This is a question that has been asked “twice” on this blog. How do I not dedicate a complete post to answer this question?

Thirukural or kural is a collection of 1330 Tamizh couplets written by Thiruvalluvar. Thiruvalluvar is portrayed as a saint with a long beard and olaichuvadi (dried palm leaves and nail ~ I have no clue what the english word for olaichuvadi is. Anyone knows?). His images are seen quite frequently in the Govt of Tamil Nadu documents. His statue in Kanniyakumari is a must-see tourist destination.

The couplets cover a wide range of topics from ruling land to education. They are short, precise and educational. They are a part of our Tamizh classes starting early on. They are quite easy to understand if you have taken a few years of Tamizh classes. It is amazing how applicable the words written centuries ago (no one knows the exact time period when Thirukural were written) are in today’s world.

There is also some confusion/claims of who the actual author was. Some believe it is a group of authors who penned down these couplets.

There is also an interesting story about Vasuki, Thiruvalluvar’s wife serving sand. I am sure google will come up with more details than my spotty memory.

The kurals have been translated into many languages and you can read more about it here