Tuesday, November 3, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org

Tamil Saiva and Siddhar Traditions

Tamil Saiva, Siddhar, Tevaram, Pattinathar, Sivavakkiyar, and related Hindu devotional materials moved out of the non-sectarian Tamil literary shelf.

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Texts

Agappey Siddhar — The Songs of the Ghost WithinThe ninety four-line verses of Akappēy Cittar, the Tamil Siddhar who calls his own mind 'akappēy', the ghost within, in every verse, translated from Tamil.Agathiyar — The Wisdom of AgathiyarAkattiyar Ñāṉam, a Tamil Siddhar wisdom poem in five parts attributed to Agathiyar (Agastya): fifty verses in viruttam metres on the breath, the Fullness, the sacred letters and the suṣumṇā, with a fierce attack on scripture made for a living, translated from Tamil.Idaikkadar — The Songs of the Dancing HerdsmanThe songs of the Tamil Siddhar Iṭaikkāṭar, 130 verses with an invocation, in which two herdsmen speak and the poet sings to the heart, the mind, the cuckoo, the peacock and the swan, turning the work of the herd into the yoga of liberation; translated from Tamil.Kakapusundar — The Wisdom of the Crow SageThe Wisdom of Kākapucuṇṭar, the Tamil Siddhar called the Crow Sage: 79 verses in eṇcīr viruttam on silence, the breath and the crown of the head, mocking ritual and caste and closing with alchemical recipes, translated from Tamil.Kanjamalai Siddhar — Counsels of Perfect BlissThe song of the Kañcamalai Siddhar: twenty-five rhyming verses of blunt counsel on pride, lust, learning and the guru's word, toward the bliss of Śiva-yoga, translated from Tamil.Konganar — The Kummi of the Maiden VālaiThe Vālaik Kummi, a Tamil Siddhar song of 111 four-line verses for the kummi clapping dance in praise of Vālai, the maiden Śakti, handed down under the name of Koṅkaṇa Cittar (an attribution its editor doubts): a veṇpā and six kummi verses of invocation, then the main kummi, translated from Tamil.Mouna Siddhar — The Song of the Silent SiddharThe kuṟavañci song of Vakuḷinātar, called the Silent Siddhar (Mauṉa Cittar): twelve four-line verses of yogic discipline, cave-dwelling and the vision of the supreme Space, translated from Tamil.Nondi Siddhar — The Lame One's Song of BlissThe noṇṭic cintu of Maccēntiranātar, called the Noṇṭi (Lame) Siddhar: thirty-three four-line verses telling his climb through the yogic centres to the Dance at Citamparam, translated from Tamil.Pambatti Siddhar — The Songs of the Dancing SnakePāmpāṭṭi Cittar's song of the snake-charmer: 129 Tamil Siddhar verses on the Guru, the body, the senses and liberation, most closing on the refrain 'dance, snake!', translated from Tamil.Paththirakiriyar — The Lament of True Knowledge231 verses of longing for liberation by Tamil Siddhar poet Paththirakiriyār — each verse ending with the refrain 'when?' — first complete English translation from Classical TamilPattinathar — The Three-Jeweled Garland of TirukazhumalaTwelve devotional poems by the Siddhar saint Pattinathar in praise of Shiva at Tirukazhumala (Sirkali), cycling through three classical Tamil verse-meters. First complete English translation.Punnakku Siddhar — The Song to Lady WisdomThe song of the Puṇṇākku Siddhar: twenty three-line verses addressed to Lady Wisdom (ñāṉammā), mocking hollow piety and the false cage of the body, translated from Tamil.Sangili Siddhar — The Kummi of the Woman of BlissA kummi of 36 verses by the Tamil Siddhar Caṅkili Cittar, the Chain Siddhar, each ending with the refrain O woman of bliss: on the breath, the body and the highest silence. Translated from Tamil.Sivavakkiyam — The Words of SivavakkiyarThe complete Sivavakkiyam — 524 iconoclastic mystical verses by the Tamil Siddhar saint Sivavakkiyar, challenging caste, temple ritual, and Vedic authority while singing the direct inner experience of the Lord.Songs of the Seven SiddhasFirst-ever English translation of an anthology of seven Tamil Siddha mystics — antinomian poets who burned the scriptures and found God within the bodySubramaniyar — The Wisdom of SubrahmanyaA Tamil Siddhar wisdom-poem of an invocation and 32 stanzas in which Subrahmaṇya, the Peacock Hero, defeats the asuras and teaches Agastya the yoga of the breath and the seed-syllables, translated from Tamil.Tevaram — Current Translation DossierCurrent public Tevaram translation dossier, consolidating the formerly separate Tamil Saiva part and volume chunks into one honest reader-facing page.The Holy Songs of PattinatharFirst complete English translation of Pattinathar's Tiruppatal Tirattu — 204 verses of radical renunciation poetry by the naked saint of Kaveripattinam, plus four temple verse compositions. Tamil Siddha tradition, c. 10th–11th century CE.The Temple Garlands of PattinatharFirst-ever English translation of five temple garland poems by Pattinathar, the naked saint of Kaveripattinam. Devotional verse-wreaths for five sacred Tamil temple towns, composed in the elaborate mummaṇikkōvai, tiruvandādi, and tōkai forms.Thirikona Siddhar — The Lady of the TriangleOne kalivenpā poem of 90 couplets by the Tamil Siddhar Tirikōṇa Cittar, the Triangle Siddhar: praise of Śiva as Guru, the city of the body, and the Lady of the Triangle's daughter Kuṭilai counselled whom to let in. Translated from Tamil.Uroma Rishi — The Wisdom of Uroma RishiThirteen eight-line stanzas on breath-yoga, the inner centres and the false teacher by the Tamil Siddhar Urōma Ṛṣi, translated from Tamil.Valaisami — The Kummi of WisdomThe Kummi of Wisdom (Ñāṉakkummi) of the Tamil Siddhar Vālaisāmi of Madurai: 185 two-line kummi couplets, four of them guard-verses, on the body, the breath and liberation, translated in full from Tamil.Vallalar — The Ruby Garland of Vaṭivuṭai at TiruvoṟṟiyūrIrāmaliṅka Aṭikaḷ (Vaḷḷalār)'s garland of a hundred four-line verses to the Goddess Vaṭivuṭai of Tiruvoṟṟiyūr, each ending 'O ruby Vaṭivuṭai', with an invocation to Gaṇeśa, translated from Tamil.Valmiki — The Sutra Wisdom of ValmikiSixteen eight-line stanzas on the breath (vāci), the four paths and the false ascetic by Vālmīki, a Siddhar of the Tamil tradition, translated from Tamil.