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 Professor
A S Gnanasambandan has not only helped make the 'Thirukkural'
(Thiruvalluvar's epic) come alive, but has also given to
it, lucid and convincing commentaries.
Author of around three-dozen books, Gnanasambandan began
focusing on the study of Tamil on the advice of his father.
Today, he is acknowledged as an authority on Tamil
classics. He maintains that the Thirukkural was written
against a static backdrop. That dispels any misguided
impression that it was influenced by the Vedas (which were
written in the context of a nomadic civilisation).
Gnanasambandan was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in
1985 for his book 'Kamban-Pudiya Paarvai'. He is also the
recipient of the state Government awards in 1957 and 1990.
The Tamil Newspaper Daily Thanthi conferred the 'Mootharingnjar'
(elderly scholar) award on him in 1998.
For this scholar, what is most worrying is the apathy
towards reconstructing the history of Tamil literature.
Most students, who opt for Tamil, do so out of default. If
Tamil literature is to flourish as it did at the time of
Thiruvalluvar, somebody ought to give Gnanasambandan a
hand.
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