Hymns for the Drowning Poems for Visnu (Vishnu) by Nammalvar

DETAILS : 

• Author : Nammalvar 
  
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin India 
  
• Publication Date : 5 April 2005
  
• Language ‏ : ‎ English, Tamil
  
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 175 pages
  
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0144000105
  
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 9780144000104
  
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 200 g

ABOUT THE BOOK

Hymns for the Drowning is a celebrated collection of poems by the 9th-century saint-poet Nammalvar, translated by the renowned scholar A.K. Ramanujan. This work is a cornerstone of the Bhakti (devotional) movement in South India. The title captures the essence of the poet’s experience: being "drowned" in the overwhelming ocean of love for the god Vishnu. These poems are part of the Divya Prabandham, often referred to as the "Tamil Veda."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Greatest Alvar: Among the twelve Alvars (Vaisnava saints), Nammalvar is considered the foremost. Legend says he spent sixteen years in a state of deep meditative silence under a tamarind tree before he began to speak his hymns.

A People’s Poet: Writing in Tamil rather than Sanskrit, he made the complex philosophy of the Vedas accessible to the common person through the language of emotion and everyday life.