

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365Nenschu wurutudu, ein Lobbüchlein über Ispiren, darinnen gezeigt wird, daß er weder von den übrigen kleinen Göttern, noch von den Engeln oder Menschen in seiner hohen Vortrefflichkeit könne erkannt und begriffen werden, aber gleichwohl wollte er stets bei einem solchen seyn, der stets mit seinem Gesetz umginge, und mit ihm Gemeinschaft haben. Dieses Büchlein ist vor dreihundert Jahren geschrieben von einem Pantaram, dessen Namen ich nicht recht erfahren können.

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367Neñcu viṭutūtu, a little book in praise of Īcuvaraṉ which shows that his excellence cannot be known or comprehended either by the other minor deities, nor by the angels or humans but that nevertheless he will always be with those who continually abide by his law, and will be in communion with him. This little book was written more than three hundred years ago by a Paṇṭāram whose name I have not been able to find out.

Viṭutūtu is a genre of messenger poems in which lovers communicate through an intermediary, in this case the personified heart (neñcu). Given his description and dating of the work, there is perhaps reason to think that Ziegenbalg here refers to the earliest important poem of the genre, the Neñcuviṭutūtu of Umāpati Civācāriyar (early fourteenth century). If so, however, it is the only one of the fourteen Caiva cittānta cāttiraṅkaḷ to which Ziegenbalg refers, and it is also possible that he had a later work of the same genre by an author associated with one of the maṭams.

Neñcuviṭu tūtu: teḷivuraiyuṭaṉ, ed. K. Sundaramurti (Tiruppāṉantāḷ: Śrīkācimaṭam, 1981).

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369Wiraliwurutudu, unzüchtige Liebeshistorie, gemacht von einem wohlgelehrten aber sehr unflätigen Poet Namens Wiraruguwamodelei, welcher zugleich auch ein Büchlein Verse über den König Kandi auf Ceylon geschrieben hat, der ihm einen schönen Elephanten und tausend Perdous zum Trankgeld gegeben. Sein Sohn ist annoch am Leben und wohnt nicht weit von hier, ahmet auch seinen Vater ziemlich nach.

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371Viṟali viṭutūtu, indecent love story, written by a learned, but very obscene, poet named Vīrarākavamutaliyār who at the same time also wrote a small book of verse about the King of Kandy in Ceylon, who in recognition gave him a beautiful elephant and a thousand perdous. His son is still alive and lives not far from here; he also imitates his father a good deal.

Another type of poem in the messenger genre, in which a man sends a viṟali, a dancer or courtesan, to conciliate his wife. There are many works with this title, but none ascribed to Antakakkavi Vīrarākava Mutaliyār is known. Vīrarākavamutaliyār was a blind poet who lived in the seventeenth century, so his son could well have been Ziegenbalg’s contemporary. He received an elephant and money for his vaṇṇam in praise of Pararājasiṅkam, a ruler on the Jaffna peninsula.

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373Tschiwaraddirei puranam, eine historische Nachricht von einem in der Wildniß wohnenden Menschen, der da auf sonderbare Weise durch Fasten und Wachen selig geworden, dahero pflegen alle Zeit die Malabaren denselbigen Tag zu fasten und dieselbige Nacht zu wachen, in Hoffnung, daß sie auch dadurch werden selig werden. Dieses Büchlein bestehet in sehr schweren Versen, und ist von einem Könige geschrieben worden Muschu Konda Sakkaraweddi, der da vor mehr als zweitausend Jahr regieret hat.

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375Civarāttiri purāṇam, a historical account of a man who lived in the wilderness who achieved salvation in an unusual way through fasting and watching. Hence the Malabarians always fast on that day and watch on that night in the hope that thereby they too will be saved. This little book consists of very difficult verses, and was written by a king, Mucukuntaṉ cakkaravartti, who reigned more than two thousand years ago.

Gaur suggests this is the Civarāttiri purāṇam of Varata paṇṭitar but this is unlikely for the reasons noted above (see bm 67). There is another Civarāttiri purāṇam by Nellainātar. Mucukuntaṉ cakkaravartti is supposed to have been a king who installed images of Śiva as Tiyākarācar in Tiruvārūr and six other nearby temples (Tirumaṟaikkaṭu, Tirunaḷḷāru, Nākappaṭṭiṉam, Tirukkāṟāyal, Tirukkuvaḷai, Tiruvāymūr). Although he is not mentioned in either Civarāttiri purāṇam, or in Ziegenbalg’s summary of the purāṇam in the Malabarisches Heidenthum (mh 89), he owed his royal birth to his actions in a previous rebirth as a monkey in which he had dropped vilva leaves on a Śiva liṅkam, a story very similar to those in the Civarāttiri purāṇam.

Civarāttiripurāṇam, ed. Cu. Nārāyaṇacāmi (Tēvakōṭṭai: Vāra vaḻipāṭṭu kaḻakam, 1966).

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377Kurandei antádi, ein Lob des Wischtnum nebst Anrufung seiner Hülfe, bestehend in lauter Versen. Der Autor dessen heißt Ramainschier, so ein Bramane gewesen, und sehr viele Verse geschrieben.

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379Kuṭantai antāti, praise of Viṣṇu together with invocation of his assistance, in many verses. The author is Rāmāṇuca cīyar, a Brahmin, who wrote very many verses.

There is a Kuṭantai antāti on Viṣṇu as Ārāvamutam or Cāraṅkapāṇi in Kumpakōṇam (Kuṭantai).71 The editor states that the author is unknown.

Kuṭantaiyantāti, ed. S. Rāmaliṅkam Piḷḷai (Tañcai: Caracuvati Makāl Nūlakam, 1968).

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381Kawiler agawel, einige Verse von der Nichtigkeit des menschlich Lebens, geschrieben von Kawilen, so da ein vornehmer Poet gewesen, und viele dergleichen Verse gemacht.

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383Kapilar akaval, verses on the vanity of human life by Kapilar, who was a distinguished poet and wrote many verses of this sort.

The Kapilar akaval is a short work, described by Zvelebil as a “violent attack on [the] caste-system and the ‘establishment,’ almost unique in medieval Tamil literature except for some poetry of Cittar.” Ziegenbalg quotes several times from it in the Malabarisches Heidenthum.72 The author lived in the fourteenth or fifteenth century. There are several other Kapilars in the Tamil tradition; in his description of Kapilar in the Genealogia (gmg 208r), Ziegenbalg confounds the author of Akaval with a mythical rṣi.

Kapilar akaval, ed. Tirumayilai Vi. Cuntara Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Vikṭōriyājūpili Accukkūṭam, 1892).

The Song of Kapila: Being a Translation in Blank Verse of the Tamil Poem Known as Kapilar Agaval, ed. and trans. R. Sivalingam Pillai (Coimbatore: Literary Sun Press, 1901).

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385Agawel, eine artige Vorstellung des menschlichen Leibs und Gemüths mit einem Castell nebst seinen Thoren und Wächtern. Dieses kleine Büchlein hat mein alter Schulmeister gemacht, den ich anfänglich in Erlernung der malabarischen Sprache gebrauchte, dessen Sohn ein guter Poet ist, und mir sehr viele Bücher verschafft hat, und oftmals mit mir von erbaulichen Sachen zu disputiren pfleget.

