Tirumurai

Statues of Sambandar, Appar, Sundarar and Manikkavasagar, the authors of the first eight books of Tirumurai, in a Hindu temple

The Tirumurai ( Tamil : திருமுறை Tirumuṟai [ ˈt̪iɾɯmurɛi̯ ] "sacred arrangement") is the literary canon of Tamil Shaivism . It is divided into twelve books that contain a variety of very inconsistent material. The works of Tirumurai belong to the Shivaitic Bhakti literature and were created between the 6th and 12th centuries. The authors of the Tirumurai are venerated as poet saints ( Nayanmar ).

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The most important part of the Tirumurai are the first seven books, collectively referred to as Tevaram . They were written by the authors Sambandar , Appar and Sundarar . The eighth book is followed by the Tiruvasagam and the Tirukkovaiyar of Manikkavasagar . These four authors - Sambandar, Appar, Sundarar, and Manikkavasagar - are particularly revered as poets and writers. The ninth book, consisting of the Tiruvisaippa and the Tiruppallandu , was written by a number of lesser-known authors. The tenth book contains Tirumular's Tirumandiram , a key text for the Tamil Shaiva Siddhanta . In the eleventh book, a large number of smaller, less well-known texts by various authors are collected. Among them is also the poet saint Karaikkal Ammaiyar , probably the earliest Shivaite Bhakti poet. The Tirumurugatruppadai , a work of Old Tamil Sangam literature, has also been included here. The twelfth and last book of Tirumurai finally forms the Periyapuranam (actually Tiruttondarpuranam ) by the author Sekkilar , which contains the hagiography of the poet saints or Nayanmar.

There is a certain discrepancy between the authors of the Tirumurai and the poet saints canonized in the Periyapuranam : In the Periyapuranam 63 Nayanmar are listed, while in the Tirumurai there are texts by only 27 authors. Not all of these are mentioned in the Periyapuranam and therefore do not belong to the Nayanmar, including the famous Manikkavasagar.

Overview

No.	author	Work title
I-III	Sambandar	Tevaram
IV-VI	Appar
VII	Sundarar
VIII	Manikkavasagar	Tiruvasagam , Tirukkovaiyar
IX	Tirumaligaittevar	Tiruvisaippa , Tiruppallandu
	Karuvurttevar
	Pundurutti Nambikadanambi
	Kandarattittar
	Venattadigal
	Tiruvaliyamudanar
	Purudottamanambi
	Sedirayar
	Sendanar
X	Tirumular	Tirumandiram
XI	Tiruvalavayudaiyar	Tirumugappasuram
	Karaikkal Ammaiyar	Arpuda Tiruvandadi , Tiruvirattaimanimalai , Tiruvalangattu Tiruppadigam
	Aiyadigal Kadavar Kon	Kshettirattiruvenba
	Seraman Perumal	Ponvannattandadi , Nanavula , Arurmummani
	Nakkiradevar	Kayilaipadi Kalattipadiyandadi , Tiruvingoymalai Eluppadu , Tiruvalanchuli Mummanikkovai , Tiruvelugurrirukkai , Perundevapani , Kobappirasadam , Kar Ettu , Potri Tirukkalivenba , Tirumurugatruppadai , Tirukannappadevar Tirumaram
	Kalladadevar	Tirukkannappadevar Tirumaram
	Kabiladevar	Muttayanar Tiruvirattaimanimalai , Sivaperuman Tiruvirattaimanimalai , Sivaperuman Tiruvandadi
	Paranadevar	Sivaperuman Tiruvandadi
	Ilamberuman Adigal	Sivaperuman Tirumummanikkovai
	Adiravadigal	Muttapillaiyar Tirumummanikkovai
	Pattinattu Pillaiyar	Koyil Nanmanimalai , Tirukkalumala Mummanikkovai , Tiruvidaimarudur Mummanikkovai , Tiruvegambamudaiyar Tiruvandadi , Tiruvotriyur Oruba Orubadu
	Nambi Andar Nambi	Tirunaraiyur Vinayagar Tiruvirattaimanimalai , Koyil Tiruppanniyar Viruttam , Tiruttondar Tiruvandadi , Aludaiya Pillaiyar Tiruvandadi , Aludaiya Pillaiyar Tiruchanbaiviruttam , Aludaiya Pillaiyar Mummanikamkovaiya , Aludaiya Pillaiyamai Paiyuva Taiya , Aludaiya Pillaiyamai Pillaiyar , Tiruvulogevasa , Aludaiya Pillaiyai Pillaiyar
XII	Sekkilar	Periyapuranam

literature

• Eva Wilden: Songs of devotion and amazement. Poems of the early Tamil Bhakti . Berlin: Verlag der Weltreligionen, 2013.
• Kamil V. Zvelebil: Tamil Literature. Leiden, Cologne: EJ Brill, 1975.