Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan

Thunchaththu Ramanujan Ezhuthachan (, ) (fl. 16th century) was a Malayalam devotional poet, translator and linguist. He was one of the prāchīna kavithrayam (old triad) of Malayalam literature, the other two being Kunchan Nambiar and Cherusseri. He has been called the "Father of Modern Malayalam Literature", and the "Primal Poet in Malayalam". His work is published and read far more than that of any of his contemporaries or predecessors in Kerala.

He was born in a place called Thunchan Parambu in present-day Tirur in the Malappuram district of northern Kerala, in a traditional Hindu family. Little is known with certainty about his life.

The following two texts are the standard sources on Ezhuthachan.

"Eluttaccan and His Age" (1940) by C. Achyuta Menon (Madras: University of Madras).

Main historical sources of Ezhuthachan and his life are

Quasi-historical verses referring to Ezhuthachan (from Chittur Madhom). Hermann Gundert dates Ezuthachan to the seventeenth century. Kovunni Nedungadi dates Ezuthachan to the fifteenth century. A time frame similar to Ulloor was proposed by scholar C. Radhakrishnan. He was probably educated by his elder brother (early in his life). After his early education he is believed to have travelled in the other parts of India (outside Kerala) and learned Sanskrit and some other Dravidian languages.

Ezhuthachan was eventually associated with an institutional line of masters (gurus). A verse chanted by the ascetics of the mathom during their daily prayers makes a reference to the following line of masters.

Thunchaththu Sri Guru Sri Karunakaran Sri Suryanarayanan Sri Deva Guru Sri Gopala Guru

Myths and legends Legends consider Ezhuthachan as a "gandharva" (divine being) who in his previous birth was a witness to the Great War in the Mahabharata. As a young boy Ezhuthachan corrected the Brahmins at Trikkandiyoor Temple. Ezhuthachan or his follower Suryanarayanan predicted the downfall of zamorin's family (the then rulers of Kozhikode). And the zamorin sought his help to perform a Sakteya Puja. It is said that Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri sought the advice of Ezhuthachan on how to start his Narayaneeyam.

Ezhuthachan's other major contribution has been in mainstreaming (the current) Malayalam alphabet (derived chiefly from the Sanskrit Grantha, or the Arya Script) as the replacement for the old Vattezhuthu (the then-30-letter script of Malayalam). The poem Krishnagatha written by Cherusseri Namboothiri, who was the court poet of the king Udaya Varman Kolathiri (1446 – 1475) of Kolathunadu, is written in modern Malayalam. Hence, Ezhuthachan is also known as The Father of modern Malayalam.

Adhyatma Ramayanam Kilippattu

Adhyatma Ramayanam Kilippattu, written in the parrot-song style, is Ezhuthachan's principle work.

According to critic K. Ayyappa Panicker, those who see Adhyatma Ramayanam merely as a devotional work "belittle" Ezhuthachan. Thematic focus: epic or Puranic traditions. Writer K. Balakrishna Kurup also reports the same, in his book Viswasathinte Kanappurangal. E. P. Bhaskara Guptan, a writer and independent researcher of local history from Kadampazhipuram; supports Kurup's conclusion. Historian Velayudhan Panikkassery expresses the same opinion.

Nair The Chakkala Nair caste had the rights to enter brahmanical temples and to participate in worships.

The Malayalam poet and historian Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer agree that Ezhuthachan belonged to this caste and conclude that he could be Vattekattu Nair because he visited brahmanical temples and engaged in worship, which is not allowed for the Ezuthacan caste.

William Logan, officer of the Madras Civil Service under the English India Company Government, expresses a similar opinion in his Malabar Manual and states that Thunchaththu Ezuthachan was "a man of Sudra (Nayar) caste". mainly by Nairs in Northern kerala indicating that Ezhuthachan was a Nair.

Kaniyar Some sources consider him to be Kaniyar. This community of traditional astrologers were well versed in Sanskrit and Malayalam. During the medieval period, amongst the non-Brahmin castes which traditionally learnt Sanskrit, the Kaniyar community was involved in Sanskrit learning as part of their craft. They were learned people and had knowledge in astrology, mathematics, mythology and Ayurveda.

In addition to the common title Panicker, the members of Kaniyar from the South Travancore and Malabar region were known as Aasaan, Ezhuthu Aasans, or Ezhuthachans (Father of Letters), Sooranad Kunjan Pillai was the first recipient of the honour (1993). The Malayalam University, established by Kerala Government in 2012, is named after Ezhuthachan.

Initiation to Letters The sand from the compound where the house of Ezhuthachan stood once is considered as sacred. It is a tradition in north Kerala to practise the art of writing in the beginning on the sand with the first finger.

Monuments

Ezhuthachan was born at Trikkandiyoor in northern Kerala. His birthplace is now known as Thunchan Parambu. Chittur Gurumadhom is located near present-day Palakkad. The madhom is flanked by temples of gods Rama and Siva. The street has an array of agraharas (where the twelve Brahmin families who migrated along with Ezhuthachan live). Ezhuthachan's samadhi is also situated at Chittur (in Palakkad).

Relics

Some relics of Ezhuthachan or his age were sacredly preserved at the Chittur madhom. This included the original manuscripts and the clogs used by him. These artifacts were destroyed in a fire 30 or 40 years before William Logan. Only the Bhagavatam was saved from the fire. Scholar A. C. Burnell examined this Bhagavatam (and a stool, clogs and a staff) in the late 19th century. These objects probably belonged to one of the first followers of Ezhuthachan. Stool, clog and the staff (seen by Burnell) were destroyed in a second fire. This fire destroyed the original Bhagavatam also. Copies of a sri chakra and the idols worshipped by Ezhuthachan, the stylus, the wooden slippers, and a few old manuscripts are exhibited for visitors at Chittur madhom.