II. VATAMOLI : SANSKRIT ? IN ANCIENT TAMIL LITERATURE i It is, indeed, interesting and instructive to consider the only few references made to Sanskrit (?) as Watamoli in Ancient Tamil Literature, which is regarded as the earliest available indigenous literature of the Tamils that possess very little alien influence (including Sanskrit). On the whole, there are only eight references to Sanskrit as Watamoli. Of which, three instances are noted in Tolkāppiyam, the earliest existing Tamil grammar, which are of very vital significance. Among the rest, there is only one reference in Mullaippáttu (a song of pastoral region and sentiment), one of the Ten idylls–Pattuppittu, an anthology of ten long verses on love and non-love themes. Another instance is found in the anthology of love-poems in 'Kali metre, called Kalittokai. This term is also used in Silappatikāram. the lay of the anklet, which is the earliest existing Tamil epic and the other two references are found in Manimékalai, the only other epic of the Sangam epoch. IH At the outset, it is thought-provoking to find that nowhere in all the works that belong to the earliest strata of Tamil literature, we can find the word “Sankrit', though it has been referred first as Sanskrit by Vālmīki and Patañjali.” On the other hand, in all the eight instances it is (Sanskrit as generally believed) referred only as Watacol (word of the north), or Wata Eluttu (sound of the north) or Watamoji (language of the north). Why is it so? Is it because of its origin? It is also revealing to note that as opposite to Watamoji or Watacolor Wata eluttu, Tamil has been referred as Ten Tamil" (the southern Tamil). The contrast to be noted in this reference is that, while there is no reference to Sanskrit in the former, there is a clear reference to Tamil in the latter.