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387*Akaval, a fine depiction of the human body and mind as a castle together with its doors and guards. This little booklet was composed by my old schoolmaster, who I made use of when first learning the Malabarian language. His son is a good poet and has obtained many books for me, and often engages in debate with me on edifying subjects.

Akaval is the name of a genre of poems, composed entirely in the akaval metre, and the work in Ziegenbalg’s collection is therefore difficult to identify with certainty. There is an Akaval manuscript in the collection of the International Institute for Tamil Studies (352) which fits his brief description. Moreover it advocates the pursuit of meyñāṉam (“pure knowledge,” i.e., knowledge of god) and not añāṉam, an important theme in Ziegenbalg’s own Tamil compositions.73 In a list of ethical works in the Malabarisches Heidenthum, Ziegenbalg mentions a work which he calls “Akaval or Uṭalkūṟu,” describing it as follows:

the body and soul of man is compared to a palace with nine doors which are the two ears, the two eyes, the two nostrils, the mouth, and the two holes through which excrement and urine pass. The author describes the will as a commandant; representing the understanding, reason and all other powers of reasoning as privy counsellors. He assigns the role of door-keepers to the five senses. He makes the seventy-two thousand arteries in the body into soldiers, and in this way he names everything which exists in the body and mind and assigns a definite function to each. He mentions also the many enemies and thieves who wish to attack or loot the palace. (mh 234–35)

388While this description would fit the work Ziegenbalg calls simply Akaval in the Bibliotheca Malabarica, uṭalkūṟu (“body part”) is part of the title of the next work he mentions in the Bibliotheca Malabarica. It is possible that he separates two parts of a single manuscript, as he does with the Tirikāla cakkaram and Puvaṉa cakkaram (bm 110, 111).

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390Udelkurudadduwam, ein sehr artiges philosophisches Büchlein von den Elementen und fünf Sinnen, und von alle demjenigen, was mit den Elementen und fünf Sinnen einige Verwandtniß hat, darinnen sind ihre Principia physica und ethica enthalten gleichsam wie in einer Sciagraphia. Ich hatte in willens [sic] solches Büchlein ins Deutsche zu vertiren, konnte aber alle philosophische Terminos nicht recht verstehen, und hatte auch keinen Philosophum zur Hand, den ich consultiren können, daher habe ich solches lieber wollen anstehen lassen, bis ich in ihren philosophischen Terminis gründlichere Nachricht bekommen möchte, als daß ich etwas ungewisses hätte schreiben sollen. Dieses Büchlein ist wenig bekannt und kann weder von Bramanen noch von Pantarum noch von Poeten verstanden werden, als nur einzig und allein von den Philosophis, deren anjetzo unter den Malabaren sehr wenig sind, die mir bekannt wären.

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392*Uṭalkuṟṟu tattuvam, a very fine little philosophical book on the elements and the five senses, and everything that is related to the elements and the senses, including the principles of their physics and ethics in outline. I had intended to translate this little book into German, but I was not able to understand properly all the philosophical terms, nor did I have on hand a philosopher whom I could consult. Therefore I would rather leave this aside, until such time as I might get a sounder account of their philosophical terms, than risk writing something uncertain. This book is little known and can be understood neither by Brahmins nor by Paṇṭārams but only by philosophers and by them alone. There are very few of them now among the Malabarians known to me.

As well as Ziegenbalg’s description, quoted above, of the work he calls “Akaval or Uṭalkūṟu,” in the Malabarische Correspondenz he refers to “uṭalkūṟu” and “tattuvaṅkaḷ” as two sciences, each dealing with matters both medical and ethical:

Uṭalkūṟu is the science of the human body, which is brought into a regular discipline among these heathens, and studied very accurately by many among them, but especially by the yogis. For the most part this discipline is in line with what is contained in ethical works and in medical works on the constitution of the body.

Tattuvaṅkaḷ are the philosophical teachings on physics, including also different matters from ethics and medicine. Tattuvam actually means the essence of a thing. They differentiate 96 such philosophical matters and each requires its own treatment and practice. (hb 7: 381)

393There are several manuscripts of works of this type,74 of which Uṭalkūṟuviḷakkam tattuvakkaṭṭalai, “explanation of the parts of the body, true principles,”75 seems most similar to the work Ziegenbalg describes.

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395Ulaganidi, die bürgerliche Gerechtigkeit, darinnen feine moralische Regeln gegeben werden zur Unterlassung der Untugenden und Ausübung der Tugenden. Dieses kleine Büchlein hab ich ins Deutsche vertiret, um zu erkennen, was dergleichen Heiden vor Moralien unter sich haben. Dieses Büchlein ist das erste, das in Schulen von der Tugend auswendig gelernet wird, aber gleichwohl werden ihr dergleichen Regeln nicht recht erkläret, also, daß wenn ich bin in Schulen gekommen und die Jugend gefragt, was Dieses und Jenes sey, haben sie mir nichts darauf antworten können. Also gehets auch mit den übrigen moralischen Büchern, die da zwar auswendig gelernet werden, aber ohne Verstand, eben als wie der Catechismus bei uns Christen gemeiniglich ohne Erklärung und ohne Verstand auswendig gelernet wird.

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397Ulakanīti, right living in the world, in which fine moral rules are given for the avoidance of vice and the practice of virtue. I have translated this little book into German so as to know what moral principles these heathen have among themselves. This little book is the first on ethics to be learned by heart in schools, but nevertheless these rules are not properly explained so that when I have visited schools and asked the youths about one matter or another they were not able to say anything in answer to me. The same also happens with the other books on morality; they may be learned by heart, but without understanding, just as with we Christians the catechism is commonly learned without explanation and without understanding.

The author, Ulakanātaṉ, is often dated to the eighteenth century but Ziegenbalg’s possession of this work suggests he must be somewhat earlier. Ulakanīti is one of three didactic works (with Koṉṟaivēntaṉ and Nīti veṇpā, mentioned below) translated by Ziegenbalg into German in 1708.76 In the foreword to his translation, Ziegenbalg names the author and states that according to his Tamil informants, the book is supposed to be over a thousand years old. Despite his positive view of its contents, in his own works Ziegenbalg does not quote from Ulakanīti (or the other two works he translated), perhaps because he anticipated that his translation would be published. Two ōlai manuscripts are available in Halle (tam 89 B; tam 100); both date from after Ziegenbalg’s lifetime.

Veṟṟivēṟkai; Ulakanīti; Nīti veṇpā, ed. Kā. Namaccivāya Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Tamiḻkkaṭal Āpīs, 1931).

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399Nalwari, ein moralisches Büchlein von Meidung der Laster und Ausübung der Tugenden, welches in den Schulen von den kleinen Kindern auswendig gelernet wird. Solches Büchlein soll die Göttin Aweiar gemacht haben, als welche des Brumma Weib gewesen in der andern Welt, aber wegen einiges Verbrechen in diese Welt kommen und daselbst ihre Schuld durch Verlustigung ihrer Herrlichkeit büßen müssen, als sie sich denn nun unter den Menschen aufgehalten und allenthalben in der Welt herumgegangen, so soll die dieses Büchlein nebst den folgenden dreien gemachet haben; daher halten die Malabaren auch so gar viel von selbigen sagend, daß deren Tiefen der Weisheit nicht könnten auserforschet werden, obgleich alle Schulmeister und Poeten solches erklärten. Dieses Büchlein ist nebst anderen vor siebenhundertfünfzig Jahren geschrieben.

