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The works of the Sangam period, known as Sangam literature, at the turn of the first millennium are the most ancient and considered very important. The word Sangam refers to an academy. This period spanning aroung 1700 years was considered as the golden age of Tamil Literature.
The post-Sangam period witnessed the growth of Buddhism and Jainism in Southern India. This is reflected in the literary works of this period. Thirukkural, Silapadhigaaram and Aathichoodi were some of the major works of this period. Silapadhigaaram by Ilangovadigal tells the tale of Kannagi, Kovalan and Maadhavi. Thirukkural by Thiruvalluvar consists of 1330 coupletA couplet is a pair of lines of verse that rhyme. Poetry in couplets is one of the simplest rhyme schemes: aa bb cc dd ee ff. This scheme was used in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in the 14th century and became popular again in the eighteenth century with pos which discuss about various aspects of life and is widely known even today. Aathichoodi , a collection of single-line quotes was written by AvaiyarAvaiyar is a female icon of Tamil literature. She wrote many poems about Hindu gods, of which Vinayagar Agaval in praise of Lord Ganesha (the elephant god) is famous, and other great thoughts about disciplined human life. Her quotes are so popular that th, a young poetess who became prematurely old according to folkloreFolklore is the ethnographic concept of the tales, legends, or superstitions current among a particular ethnic population, a part of the oral history of a particular culture. The academic study of folklore is known as folkloristics. The concept of folklor. The first word in each saying is based on alphabetical order.
Tamil literature witnessed a temporary slump due to to the Kalabrah invasion which happened around 250 AD. Being Non-Tamil speakers, Tamil literature and art was not promoted by the rulers of this regime. Jainism also flourished during this period. The notable literary work of this period was "Muthollayiram", a collection of poems that describe the glory of the Chola, Chera and Pandya dynasty.
The spread of religions like Jainism and Buddhism resulted in a new religious movement called "The Bhakti Cult" which saw the revival of ShaivismShaivism also Saivism, is a branch of Hinduism whose followers worship Siva as the Supreme God. Siva in the Vedas is called Rudra. He is also called Pashupati, the lord of animal beings. Since God is without form, devotees often worship Shiva in the form and Vaishnavism. This also resulted in the creation of huge number of literary works,primarily by the Alvars and the Nayanmars , who sung the praise of Vishnu and Shiva respectively. Periya puranaam , Divya Prabhandham ,Thiruppavai, Thiruvempaavai and Dhevaaram were all written during the Bhakti cult.