The revered Perumale in Tiruppukal: a case study

Tiruppukal is a devotional poetry composed by poet-saint Arunagirinathar to promote glory of Lord Murugan, the ancient god of Tamils. A preliminary literature review of the text revealed the name Perumale (Perumal), synonymous with names Tirumal and Vishnu among Tamil Vaishanavites, is more often quoted in comparison to Murugan. Thus, this article tries to analyse Arunagirinathar’s intend in promoting name Perumale. This article approaches the subject using qualitative research incorporating library-based and descriptive methods to analyse and evaluate Arunagirinathar’s such intend. Findings revealed that Perumale is a conceptual term means “Great One” or “Lord of Lords” even though has connotation to deity Perumal. The name Perumale is used in social and linguistic contexts to depict Murugan as the Great God of the Tamils. Arunagirinathar also portrayed Murugan’s attributes and his three forms to alleviate Him from the Tamil folklore deity to a Great God of the South India. Arunagirinathar also used Perumale to syncretize Murugan and Skanda to bridge a cultural and religious unity between the North-South (India) while stamping Him with pan-Indian identity. Further, Lord Murugan’s bond of kinship with various divinities and deities of Hindu pantheon in context with name Perumale portrayed Him as Supreme Being in par excellence with Siva and Vishnu as well as illustrates sense of oneness, coexistence and harmonious interaction which binds the various Hindu divides. Thus, Arunagirinathar by means of the Perumale has portrayed Murugan as a pan-Hindu god who transcends religious and philosophical barriers in Hindu pantheon.