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401Nalvaḻi, a little moral book on the avoidance of vice and the practice of virtue, which little children learn by heart in school. The goddess Auvaiyār is supposed to have written this book. She was Brahmā’s wife in the other world but because of some crimes had to come to this world and through forfeiting her glory do penance for her guilt. While she spent time among human beings and went around in the world she is supposed to have composed this little book, together with the three following. It is precisely for this reason that the Malabarians think so much of them, saying that the depths of their wisdoms can never be fathomed even were all schoolmasters and poets to explain them. Together with the others, this little book was written seven hundred and fifty years ago.

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403Kondeiwehnten, ein moralisches klein Büchlein, so gleichfalls die Göttin Aweiar gemacht hat, und von der Jugend in Schulen auswendig gelernet wird. Dieses Büchlein hab ich ins Deutsche versetzet und denjenigen communiciret, die da begierig sind die moralische Praecepta dergleichen Heiden zu wissen.

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405Koṉṟai vēntaṉ, a little book on morality, also composed by the goddess Auvaiyār and learned by heart in school by the young. I have translated this little book into German, and sent it to those who are curious to know the moral precepts of these heathen.

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407Atitschudi, ein moralisches Büchlein von sehr feinen Praecepten, ist gleichfalls von der Göttin Aweiar geschrieben worden, und wird in den Schulen als das Fundament der Weisheit von der Jugend gelernet. Es bestehet weder in Versen noch in gemeiner Rede, sondern es sind alles schwere und tiefsinnige Redensarten, die darinnen enthalten sind, dahero findet man sehr mancherlei Erklärung darüber.

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409Ātticūṭi, a little book on morality of very fine precepts, also written by the goddess Auvaiyār and learned by the youth in schools as the basis of wisdom. It consists neither of verses nor ordinary speech, but rather the contents are all difficult and profound sayings, for which one finds many varied explanations.

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411Mudirei, ein moralisches Büchlein von sehr schönen Gleichnissen aus der Natur. Wie man denn aus diesen und dergleichen Büchern ganz genau abnehmen kann, daß den Heiden annoch nach dem kläglichen Sündenfall das Gesetzeswerk im Herzen geschrieben sey, welches sich auch durch dergleichen Schreiben geoffenbaret hat. Wie ich denn wahrhaftig bezeugen kann, daß ich weit bessere moralia in ihren Büchern gelesen und aus ihrem eigenen Munde gehöret, als wohl ehemals die griechischen und lateinischen Heiden geschrieben haben. Dahero, wenn man auch ein gottseliges und tugendsames Leben unter ihnen treibet, so sind sie mit uns Christen ganz einig und lieben denjenigen sehr, von welchem sie einen heiligen Wandel sehen. Aber wenn man ihnen von Christo, von der Nothwendigkeit der heiligen Taufe und von dergleichen zur Erlangung der Seligkeit höchst nöthigen Mitteln saget, so streiten sie zwar nicht darwider, aber gleichwohl wollen sie solches nicht eben für nöthig erkennen, sagend wer gut und tugendsam lebe, der würde eine gute Stelle nach seinem Tode erreichen, wer aber übel lebte, würde nach seinem Tode eine böse Stelle zu seiner Wohnung bekommen, er möchte im Uebrigen seyn wer er wolle, Heid, Türk, Jud oder Christ, weswegen es eine sehr schwere Sache ist, ihnen diese und dergleichen falsche Gründe zu benehmen und ihnen die Nothwendigkeit des Glaubens an Christum zu zeigen.

412Weiset man aber ihnen die Ungereimheit ihrer Götter sagend, wie sie doch an solche glauben könnten; so werden sie gemeiniglich anfangen zu lachen, damit zu erkennen gebend, daß sie eben keinen großen Glauben an sie haben, wie sie solches oftmals auch mit Worten deutlich heraussagen, und zwar manchmal wenn viel Andere zugegen sind, die solches hören können. Wie man denn fast eben Dasjenige unter diesen Heiden befindet, was man in dem Neuen Testament von Jesu lieset, nämlich, daß gleichwie wenn er unter einer großen Menge gelehret hatte, nachmals all Zeit unter selbigen eine Zwietracht wurde, indem einige solches für wahr hielten; einige aber selbiges lästerten, also gleichfalls, wenn man unter diesen Heiden in aller Bescheidenheit von der Wahrheit der christlichen Religion und von der großen Ungereimtheit ihrer heidnischen Abgötterei geredet hat, so werden unter ihnen zwei Parteien, einige halten es für verführisch, was man ihnen saget, einige aber nehmen es in großer Bescheidenheit auf, und können niemals müde werden, dergleichen zu hören und dessen sich zu befragen. Gleichwie aber unter denjenigen, von welchen in den Evangelien gesaget wird, daß sie an Jesum geglaubet haben, wenige dazumal sich wollten taufen lassen, sehend, wo es doch mit der Lehre Jesu hinaus wollte: also gleichfalls muß man sehen, daß, ob zwar viele Malabaren eine gute Meinung von unserer christlichen Religion haben, dennoch sich anjetzo die allerwenigsten zur Annehmung der h. Taufe bequemen wollen.

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414Mūturai, a little book on morality of very beautiful similes from nature. It can quite clearly be gathered from this and other books of this type that even after the terrible fall into sin the heathen have the work of the law written in their hearts, which is also apparent from similar writings. Thus I can truly bear witness that I have read in their books and heard from their own mouths a morality far better even than that written in the past by the Greek and Latin heathen. Hence if one leads a pious and virtuous life among them they are in total accord with us Christians, and love greatly those in whom they see a life of holiness. Nevertheless if one speaks to them of Christ, of the necessity of holy baptism and of other things most necessary for obtaining salvation, while they have no quarrel with these things, at the same time they still will not acknowledge them as necessary. They say that whoever leads a good and virtuous life will reach a good place after his death, but whoever lives wickedly will receive an evil place as his residence after death, be he otherwise what he will: heathen, Turk, Jew, or Christian. For this reason it is a very difficult thing to counter this and similar false reasons and demonstrate to them the necessity of faith in Christ.

415If one mentions the absurdities of their gods, saying how can they still believe in them; they often begin to laugh, as if to acknowledge that they do not in fact have any great faith in them, which they often even say explicitly, usually when there are many others present who can hear what they say. Thus one finds among these heathen almost exactly that which one reads of Jesus in the New Testament, namely, that just as when he had taught among a great multitude afterward there would be division among them insofar as some would take it to be true, but others would blaspheme him. In the same way among these heathens, when one has spoken in all modesty of the truth of the Christian religion and of the great absurdity of their heathenish idolatry, two parties emerge among them; some regard what one says to them as misleading, but some accept it with great humility, and never tire of hearing this and asking questions about it. However, just as among those who are described in the gospels as having believed in Jesus there were few who desired baptism at that time, even though they saw that was the aim of Jesus’teaching; thus likewise it has to be seen that although many Malabarians have a good opinion of our Christian religion, nevertheless at present only the very fewest are content to accept holy baptism.

