The Latin translation of Thirukkural made by Constanzo Beschi in 1730 did much to make known to European intellectuals the richness and beauty of Oriental Tamil literature. It is said that to the amazement of the critics, the Sangam Plank shrunk itself in size to hold only the Kural manuscript and in the process throwing out the rest. The significance of this is that the greatness of a work is realized on the basis of not the weight of its manuscript (written on Palm leaves) but the divine qualities of the work which forced the plank to stay afloat. The conceited scholars at Madurai, insisted on measuring the greatness of the work through a test where the manuscript would be placed with other works on a plank kept afloat in the tank of the Meenakshi temple and it was to be seen if the plank remained afloat. Upon completion, Thiruvalluvar took the work (Thirukkural) to Madurai (Tamil Nadu, India) as per the prevailing practice of reading out new compositions in a public forum where critics and scholars would be present. While Aram and Inbam discuss about ethical living in private life, Porul deals with public matters. The 133 chapters are grouped into three sections: Īram containes 380 verses, Porul with 700 and Inbam with 250. Thirukkural is structured into 133 chapters, each containing 10 couplets, thus a total of 1330 couplets. Uttravedam - the ultimate Veda or Creed.Thirukural is praised with many names such as: Graul might have subsumed the Jains also under the name of the Buddhists (Graul 1865: xi note). In this connection it was then of particular interest that Thiruvalluvar, the author of the Tirukkural was identified as a Paraiyar in Tamil tradition (as, incidentally, were also other famous ancient Tamil writers, e.g., Auvaiyar cf. Karl Graul (1814–1864) had already by 1855 characterized the Tirukkural as 'a work of Buddhist hue'. Pope who had spent many years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English, which includes Thirukkural, have recognised Thiruvalluvar as a Paraiyar. Most of the Researchers and great Tamil Scholars like George Uglow Pope or G.U. The first instance of the author's name mentioned as Thiruvalluvar is found to be several centuries later in a song of praise called Garland of Thiruvalluvar in Thiruvalluva Malai. There are claims and counter claims as to the authorship of the book and to the exact number of couplets written by Thiruvalluvar. It has been translated to various other languages. For example, Thirukkural is a cir formed by combining the two words Thiru and Kural, i.e. A cir is a single or a combination of more than one Tamil word. A couplet consists of seven cirs, with four cirs on the first line and three on the second. The 1330 couplets are arranged into 3 main sections and 133 chapters. Thirukkural comes under one of the four categories of Venpas (Tamil verses) called Kural Venpa.
According to the LIFCO Tamil-Tamil-English dictionary, the Tamil word Kural means Venpa verse with two lines. Each chapter has a specific subject ranging from " ploughing a piece of land" to " ruling a country". Thirukkural (or the Kural ) is a collection of 1330 Tamil couplets organised into 133 chapters. The book is considered to precede Manimekalai and Silapathikaram since they both acknowledge the Kural text. This is reflected in some of the other names by which the text is known: Tamil marai (Tamil Veda) poyyamozhi (words that never fail) and teyva nul or dheiva nool (divine text). The Thirukkural expounds on various aspects of life and is one of the most important works in the Tamil language. Although the exact period of its composition is still disputed, scholars agree that it was produced before the 2nd century BC. It was authored by Thiruvalluvar, and is considered to be the first work to focus on ethics in Dravidian literature. Thirukkural ( Tamil : திருக்குறள் also known as the Kural ) is a classic of couplets or Kurals (1330 rhyming Tamil couplets ) or aphorisms celebrated by Tamils.
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