Tamil Heritage Trust
Talk on "Tamil Bhakti Literature: An Introduction" by Madhusudhanan Kalaichelvan.
Online Talk in English at 5.30 pm IST on September 7, 2024.
Register
The Saiva and Vaishnava bhakti literature in Tamil form a rich
repository of religious, spiritual, cultural and historic knowledge.
Written around the fifth to the ninth century CE, these were composed by
the Saiva Nayanmars and Vaishnava Azhwars, poet-saints who traveled
widely to sacred towns on pilgrimage, singing about their temples. The
entire Indian sacred topography is measured by these verses that
describe the city, the flora and fauna and the people of the lands the
poets visited. These verses were a milestone in the development of Tamil
literature and played a significant role in popularizing the language.
Madhusudhanan Kalaichelvan, an architecture graduate and a gold
medalist in his post graduation, specializes in conservation and
architectural research. He has been an academic for a decade, mentoring
students of popular schools of architecture. He is currently pursuing
his doctoral research on “Temple Town Planning” and also serves on
Government instituted panel for conservation of temples in Tamil Nadu.
He is an active heritage enthusiast and his contributions have earned
him several awards and accolades. He is well versed in fields of art,
architecture, heritage, cultural studies and vernacular practices. He is
also a popular speaker on a wide range of topics associated with
heritage, religion, culture, and literature.
He is the youngest recipient of the coveted Vedavalli memorial award for
outstanding service by a young achiever in the field of south Indian
heritage(2018). He received the title, “Ilakkiya Chemmal”, recognizing
his mastery over Tamil literature (2019) and "Saiva Thamizh
Arignar"(2022) from his acharya Sri Dharumapuram Adheenam. He is the
first recipient of the THT-Prof Swaminathan Heritage Award (2020) for
his service in the field of heritage and culture.
Madhusudhanan curates and conducts tours to places of architectural
& cultural heritage since 2012. He has been writing columns on
popular print media covering subjects like epigraphy, not so popular
temples and archeology. He has been nominated as a member of academic
council of Tamil Nadu Dr J Jayalalitha Music and Fine Arts University.
Tamil Heritage Trust
tamilheritage.in tamilheritage.in@gmail.com
919444823681
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