Zvelebil identifies at least four Tamil authors referred to as Auvaiyār (“mother”), dating the author of these four ethical works (Nalvaḻi, Koṉṟaivēntaṉ, Ātticūṭi and Mūturai, BM 101–4) to the tenth or twelfth century. In the Malabarische Correspondenz, Ziegenbalg’s Tamil correspondent lists these works, together with another work ascribed to Auvaiyār (Vēḻamukam or Piḷḷaiyārcintu),77 as the first books learned by heart in schools along with the Tamil letters (HB 7: 410–11). An ōlai manuscript in Halle includes these four works of Auvaiyār and the other two ethical works (Ulakanīti BM 100 and Nīti veṇpā BM 105) translated by Ziegenbalg (TAM 89: Ātticūṭi, Ulakanīti, Koṉṟai vēntaṉ, Mūturai, Nalvaḻi, Nīti veṇpā) which appear with them in the Bibliotheca Malabarica. Around 1789 Christoph Samuel John, one of Ziegenbalg’s successors in the Danish-Halle mission re-translated Koṉṟai vēntaṉ (AFSt/M 1 C 29b: 106) and Ulakanīti (AFSt/M 2 B 7: 7), as well as Ātticūṭi and Mūturai (AFSt/M 2 B 7: 5-6) into German. His English translations of Koṉṟai vēntaṉ, Ātticūṭi and another work of Auvaiyār entitled Kalviyoḻukkam (now lost) were published in Asiatick Researches.

Auvaiyār aruḷiya Nalvaḻi, ed. Naṭukkāvēri Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi Nāṭṭār (Tirunelvēli: Tirunelvēli teṉṉintiya caivacittānta nūrpatippuk kaḻakam, 1950).

Auvaiyār aruḷicceyta Koṉṟaivēntan, ed. Naṭukkāvēri Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi Nāṭṭār (Ceṉṉai: Tirunelvēlit Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1925).

Auvaiyār aruḷicceyta Ātticuṭi, ed. Naṭukkāvēri Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi Nāṭṭār (Ceṉṉai: Tirunelvēlit Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1937).

Auvaiyār aruḷicceyta Mūturai, ed. Naṭukkāvēri Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi Nāṭṭār (Ceṉṉai: Tirunelvēlit Teṉṉintiya Caivacittānta Nūṟpatippuk Kaḻakam, 1925).

T. N. Ramachandran and T. V. Srinivasan, Niti Sastras in Tamil with Sanskrit and English Translations (Thanjavur: Kala Samrakshana Sangkam, 1996).

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417Nidiwenpà, ein moralisches Buch von lauter Gleichnissen und Sittlenlehre. Dieses Buch ist anfänglich vor siebenhundert und etliche vierzig Jahren von einem Bramanen in dem Kirendum oder malabarischeh Latein geschrieben, aber nachmals von einem Poeten in malabarische Verse gesetzet worden. Dieses Büchlein habe ich gleichfalls in die deutsche Sprache versetzet, und zwar ganz accurat nach den Versen und nach deren Erklärung, die mit zugleich darbei stehet. Dergleichen feine Büchlein findet man unter den Malabaren sehr viel, habe aber selbige noch nicht alle bekommen können. Denn nachdem dergleichen Heiden sehen und hören, daß ich ihre Bücher nur wider sie selbst gebrauche und immer aus ihren eigenen Büchern ihre Ungereimtheiten zu beweisen suche, so sind sie mit ihren Büchern ein wenig neidisch und wollen mir sie nicht zukommen lassen. Sintemal ein jedweder seine Bücher zusammengebunden und ganz verborgen verwahret hat, so daß sie können sagen, sie hätten keine Bücher, wenn ich dergleichen verlangen möchte. Jedoch kann man durch Geld und durch Anthuung einiger Ehre alles von ihnen haben, wenns auch noch so köstlich wäre.

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419Nīti veṇpā, a book of morality full of parables and moral instruction. This book was originally written in Kirentam or the Malabarian Latin by a Brahmin some seven hundred and forty years ago, but then later translated by a poet into Malabarian verse. I have also translated this little book into the German language, closely following the verses and the accompanying commentary on them. Very many fine little books of this sort are to be found among the Malabarians, but I have not yet been able to acquire all of them. For once these heathen see or hear that I only use their books against themselves and always seek to demonstrate their absurdities from their own books, they become a little jealous of their books and do not want me to get hold of them. Since then each of them has bundled his books up together and kept them quite hidden, so that they can say they have no books if I should happen to ask about them. Nevertheless with money and a little tact one can get anything from them, however precious.

Like other popular collections of moral aphorisms (e.g., Nīti cāram bm 47) in Tamil, Nīti veṇpā draws on sayings collected in many Sanskrit works on nīti. In his edition of Ziegenbalg’s translation, Caland identifies some parallels with the Hitopadeśa, Pañcatantra and Bhartṛhari, noting also that Ziegenbalg’s translation of the difficult text relies heavily on the commentary.78

Nīti veṇpā: mūlamum uraiyum, ed. Vē. Āṟumuka Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Tirumakaḷ Vilāca Accukkūṭam, 1876).

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421Arubáddu diruwileiadel puranum, ein großes Buch in Versen, darinnen vierundsechzig Erscheinungen des Abgotts Tschokkanaiagers enthalten sind. Dieses Buch habe ich sehr accurat durchgegangen and etliche Tausend Vocabula und schöne phrases daraus gezogen. Die Malabaren halten solches Buch sehr werth und verwundern sich sehr, wo ich zu solchem Buch gekommen. Die Erscheinungen sind sehr ordentlich nach ihren Zeiten und Umständen aufgeschrieben, aber wenn man sie recht examinirt, so wird man keine Eigenschaften einer göttlichen Erscheinung darinnen antreffen, sondern kann ganz gewiß aus allen Umständen schließen, daß es entweder Lügen seyn müssen, oder daß es des Teufels Gaukelspiele gewesen, was darinnen erzählet wird. Dieses Buch ist vor mehr als tausend Jahren von einem Bramanen in Kirendum geschrieben, aber nachmals in malabarische Verse gesetzet worden.

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423Aṟupattuṇālu tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam, a large book in verse, containing the sixtyfour manifestations of the idol Cokkanāyakar. I have gone through this book very closely, and extracted several thousand words and beautiful phrases from it. The Malabarians regard this book as very valuable and wonder very much where I got it from. The manifestations are set out in a very orderly way according to the time and circumstances, but when examined properly there are no properties of a divine manifestation to be found among them. Rather, it may be concluded with certainty from all the details that what is described here must either be lies, or have been deceptions of the devil. This book was written in Kirentam by a Brahmin more than one thousand years ago, but then later translated into Malabarian verses.

There are several different versions, in both Tamil and Sanskrit, of the “sports” of Śiva in Madurai, some of which date from the beginning of the second millenium ce, but the Aṟupattunāṉku tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam is much later. Zvelebil describes this work as “no doubt… the most important and valuable purāṇa of the later medieval period… the final and definitive version of the legends which had been growing for many centuries.”79 Most scholars date the author, Parañcōti Muṇivar, to the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries. It closely resembles a Sanskrit work, the Hālāsyamāhātmya, in its chronological ordering of the “sports” of Śiva and other respects. Ziegenbalg’s comment that he went through the Aṟupattunāṉku tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam closely is borne out by the fact that in the Malabarisches Heidenthum he refers to no fewer than thirty of Śiva’s “sports” in Madurai, many of which he recounts at some length.

Tiruviḷaiyāṭaṟ purāṇam, ed. Na. Mu. Vēṅkaṭacāmi Nāṭṭār (Ceṉṉai: Tirunelvēli Teṉṉintiya caivacittānta nūrpatippuk kaḻakam, 1927).

