Thiruvarangan Ulaa (novel)

Thiruvarangan Ulaa is a Tamil historical novel. A work of popular fiction, it was authored by writer Sri Venugopalan. The story is set against the background of Muhammad Bin Tughlaq's invasion and sack of Thiruvarangam [Srirangam]. The first part of this novel is published under the title Thiruvarangan Ulaa and the second part under the title Madhura Vijayam. During the sack of Srirangam, the Vaishnava priests of the Ranganathaswamy Temple removed the festival idol [urchavar] from the temple's premises and travelled all over South India with it seeking protection. They brought it back to Srirangam only when the Nayakkas took over the town again. This bit of history is depicted in this novel.

Historical Background

When Muhammad Bin Tughlaq invaded South India in 1326 CE, his army sacked the Ranganathaswamy temple at Srirangam. The Vaishnava acharyas, preists and the people struggled to protect the temple. They hid away the treasures of the temples and the idols of the deities from the invading armies. The festival idol figurine (urchava perumal) of Ranganathaswamy was taken to Thirukkottiyur, Kalaiyarkoil and Azhagar Malai, and eventually made its way to Thiruppathi, where it was kept hidden in great secrecy. Then in 1371 CE, the figurine was brought back to Srirangam. Accounts attesting to these events can be found in texts like Srirangam Koyilozhugu (two parts) and Namperumal Vanavasam by Vaishnavashri Krishnamachar.

Conception, Publication

Sri Venugopalan writes about how he found the spark to write this novel in the foreword to the 2002 edition of the book. When he was browsing through Dr.Krishnaswamy Iyengar's South India and her Mohammedan Invaders at the Connemara Library, he found a reference in the book to an older book called 'The Sack of Srirangam'. Intrigued, he delved into further research about the period that resulted in the writing of this novel.

Thiruvarangan Ulaa was serialized in Dinamani Kadhir in 1978. The second part appeared in the same newspaper a few years later. Later, they were published as books.

Literary Merit

திருவரங்கன் உலா உண்மையான வரலாற்று நிகழ்வை ஒட்டி எழுதப்பட்ட பொழுதுபோக்கு நாவல். சாகசம், மர்மம் ஆகிய இயல்புகள் கொண்டது. தமிழில் வரலாற்றுப் பொழுதுபோக்கு நாவல்களுக்கு ஒரு மரபு உண்டு. வால்டர் ஸ்காட், அலக்ஸாண்டர் டூமா ஆகியோரின் மரபை அடியொற்றி கல்கி முதல் தொடர்ச்சியாக பலர் எழுதி வந்துள்ளனர். ஆனால் சாகசநாயகனை மையமாகக் கொள்ளாமல் ஒரு வரலாற்று நிகழ்வை மையமாகக்கொண்டு எழுதப்பட்டமையால் இந்நாவல் முக்கியமானதாக ஆகிறது. இந்நாவலில் வேதாந்த தேசிகர், பிள்ளைலோகாச்சாரியார் போன்ற வைணவ ஆச்சாரியார்களும் கதைமாந்தராக வருகிறார்கள்

Links

https://archive.org/details/ThiruvaranganUlaa/ThiruAranganUlaa_Part1/