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Sundarar (Tamil: சுந்தரர்), also referred to as Chuntarar, Chuntaramurtti, Nampi Aruran or Tampiran Tolan, was an eighth-century poet-saint of Tamil Shaiva Siddhanta tradition of Hinduism. He is among the Tevaram trio, and one of the most prominent Nayanars, the Shaiva bhakti (devotional) poets of Tamil Nadu. His hymns form the seventh volume of the Tirumurai, the twelve-volume compendium of Shaiva Siddhanta. His songs are considered the most musical in Tirumurai in Tamil language. His life and his hymns in the Tevaram are broadly grouped in four stages. First, his cancelled arranged marriage through the intervention of Shiva in the form of a mad petitioner and his conversion into a Shaiva bhakt. Second, his double marriage to temple dancers Paravai and Cankali with their stay together in Tiruvarur. Third, his blindness and then return of his sight. Finally, his reflections on wealth and material goods. Sundarar is referred to by many names. Sundarar (Chuntarar) means "the lovely, handsome one". He was adopted by regional feudatory dedicated to Shiva, and that brought the name "Aruran". Peers and the generations that followed him called him "Tampiran Tolan", which means "intimate companion, dedicated friend of the lord [Shiva]". The Tevaram hymns compositions of Sundarar are a source of biographical information about him, as are the hagiographic texts written about him few centuries after he died. Sundarar was born in Tirunavalur in a Shaiva Brahmin family to Sadaiya Nayanar and Isaignaniyar towards the end of the 7th century. He was adopted by the Narasinga Munaiaraiyar Kashatriya family, a Pallava feudatory (Thirumunaipadi-Nadu, an adoption that gave him a luxurious childhood. Sundarar is unique among the Nayanars in that both of his birth parents are also recognized as Nayanars (poet-saints of Tamil Shaivism). They were temple priests and accepted the adoption request of the local feudatory. Once he came of age, his adopted family arranged his marriage.

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Related concepts (16)

Chidambaram

Chidambaram is a town and municipality in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Vellar River where it meets the Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Chidambaram taluk. The town is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Pallavas until ninth century, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Later Pandyas, Vijayanagara Empire, Thanjavur Nayakas, Marathas and the British.

Nayanars

The Nayanars (or Nayanmars; நாயன்மார், and later 'teachers of Shiva ) were a group of 63 Tamil Hindu saints living during the 6th to 8th centuries CE who were devoted to the Hindu god Shiva. Along with the Alvars, their contemporaries who were devoted to Vishnu, they influenced the Bhakti movement in early medieval South India. The names of the Nayanars were first compiled by Sundarar. The list was expanded by Nambiyandar Nambi during his compilation of material by the poets for the Tirumurai collection, and would include Sundarar himself and Sundarar's parents.

Thiruvarur

Thiruvarur (t̪iɾuʋaːɾuːɾ) also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and measuring tall is the largest temple chariot in India. Thiruvarur is the birthplace of Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, popularly known as the Trinity of Carnatic music of the 18th century CE. Thiruvarur Thiyagarajaa Swaamy temple is older than Tanjore big temple.