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425Arubáddu diruwileiádelurei, die Erklärung von den vierundsechszig Erscheinungen des Tschokkanaiagers. Dieses Buch ist von Wort zu Worte aus den Versen in das gemeine Malabarische versetzet worden, und wird allein bei den Bramanen und Pantaren gefunden, sintemal es zu dem Gesetz mit gehöret, als welches niemand anderes, als dergleichen Priester lesen dürfen.

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427Aṟupattuṇālu tiruviḷaiyāṭal urai, explanation of the sixty-four manifestations of Cokkanāyakar. This book has been translated word for word out of the verses into common Malabarian and is only found among the Brahmins and Paṇṭārams since it is a part of the law that no-one other than these priests may read it.

The Kōvilūr mutt in Kāraikkuṭi holds a manuscript commentary on the Aṟupattunāṉku tiruviḷaiyāṭal purāṇam (ms. 43).

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429Damulariwáhl, eine Historie von einer gelehrten Jungfrau, Namens Damulariwáhl, welches so viel bedeutet, als eine, die alle Wissenschaften verstehet, so da unter den gelehten Malabaren zu finden sind. Ich habe aus diesem Buch sehr viel schöne Vocabula und Phrases colligiret. So ferne es wahr wäre, was darinnen von dergleichen Jungfrau gesaget wird, so könne sie wohl für eine von den gelehrtesten Jungfrauen passiren, aber nicht für eine von den gottseligsten, als davon sie keine Profession gemacht. Ihrer Schöne und Gelehrsamkeit wegen sind von Königen große Kriege geführet worden. In der Poesie hat sie kein Poet übertreffen können. Wie sie denn ein Versprechen gethan, daß sie diejenige Person heirathen wollte, die sie in Versen übertreffen könne. Diesertwegen haben viele Poeten mit ihr concertiret, sind aber mit Schanden bestanden. Endlich verkleidet sich einer von geheimen Räthen der königl. Residenzstadt Madret in einen Holzträger, kömmt in ihre Residenz und rufet Holz zu verkaufen aus, in sehr schweren Versen; verlanget demnach mit dieser gelehrten Jungfrau zu concertiren. Und da solches geschah, mußte sie sich endlich von ihm überwinden lassen und ihn zur Heirath nehmen. Die Verse, die sie nach der Länge mit einander gewechselt haben, stehen alle mit beigeschrieben. Die Historie soll sich vor vierhundert Jahren zugetragen haben. Den Autor aber habe ich nicht erfragen können.

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431Tamiḻaṟivāḷ, a story about a learned maiden named Tamiḻaṟivāḷ, which means one who understands all sciences which are to be found among the learned Malabarians. I have collected very many beautiful words and phrases from this book. If what is said of this maiden in this book were true, she could well pass for one of the most learned maidens, but not for one of the most pious, for she makes no profession of this. Great wars were fought by kings due to her beauty and learning. In poetry none could surpass her. She therefore made a vow, that she would marry he who could surpass her in verse. As a result many poets competed with her, but ended up disgraced. Finally one of the privy council of the royal capital Madurai disguised himself as a wood-carrier, came to her house and, in very difficult verses, began to offer wood for sale. After this he demanded to compete with this learned maiden. When this took place, she finally had to concede defeat and take him in marriage. The verses, which they exchanged at length with one another are all given in the text. The story is supposed to have taken place four hundred years ago. I have not been able to ascertain the author.

There are several versions of the story of Tamiḻaṟivāḷ (Tamiḻaṟimaṭantai katai, Tamiḻaṟiyum perumāḷ katai), an anonymous folk narrative. It is not clear exactly which one was available to Ziegenbalg, but his account of the story is broadly accurate. Ziegenbalg cites the story of one of Tamiḻaṟivāḷ’s previous births to illustrate the belief in reincarnation (MH 168).

Tamiḻaṟiyum perumāḷ katai, ed. I. Mā. Kōpālakiruṣṇak Kōṉ (Ceṉṉai: Saṉ āp Intiyā Piras, 1924).

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433Tschiddira Buddira kadei, ein historisches Buch in sehr fließenden und zierlichen Versen von des Ispuren Kannakappel oder Schreiber, Namens Tschiddira Buddiren genannt, dessen Amt ist alles aufzuschreiben, was in der ganzen Welt zu geschehen pleget, von den Menschen. Der guten Leute Werke schreibet er auf die rechte Seite, der bösen Leute Werke auf die linke Seite. Dieses Buch bestehet in 2400 Versen und wird von dem malabarischen Weibsvolk auswendig gelernet, und sehr zierlich gesungen. Ich habe aus diesem Buch sehr feine Phrases gezogen und mich höchlich verwundert, über die sonderbare Einfälle des Autoris, sintemal die ganze Historie nur ein figmentum ist, aber gleichwohl so analogice eingerichtet, daß immer aus den praesuppositis richtige Schlüsse gemacht werden, und das zwar in seiner richtigen Connexion. Nachdem aber sehr ungereimten Principia zum Grunde liegen, so werden auch immer aus selbigen lauter ungereimte Conclusiones gemacht. Ich muss mich aber indessen höchlich verwundern, daß sie gleichwohl eine Sache so nett vorgetragen, und nach dem Antepraedicamenten und Postpraedicamenten so schön amplificiren und demonstriren können, uneracht, daß ich keine Logica unter ihnen angetroffen, daraus zu schließen, daß man auch ohne Logica, vermöge der natürlichen Kraft des Ingenii, und vermöge der steten Uebung des Judicii, eine Sache schicklich und ordentlich vortragen kann. Wie denn nicht nur allein die Gelehrten unter den Malabaren, sondern auch die Gemeinen, so gar auch die Weibspersonen sehr wohl geübet sind in der mündlichen Oratorie; ohneracht, daß sie formaliter keine Anweisung zur Oratorie haben.

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435Cittira puttiraṉ katai, a historical book in very fluent and elegant verses about Īcuvaraṉ’s kaṇakkapiḷḷai or scribe, named Cittira puttiraṉ, whose office is to record everything in the whole world done by human beings. The works of the good he writes on the right, the works of the evil on the left. This book consists of 2400 verses and is learned by heart and very elegantly sung by the Malabarian womenfolk. I have taken very fine phrases from this book and have wondered greatly at the strange notions of the author, since the whole story is only a figment, but at the same time is arranged analogically in such a way that the correct conclusions can be drawn from the presuppositions, and moreover by proper reasoning. Since, however, it is based on very illogical principles, only illogical conclusions can ever follow. I can only wonder greatly, that they nevertheless present the matter so well, and can argue so well by induction and deduction according to ante-predicates and post-predicates notwithstanding that no formal logic is to be met with among them. Thus even without formal logic one can give a fit and proper account of a matter simply by virtue of the natural powers of intellect and the constant exercise of judgement. For not only the learned among the Malabarians, but rather also the common people and even the women are very well practiced in oratory, notwithstanding that they have had no formal instruction in oratory.

Cittiraputtiranayiṉār katai is a folk ballad in simple language about Cittiraputtiraṉ (or Cittirakuptaṉ), who is Yamaṉ’s scribe. An ōlai manuscript of this work is held in the mission archive in Halle (TAM 78).

Cittiraputtira nayinār katai kavuttukkāran katai, ed. Nā. Pālacuppiramaṇiyan (Ceṉṉai: Amani Paplikesans, 2008).

