Thiruvalluvar Day

In News 

• Recently, the Prime Minister of India paid tributes to Thiruvalluvar on the occasion of Thiruvalluvar Day.

About 

• It is observed either on January 15 or 16 as a part of Pongal celebrations to mark the birth anniversary of Thiruvalluvar, a Tamil poet and philosopher.
  •  It was first celebrated on May 17 and 18 in 1935.

About Thiruvalluvar

• He is regarded as a cultural icon by Tamils.
• Multiple accounts regarding Thiruvalluvar are available but little is known about his family background, religious affiliation or birthplace.
  • It is believed that he used to live in the town of Mylapore, a neighbourhood in present-day Chennai and flourished between the 4th century and 6th century. 
    • Tamil orator and writer and father of the Pure Tamil movement, Maraimalai Adigal deduced 31 BC as the birth year of Valluvar, while Czech scholar in Indian literature and linguistics, Kamil Zvelebil inferred that Thiruvalluvar lived around 500 AD.

Works and contribution 

• He has influenced a wide range of scholars through the years in disciplines like ethics, politics, economics, philosophy and spirituality. 
• His most popular work is Thirukku?a?, a collection of couplets on ethics, politics, economy and love.
  • Tirukkural is considered a very important text in Tamil literature.

Initiatives to honour him

• In the early 16th century, a temple dedicated to Thiruvalluvar was built within the Ekambareswarar temple complex in Mylapore, Chennai.
  • Locals believe that this was where he was born, underneath a tree within the temple complex.
• In 1976, a temple-memorial called Valluvar Kottam was built in Chennai and houses one of the largest auditoriums in Asia. 
• A 133-foot-tall statue of Thiruvalluvar stands at Kanyakumari as well.
• Another statue of the legendary Tamil poet was unveiled in Ulsoor, near Bengaluru, in 2009. 

Source:TH