- Lyricist
- Vallalar Ramalinga Adigal
- Singer
- Sunantha
- Music director
- Ilayaraja
- Movie name
- Sakkarai Panthal
- Movie release year
- 1988
- Lyrics added on
- 8 May 2021
Lyrics & meaning
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This divine hymn composed by Vallalar (Ramalinga Swamigal) highlights the transcendent power of love (Anbu) in capturing the infinite Divine. The poet uses striking paradoxes to show that while God is as vast as a mountain, an ocean, and a great light, He willingly allows Himself to be bound, contained, and held by the simple, sincere devotion of love.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Anaphora (Initial Repetition / Emoni)
“Anbenum pidiyul agappadum malaiyae”
The word 'Anbenum' (meaning 'called love') is repeated at the beginning of consecutive lines to create a rhythmic, chant-like devotion.
Paradox (Muran)
“Anbenum kadaththul adangidum kadalae”
Contrasting massive or infinite divine concepts (Mountain, Ocean, Great Light) with tiny containers (a fist, a pot, an atom) to show how love can hold the infinite.
Metaphor (Uruvagama)
“Anbenum valaikut paduparam porulae”
Equating love directly to physical objects or enclosures such as a hut, a net, a hand, and an atom.
Did you know?
Trivia
This poem is a famous excerpt from the 'Thiruvarutpa', a collection of thousands of devotional verses composed by the 19th-century saint Vallalar (Ramalinga Swamigal), who emphasized 'Anbe Sivam' (Love is God) and 'Jeevakarunyam' (compassion towards all living beings).
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