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437Dirigala Sakkaram, eine mathematische Beschreibung der sieben Unterwelten und der siebern Oberwelten, nebst den vierzehn Meeren, so zwischen den vierzehn Welten liegen. Item eine Nachricht von ihrem Paradies oder Kailaschum, welches der Sitz Ispuri ist, mit viel hunderttausend Abgöttern; desgleichen auch von Magameru, welches ein güldener Berg ist, so durch alle vierzehn Welten gehet, darinnen sich alle heilige Propheten aufhalten sollen. Hiernebst so wird auch in diesem Buche das Geschlechtsregister der großen Abgötter gezeiget, wie nämlich von dem Wesen aller Wesen oder von dem allerhöchsten Gott alle andere Götter herkommen und was diese für Aemter haben, wo ihr Wohnsitz sey, wie lange sie leben, wie oft ein jedweder verwandelt werde etc. Item von den verflossenen Jahreszeiten und von dem zukommenden Jahreszeiten, was diese Welt mit den andern Welten für eine Bewandtniß habe, wie lange eine jedwede Welt stehen soll, und was mit deren Verwandelung für eine Bewandtniß habe etc. Dieses Buch ist fast der Grund aller andern malabarischen Bücher; sintemal auf die darinnen enthaltenen Principia alles übergegründet ist. Sollten es die Gelehrten in Europa zu lesen bekommen, würden sie viele seltsame und unerhörte Dinge zu wissen bekommen. Ich hatte es in Willens zu vertauschen, aber gleichwohl befand ich mein Bedenken darbei, ob es auch wohl rathsam sey, sintemal dieses bey vielen unnütze Speculationes verursachen würde, und sie von den nöthigen Sachen abhalten. Jedoch laß ichs noch dahin gestellt seyn, ob ichs möchte ins Deutsche vertiren oder nicht, sintemal ich deswegen anjetzo mit mir selbst nicht recht einig bin. Die Geheimnisse dieses Buches sind erstlich von Ispuren selbst seinem Weibe der Parbadi endecket worden. Diese hat sie nachmals dem Nandigéschuren endecket, so da des Ispuren Thürwächter ist. Dieser hat solche Geheimnisse nachmals einem großen Propheten kund gethan, Dirumula dewer genannt. Dieser hat sie nachmals der ganzen Welt kund gemacht. Solches ist geschehen in der ersten Weltzeit. Und uneracht, daß die Welt nachdem dreimal soll untergegangen seyn, so sagen sie doch, daß alle zeit vierzehn Propheten übrig geblieben, die zugleich dieses Buch mit vielen andern in Kupfer geschrieben verwahret und der Nachwelt überliefert hätten.

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439Tirikāla cakkaram, a mathematical description of the seven underworlds and the seven worlds above, together with the fourteen seas which lie between the fourteen worlds. Likewise an account of their paradise, or Kailācam, which is the seat of Īcuvarī with many hundreds of thousands of idols. Likewise too of Makāmēru, which is a golden mountain supposed to go through all fourteen worlds and in which all holy prophets are supposed to reside. Besides this the genealogy of the gods is also shown in this book, namely how all the other gods derive from the being of all beings, or the supreme God, and what their offices are, where their residence is, how long they live, how often each is transformed, etc. Likewise of the seasons that have passed and of the seasons to come, how this world is supposed to be connected to the other worlds, how long each world should stand, and what the reason for their transformation is supposed to be, etc. This book is virtually the basis of all other Malabarian books, since it is on the principles contained in it that everything is based. Should it become available to the learned in Europe, they would come to know many strange and unheard of things. I had intended to transpose it, but nonetheless I found myself wondering whether this was altogether advisable, since many pointless speculations would be caused thereby, and keep them away from the things that are necessary. However, I leave it still to be determined, whether I might translate it into German or not, since I am now for this reason not really of one mind on it myself. The secrets of this book were first revealed by Īcuvaraṉ himself to his wife Pārvatī. These were later revealed by her to Nantikēcuraṉ, who is Īcuvaraṉ’s gatekeeper. He later made these secrets known to a great prophet called Tirumūlar Tēvar. He later made them known to the whole world. This took place in the first age of the world. And despite the fact that afterwards the world is supposed to have been destroyed three times, yet they say that at all times fourteen prophets were left, who are supposed to have preserved this book with many others written on copper and to have handed them on to the next world.

This is a section of the Puvaṉa cakkaram, described in the following entry. In Walther’s edition of the Bibliotheca Malabarica, this is noted in an annotation, in a smaller hand, to the entry for the Tirikāla cakkaram: “This book is inserted into the following one.”

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441Buwana Sákkaram, Beschreibung des Weltkreises, darinnen gleichfalls sehr viele seltsame Dinge gefunden werden, so noch nie in Europa sind erhöret worden. Diese Welt soll von Nandigéschuren genau seyn abgemessen worden; da es denn nachmals von Wischtnum den Muladewer zu wissen gemacht worden, wie weit, wie breit, wie lang und wie dick die Welt sey in allen ihren Sphären, Landschaften und Meeren. Dieser hat solches alles aufgeschrieben und der ganzen Welt mitgetheilet, so gleichfalls geschehen ist in der ersten Weltzeit, von welcher nunmehro nach ihrer Rechnung vielmal hunderttausend Jahr verflossen sind.

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443Puvaṉa cakkaram, description of the world, in which likewise many strange things are found which have never been heard of in Europe. This world is supposed to have been measured out precisely by Nantikēcuraṉ; then afterwards it was made known to Mūlar Tēvar by Viṣṇu how wide, how broad, how long and how thick the world is supposed to be in all its spheres, regions and seas. He wrote all this out and transmitted it to the whole world, which also took place in the first age of the world since when, by their reckoning, many hundred thousand years have passed by.

Several manuscripts of this Puvaṉa cakkaram, a number of which include as a preliminary section the Tirikāla cakkaram, have been identified. The manuscript which most closely resembles Ziegenbalg’s translations of excerpts of this text (mh 64–65, 186–89) is held in the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library in Chennai (r–10750–2). The importance of this work for Ziegenbalg’s account of Hinduism is discussed at length in the introduction to this volume.

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445Wágada Tschuwari, ein medicinisches Buch, handelt von dem Ursprung der Krankheiten und von dem Kennzeichen einer jedweden Krankheit von dem Fühlen des Pulses und andern dergleichen medicinischen Lehrthümern.

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447*Vākata cuvaṭi, a medical book, dealing with the origin of illnesses and the symptoms of each illness, of taking the pulse and other similar medical doc

The title, which means simply “medical book,” could of course be applied to many texts and it is therefore difficult to identify precisely which text was in Ziegenbalg’s collection, unless the long extract from this work in Malabarisches Heidenthum (mh 217–220) can be traced to a particular manuscript.80 Given their prevalence in Tamil manuscript collections, it is perhaps surprising not only that this is the only medical text in Ziegenbalg’s early catalogue, but that he does not mention any other texts on medicine in his later writings. The reason may perhaps lie in the arrival of Johann Ernst Gründler in 1709. In 1712 he completed a work entitled Malabarischer Medicus, compiled from several Tamil medical manuscripts,81 and it may be that after 1709 Ziegenbalg himself made no effort to acquire or to comment on Tamil medical literature. No medical texts appear in Walther’s 1731 catalogue of the mission’s Tamil library.

