1. 📝 Original Tamil Verse
காணுநீ, இந்நூல் தான்கண்ட மென்ற காவியமாம்
கண்ட எண்ணூறு சகலத்துக்கும்
காணுநீ, வாத காவியத்துக்காக வசனித்தோம்
முதற்காண்டம் இரண்டாம் காண்டம்
மூணுநீ, மூன்றாம் காண்டம் சொன்னோம்
முடித்தோம் இதற்குள்ளே கருவெல்லாம் தான்
வேணுமென்று, ஒவ்வொன்றும் கேட்டுவைத்தோம் நாம்
வாதத்தின்பேரைத் தானே.
2. 🔡 IAST Transliteration (ISO 15919)
Kāṇunī, innūl tāṉ kaṇṭa meṉṟa kāviyamām
Kaṇṭa eṇṇūṟu sakalattukkum
Kāṇunī, vāta kāviyat-tukkāka vacaniṭṭōm
Mutarkaṇṭam iraṇṭām kāṇṭam
Mūṇunī, mūṉṟām kāṇṭam coṉṉōm
Muṭittōm itarkuḷḷē karuvellām tāṉ
Vēṇumeṉṟu, ovvoṉṟum kēṭṭu-vaittōm nām
Vātat-tiṉ pēraittāṉē.
3. 📘 Word-by-Word Meaning and Etymology Table
| Tamil Word | IAST Transliteration | Lexical Meaning | Etymology / Sanskrit Root | Siddha/Tantric Connotation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| காணு | kāṇu | See! Behold! (imperative) | Tamil imperative verb | Emphatic address to listener; meditative attention |
| காவியம் | kāviyam | Epic poem | Kāvya (Skt: काव्य) | Spiritually poetic scripture; a mode of transmission |
| வாத | vāta | Debate, philosophical discourse | Vāda (Skt: वाद) | Dialogic revelation, Siddha dialectics |
| வசனித்தோம் | vacaniṭṭōm | We uttered, discoursed | Vāc root (speech) | Mantraic conversation; Śakti as speech |
| காண்டம் | kāṇṭam | Section, book | Kāṇḍa (Skt: काण्ड) | Literary subdivision with inner meaning progression |
| கரு | karu | Womb, seed, essence | Garbha (Skt: गर्भ) | Causal truth, subtle teachings |
| கேட்டுவைத்தோம் | kēṭṭu-vaittōm | Asked and preserved | Tamil verbs | Dialogic transmission preserved consciously |
| பெயர் | pēyar | Name, title | Tamil/Sanskrit | Symbolic naming; energy behind the text form |
4. 🔤 Line-by-Line Literal Translation
1. காணுநீ, இந்நூல் தான்கண்ட மென்ற காவியமாம்
Kāṇunī, innūl tāṉ kaṇṭa meṉṟa kāviyamām
Behold! This very text is the epic that was seen and revealed.
2. கண்ட எண்ணூறு சகலத்துக்கும்
Kaṇṭa eṇṇūṟu sakalattukkum
Eight hundred (verses) have been composed for the entirety of it.
3. காணுநீ, வாத காவியத்துக்காக வசனித்தோம்
Kāṇunī, vāta kāviyat-tukkāka vacaniṭṭōm
Behold! We uttered this as a vāda kāviyam—a dialogue-epic.
4. முதற்காண்டம் இரண்டாம் காண்டம்
Mutarkaṇṭam iraṇṭām kāṇṭam
There is a first section, and a second section…
5. மூணுநீ, மூன்றாம் காண்டம் சொன்னோம்
Mūṇunī, mūṉṟām kāṇṭam coṉṉōm
Behold! We also presented the third section.
6. முடித்தோம் இதற்குள்ளே கருவெல்லாம் தான்
Muṭittōm itarkuḷḷē karuvellām tāṉ
We have completed, within it, all the essential seed-content.
7. வேணுமென்று, ஒவ்வொன்றும் கேட்டுவைத்தோம் நாம்
Vēṇumeṉṟu, ovvoṉṟum kēṭṭu-vaittōm nām
Whatever was needed, we asked and preserved each part carefully.
8. வாதத்தின்பேரைத்தானே.
Vātat-tiṉ pēraittāṉē
Thus, we have given it the name “Vāda” (discourse).
5. 🌌 Metaphoric or Hidden Meaning (Paripāṣai / குறிக்கோள்)
This verse is a reflective offering of inner structure. In the Siddha style, it breaks the fourth wall—revealing the text not only as poetic inspiration but as a codified sādhana document, consciously compiled across three kāṇṭams (books). It declares that these divisions preserve the karu—the “seed-womb” of wisdom—and that everything was spoken in a vāda format: a spiritual dialogue meant to ignite truth through inquiry.
The imperative “காணு நீ” (you must see!) repeated throughout the verse calls for darśana—a yogic seeing that transcends textual engagement and becomes an inward vision.
6. 🧘🏽 Philosophical, Yogic, or Alchemical Significance
| Element | Significance in Verse |
|---|---|
| Kuṇḍalinī | “Karu” = the womb = base of Śakti = Mūlādhāra; origin point of rise |
| Nāḍī | Speech (vacaniṭṭōm) transmitted in flow—nāḍī of guru–śiṣya dialogue |
| Cakra | Three kāṇṭams may align with tripartite body or lower-middle-upper chakras |
| Pañcakōśa | Seed (karu) manifests across all sheaths; vāda unites all levels |
| Tapas | Sādhana of speech and preservation—asking and storing truth |
| Jñāna | Entire text described as the seen wisdom—insight from inner vision |
| Siddhi | Naming itself “vāda” reveals its aim: dialogue for realization |
| Rasavāda | Text flows like nectar—dialogue as rasa; every kāṇṭa a sip of truth |
7. ✍🏽 Literary Features and Poetic Devices
- Direct Address (Apostrophe): “காணு நீ” – poetic call to reader/sādhaka.
- Self-referential narration: Declares structure, purpose, and form explicitly.
- Numerical clarity: 800 verses, 3 kāṇṭams—providing order and frame.
- Paripāṣai contrast: Unlike earlier verses, this is self-commentarial, showing rare lucidity.
8. 🪔 Overall Summary and Core Teaching
This verse reveals the Pañcakāvya Nikaṇṭu as a conscious transmission: not a mystical accident, but an intentionally constructed path of wisdom. It presents itself as a three-sectioned vāda kāviyam, designed through dialogic utterance, and consciously safeguarded with clarity (without hiddenness). The repeated “kāṇu nī” is a call to awaken—not just to read, but to see with yogic inner sight the truth preserved within.
The deeper teaching is that the vāda—the art of spiritual inquiry between Siddha and disciple—is itself the protection. Dialogue is not intellectual; it is sacred communion.
