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எம். எஸ். முத்துசாமி அவர்கள் மறைவு

Former postmaster of Mannankadu, Mr. M. S. Muthusamy passed away on September 17, 2015

Born sometime around 1926, Mr. M. S. Muthusamy became the postmaster of Mannankadu village in 1954. Known for his spiritual inclination and literary activity he had a small collection of quality books. His collection of books remain housed in Thiruvalluvar Noolagam at his house. During the 1960s - 80s he had the tradition of gathering a few similarly inclined gentlemen of his age to recite a locally popular lyrical Ammanai version of Baalakandam of Mahabaratham, composed by Mr. Syed Mohammed of Adirampattinam. This nightly recital event that ran for several days at a stretch was popular among several followers including women and children. This Ammanai was read directly from manuscript of palm leaves. In 1980s, Mr. M. S. Muthusamy had the palm leaf version of the Ammanai transcribed on to note books by his neighbour Mr. A. Marimuthu. Later in 2010, the Ammanai was brought out as a printed version by his efforts, under the title 'மகாபாரதம் - பாலகாண்டம் - அம்மானைப்பாடல்'.

Photo by Sivakari, c. 2010

Being a son of a farmer Mr. M. S. Muthusamy was well into the family profession of farming, which included rice, corn, groundnut, gingelly, blackgram and coconut cultivation. He remained a vegetarian throughout his life. He is fond of animals, and had a few cats and dogs as pets. During his final years his movements were crippled by severe arthritis and age. Surrounded by his family members he passed away peacefully during the early hours on September 17, 2015.

Photo by Sivakari, c. 2010

The following images are of the original palm leaf manuscript of Mahabaratham Balakandam Ammanai by Mr. Syed Mohammed. The manuscript is said to be over 120 years old. This particular copy had been traditionally used for recital in Mannankadu, the last avid reader of it was Mr. M. S. Muthusamy. Since printed version of the manuscript is now available, this palm leaf is not currently in use. Nor are any knowledgeable readers available. 'மகாபாரதம் - பாலகாண்டம் - அம்மானைப்பாடல்'.

Mahabaratham Balakandam Ammanai palm leaf manuscript images by Dhurai A.N. 2015

This page was created on Sep 25, 2015.