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449Kei Sastiram parkira Tschuwari, ein Wahrsagerbuch aus den Lineamenten des Menschen. In diesem Büchlein werden alle äußerliche Zeichen an einem Menschen beschrieben, deren sie vornämlich zweiunddreißig zählen, die am allermeisten in dieser Kunst müßten observiret werden. Nachmals wird gezeiget, wie man alle Signa und Liniamenta mit einander conferiren müßte und alsdann daraus einen Schluß machen, worzu dieser oder jener Mensch am meisten geneigt sei, welche Laster oder welche Tugenden er an sich habe. Auch was für fata ihm begegnen würden. Dieses Büchlein wurde mir von einem Poet als ein großes Heiligthum überschicket, mit Bitte, daß ichs ja nicht möchte gemein machen. Der Materie wegen aber würde ich mir nicht die Mühe genommen haben und es durchgelesen wenn ich es nicht um die darinnen befindlichen mir annoch unbekannten Vocabeln und Redensarten gethan hätte.

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451*Kai cāttiram pārkkiṟa cuvaṭi, a fortune-telling book from distinctive features of a person. In this little book all the external signs of a person are described, of which they count thirty-two as the most important to be observed in practicing this art. It is then shown how all these signs and features have to be compared with one another so that from them a conclusion can be drawn as to what tendencies a particular person is most likely to have, which inherent vices or virtues and likewise what fate he will encounter. This little book was conveyed to me as highly sacred by a poet who asked that I should not make it common knowledge. Due to the content I would not have taken the trouble to have read through it had it not been for the words and turns of speech it contains which were still unknown to me.

Ziegenbalg’s title seems to refer to a work on palmistry, for which there are many candidates, such as the cittar Kamalamuṉi’s Irēkai cāttiram. The description he offers of the work, however, suggests a wider work on physiognomy. In the Malabarisches Heidenthum he quotes at length from such a work, which he calls Ilaṭcaṇam pārkkiṟa cuvaṭi but which is otherwise known as Cāmuttirikā laṭcaṇam.82

Cāmuttirikā laṭcaṇam, eṉṉum, Kamalamāmuṉivar irēkai cāstiram mūlamum viruttiyuraiyum, ed. K. M. Teyvacikāmaṇi and A. Muttuvaṭivēl Mutaliyār (Ceṉṉai: Pūmakaḷvilāca Accukkūṭam, 1939).

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453Attschunen dawaschinilei, eine Beschreibung der sehr strengen und harten Buße, die Attschunen in der Wildniß ganzer zweitausend Jahr gethan haben soll, darauf er denn von den Abgöttern sehr hoch begabet und zum allgemeinen Könige der ganzen Welt eingesetzet worden. Solches ist in einer sonderlichen Versart den Lesenden sehr beweglich vorgestellt worden. Wie man dann auch heut zu Tage viel tausend solche Leute unter den Malabaren findet, die alles verlassen und in Einöden ein sehr strenges Leben führen, so daß einigen wegen stetes Beten, die Hände kreuzweis über einander gewachsen sind, deren ich selbst unterschiedliche Weibspersonen gesehen habe; einige sind ganz krumm gewachsen, über ihre Beugung vor ihren Abgöttern. Daraus man erkennen kann, daß sie weit eifriger um die Seligkeit bemühet seyn, als wohl die meisten Christen, die nicht einmal diejenige leichte Ordnung eingehen wollen, die uns Gott zur Erlangung der Seligkeit gesetzet hat, geschweige denn, daß sie ihren Leib also kreuzigen sollten, als wie dergleichen blinde Heiden thun.

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455Arccuṉaṉ tavacu nilai, a description of the very severe and hard penance which Arccuṉaṉ is supposed to have performed in the wilderness for a whole two thousand years. As a result he received great gifts from the idols and was set up as the common king of the whole world. This is presented very movingly to the reader in a particular type of verse. Even today many thousand people of this sort are to be found among the Malabarians, who abandon everything and lead a very austere life in the wastelands. Thus there are some whose hands, through constant prayer, have grown crossed over one another, among them some women, as I myself have seen. Some have grown quite bent from their bowing before the their idols. From this it can be seen that they exert themselves far more zealously for salvation than most Christians, who will not accept the light order which God has determined for the achieving salvation, not to mention bending their bodies as the blind heathen do.

“Arccuṉaṉ’s penance” is an episode from the Mahābhārata, summarized by Ziegenbalg in the Malabarisches Heidenthum (mh 82), in which Arccuṉaṉ performs a penance to acquire a weapon from Śiva. It appears in the first chapter (“Arccuṉaṉ Tavanilai Carukkam”) of the Āraṇiya paruvam of the Villiputtūr’s Pāratam (bm 10) but the episode was also performed in terukkūttu83 ritual re-enactments of the Pāratam and many manuscripts exist which were produced for the use of performers. Given Ziegenbalg’s description of his copy and the fact that he does not attribute it to Villiputtūr (as he does with another manuscript dealing with an episode from the Pāratam; bm 70), it seems likely that his manuscript was a terukkūttu text. Many such terukkūttu manuscripts were collected and published in the early twentieth century, but “with scant regard for detail and continuity.”84

Arcuṉaṉ tapanilai, ed. Iratiṉa Capāpati Nāṭār (Nākai: Peṉṉiṅṭaṉ Accukkūṭam, 1894).

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457Ramascheam, ein großes Buch in Versen von Lobe des großen Abgotts Wischtnum genannt. Es werden darinnen seine neun Verwandelungen und seine großen Thaten angeführet und höchlich gerühmet. Die Verse sind sehr zierlich, aber darbey sehr schwer zu verstehen.

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459Rāmaceyam, a large book of verses in praise of the great idol named Viṣṇu. His nine transformations and his great deeds are recounted and highly praised. The verses are very elegant, but therefore very hard to understand.

A manuscript with this title (“Rāma’s victory”) is available in the Saraswati Mahal Library (Old vol. III, part II, no. 256.)

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461Ehreruwadu, ein Büchlein vom Lobe des Ackerbaus wie nämlich dergleichen Profession unter allen die beste und ehrlichste sey, auch von allen andern großes Vergnügen mit sich führete. Es ist in wohlklingenden Versen geschrieben und wird von allen Liebhabern des Landlebens gesungen.

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463Ēreḻupatu, a little book in praise of farming; how among all others this profession is the best and most honourable, and more than any other leads to great pleasure. It is written in mellifluous verses and is sung by all who love country life.

This work, associated with the Kārāḷar Veḷḷāḷar subcaste, praises the agricultural castes as the support of all others. A number of Ziegenbalg’s informants were Veḷḷāḷars, and the chapter on agriculture in his Malabarisches Heidenthum is almost entirely taken up with a quotation from Ēreḻupatu (mh 208–10). The work is ascribed to Kampaṉ “in accordance with the tendency to ascribe minor works of unknown origin to celebrated authors.”85

Makākaviyākiya Kamparāṟceyyappaṭṭa Ēreḻupatu, Tirukkaivaḻakkam mūlamum, ed. T. Vēlāyutamutaliyār (Madras: Memorial Press, 1886).

