Transports and Security of Ancient Tamils by the Animals

             Transports and security of Ancient Tamils                                  by the Animals

The ancient Tamil people used animals for transportation according to the place and situation. They used mules, donkeys, camels and oxen for transportation. These were mostly used for trade. Kings used horses and elephants for city patrols and military forces. Women mostly used mule-drawn carts to move from one place to another. This is because mules are patient and can handle the conditions. Horse-drawn chariots were used by kings to move around the battlefield and in cities. Camels were used to carry the queens' robes and for trade. Salt merchants called Umanars used donkey-drawn carts and ox-drawn carts to carry salt packages. 

The Salt selling women would drive the ox-drawn cart. Merchants would carry packages of pepper on donkeys. Kings would mostly harness milky white horses to their chariots. 

They would take the packages to the market in donkey-drawn carts and sell them. Good horses were selected based on their hearing.

A chariot drawn by horses mentioned in sangam literatures

“நீயே அலங்கு உளைப் பரிஇ  இவுளிப்

போலந் தேர்மிசைப் பொலிவு தோன்ற”

“கடும்படு நன்மான் கொடுஞ்சி நெடுந்தேர்”

பொருள்: கடிய செலவினை உடைய குதிரை பூண்டநெடுந்தேர்

  Donkey-drawn cart

“வெள்வாய் கழுதைப்புல்லினம் பூட்டி”

பொருள்: பரிகள் பூட்டிய தேரில் அரசன் உலா வருவான்.

Salt wagon

“கழி உப்பு  முகந்து கல் நாடு மடுக்கும்

ஆரை சாகாட்டு ஆழ்ச்சி போக்கும்”

Meaning: They carry salt produced in the river in a cart and travel along a rocky path. The Umanas use animals suitable for traveling on these rough paths. In this case, if the animals become lame or sick, they leave them alone.

Ox-drawn cart

“எருதே இளைய நுகம் உணாராவே”

பொருள்: எருதுகள் பூட்டப்பட்ட வண்டியில் உப்புப் பொதிகள் ஏற்றி செல்வர்.

The people of the Sangam period used various methods to protect themselves and their possessions from various situations. A good example of this is that they kept crocodiles in the moats of their forts to protect themselves from enemy attacks. 

Hunters living in the forests would build their forts like a fortress to protect themselves from elephants. Similarly, they would keep hunting dogs in their homes. 

The salt merchants would take oxen with them for protection. Ancient Tamils ​​had a close relationship with animals. We know from various sources that they considered animals and birds as part of their family.


Conclusion

The Sangam people used animals for transportation and protection.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ancient Architecture in TamilNadu

                Ancient Architecture in TamilNadu  The history of architecture in Tamil Nadu dates back to the Megalithic Age, i.e. from the 1000 BC. Among these Megalithic monuments, stone mounds and stone cairns resemble building structures. A "stone cist" is a square structure made up of four large stones, covered with large stones. There are holes in it for placing objects. "Dolmens" is also of the same type but is buried in the ground. Such monuments were built for the dead. During the Sangam period, there were religious buildings such as temples and Buddhist and Jain monasteries. However, they were mostly built of bricks. According to Silappadhikaram and Manimekalai, temples were called "Kottam". Temples and other royal residences were called Kottam. The architectural structures of Tamil Nadu from the Sangam period to the historical period can be classified as follows. 1) Temples 2) Monasteries 3) Forts 4) Palaces 5) Boathouses 6) Wareh...
Read more

Tamil Proverbs about Animals

                      Tamil Proverbs about Animals In this article, you will find proverbs about animals. Various proverbs have been created in Tamil using animals as metaphors. Such proverbs are mostly common in villages. Some of the village stories of Tamil Nadu are depicted on Indus Valley pottery. The story of a crow drinking water by putting pebbles in a pottery jar and the story of a fox cheating a crow to get a cake are also depicted. Indus Valley culture is similar to Tamil civilization in many ways. 1) அசைந்து தின்கிறது மாடு அசையாமல் தின்கிறது வீடு- The cow eats while moving, the house eats without moving. it means who living without any hard work. 2)  பால் சட்டிக்கு பூனை காவல்- Cat guarding the milk jug.  3)  சூடு கண்ட பூனை அடுப்பங்கரை சேராது-A cat that sees heat will not go near the stove. 4) மதில் மேல் பூனை-Cat on the wall- it denotes uncertainty. 5) ஆடு நனைகிறது என்று ஓநாய் அழுததாம்-The wolf cri...
Read more

Ornament and Vessels of Cholas to the Temples

                Ornament and Vessels of Cholas to the                                                        Temples In Tamil Nadu, most of the temples were built during the Chola period, and many brick temples were converted into stone temples. The kings and queens donated gold, silver, pearls, and gold and silver vessels to build the temples. The inscriptions in the Thanjavur Great Temple mention that Rajaraja Chola I and his queens and officials donated ornaments and vessels. Not only the Thanjavur Great Temple inscriptions, but most of the Chola inscriptions mention this. Along with these ornaments, they also made idols of gods made of metals like copper, gold and silver. 1) திருப்பட்டம் 2) எக்காளம்- (it is a Musical Instrument) 3) பொன் கெண்டி 4) கிடாரம்  5) செப்புக் குடம் ( f...
Read more