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465Maga Windum, eine weitläuftige historische Beschreibung von fünf Brüdern, die ihr Königreich verlassen und sich in die Wüste den Göttern zu dienen begeben haben, ihre Namen sind folgende: 1. Janmer. 2. Wimer. 3. Attschuner. 4. Nawulen. 5. Tschaga dewer. Diese fünf Brüder sollen nur ein Weib gehabt haben, Trobadei genannt. Nachdem sie denn nun von den Göttern auf vielfältige Art und Weise geprüfet und versuchet worden, so wird aus ihnen der älteste Bruder leibhaftig gen Himmel genommen, die andern aber, als sie ein großes Wehklagen führen, daß die Götter sie nicht gnädig ansehen wollten, so starben sie endlich alle insgesammt und sollen der Seelen nach nur allein in die Seligkeit eingegangen sein. Diese Historie wird sehr glaubwürdig dargestellet. Wie ich denn in solchen heidnischen Schriften insgesammt befunden, daß obgleich ihre Autores eine recht lüderliche und lügenhafte Materie geschrieben, sie dennoch in ihrem Schreiben recht ernsthaftig seyn, so daß es nachmals als eine göttliche Historie aufgenommen wird. Dergleichen Ernsthaftigkeit bezeugen sie auch in ihrem Disputiren und Discurriren und würden sehr unwillig werden, wenn man ihren eine Sache mit Lachen vortrüge; worinnen sie uns Christen sehr beschämen, als die wir oftmals unter den allerheiligsten Materien lächerhaftige argumenta und Scherzreden vorzubringen pflegen.

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467Makāvintam, a lengthy historical description of five brothers, who left their kingdom and devoted themselves to serving the gods in the wilderness. Their names are as follows: 1. Tarumaṉ. 2. Vīmaṉ. 3. Arccuṉaṉ. 4. Nakulaṉ. 5. Cakātēvaṉ. These five brothers are supposed only to have had one wife, named Tiraupati. After having been tested and tried by the gods in many different ways, the oldest brother among them was taken up alive into heaven. The others, however, set up a great lament that the gods had not been gracious enough to grant them salvation and finally they all died together, and only their souls were granted entrance into salvation. This story is very convincingly told. As I have found in these heathen writings as a whole, although the authors write what is quite ludicrous and full of lies, they are nevertheless so earnest in their writing that it is later taken to be a divine history. They show the same earnestness in their disputes and discussions, and become very indignant if one should present a thing with laughter. In this they shame we Christians greatly, for we often introduce the most comic arguments and jocular speech into the most holy matters.

Also known as Vaikuṇṭa ammāṉai, this is a large work on the Pāṇṭavas’entry to Vaikuṇṭa. There are at least three versions, one ascribed to Pukaḻēnti, and versions by Paracurāma Mutaliyār and Cēturāyan, both nineteenth-century authors.

Mākavintam eṉṉum vaikuṇṭa ammāṉai (Ceṉṉai: Patmanāpavilāca Accukkūṭam, 1901).

The Measure of Eternity/Vaikuṇṭa ammāṉai, ed. and trans. G. John Samuel, Ki. Jeyakumār and K. Mohan Ram (Chennai: Institute of Asian Studies, 1999).

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469Bala Kawi tschuwari, ein Buch von allerhand musicalischen Gesängen über die Abgötter. Solche Lieder sind nicht nur allein sehr schwer zu verstehen, sondern auch sehr schwer zu singen, also daß sie nur allein von denjenigen können gesungen werden, die bey der Poesie ex professo auch die Vocalmusik gelernet. Ich habe einen dergleichen einmal bei mir gehabt, der mir unterschiedliche Lieder aus diesem Buch vorsingen müssen, da ich mich denn höchlich verwundern müssen über die wohlklingenden und erwecklichen Melodien, darinnen dergleichen Lieder gesungen wurden. Wie denn die malabarischen Verse, wenn sie wohl componiret sind, eine sonderliche Macht haben, die Affecten bei den Menschen zu bewegen, wodurch viele von den Christen bethöret werden, also daß sie zum großen Aergerniß der Schwachgläubigen oftmals ganze Nächte bei dem heidnischen Götzendienst sitzen und die Tanzhuren in ihren unzüchtigen Liedern singen anhören, hiermit solches Teufelswerk billigend; ja ihnen wohl gar für ihre schöne Gesänge feine Kleider geben, oder sie in ihre Häuser kommen lassen, daß sie vor ihnen nicht nur allein singen, sondern auch auf ihre heidnische Art tanzen müssen: welches bisher eine große Hinderniß gegeben an der Heiden Bekehrung, als welche sich mit ihrem Götzendienst viel einzubilden wissen, gedenkend, auch uns wohl gar in die Augen sagend, daß ihre Religion gleich wohl etwas sonderliches müsse an sich haben, weil auch die Vornehmsten unter den Christen ihre Ceremonie mit großem Belieben ansehen und Gefallen dran hätten. O Gott wolle solches Aergerniß bald hinweg thun.

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471*Pala kavi cuvaṭi, a book of all sorts of musical songs about the idols. These songs are not only very hard to understand, but are also very hard to sing so that they can only be sung by those who in addition to their profession as poets have also studied vocal music. Once I had one such person with me to sing different songs from this book to me and I could only wonder greatly at the mellifluous and lively melodies in which these songs were sung. Thus the Malabarian verses, if well composed, have a special power to move the affections of the people. Many of the Christians are blinded by this, so that to the great vexation of the weak in faith, they often spend whole nights sitting at the heathen idol worship and listening to the dancing whores sing their indecent songs thereby condoning this work of the devil. They even give them fine clothes for their beautiful singing, or have them come into their houses and not only sing in front of them, but also dance in their heathen manner. Up to now this has formed a great hindrance to the conversion of the heathen who think so much of their idol worship, thinking, and even saying to our face, that there must be something special about their religion, if even the most prominent among the Christians love watching their ceremonies and take so much pleasure in them. O would that God would soon remove this vexation.

Ziegenbalg gives a short quotation from the invocation to the gods for protection at the beginning of this work (mh 108), but no copy of it has been identified.

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473Alli areschanimaleiidu, eine weitläuftige Beschreibung in Versen von der Heirath und Hochzeit einer Königstochter, Alli arescháni gennant, mit dem großen Könige Attschunen. Dieses Buch, weil es von einem wohlerfahrenen Poeten gemachet worden, so hat es sehr feine Redensarten in sich, um welcher Ursache willen ich es allein durchlesen.

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475Alliyaracāṉi mālai, a lengthy description in verse of the marriage and wedding of a king’s daughter named Alli aracāṉi to the great king Arccuṉaṉ. Because this book was written by an accomplished poet it has very fine turns of speech in it, for which reason alone I was willing to read through it.

In the Alliyaracāṉi mālai, a folklore ballad ascribed to Pukaḻēnti, Alli is the only child of an unnamed Pāṇḍyan king, who ascends the throne after his death and rules alone until tricked into marriage by Arjuna.86 Despite the conventional ascription to Pukaḻēnti, the work is probably later, and Mu. Aruṇācalam dates the group of ballads on Alli to the end of the sixteenth century.87

Pukaḻēntippulavar iyaṟṟiya Alliyaracāṉi mālai (Ceṉṉai: B. Irattiṉa Nāyakar, 1932).

476The text of the third section of the Bibliotheca Malabarica ends with the statement: “These then are those Malabarian books which I have been able to obtain up to now in one year, with great effort and expense, hoping that in future very many more will be bought and copied.”88 It appears that Ziegenbalg was able to do so, but he drew up no further catalogue of his collection and thus relatively few of these works are identifiable. In the final section, we attempt to distinguish between works which Ziegenbalg knew of, and mentions by name, and those which we can be sure he actually possessed.