Thiruvalluvar

Biography

Thiruvalluvar (estimated 4th–5th century BC, though dates are debated) was a Tamil poet and philosopher, author of the Tirukkural (also known as the Kural), one of the most revered works in Tamil literature. Almost nothing is known with certainty about his life, and various traditions claim him as Hindu, Jain, or of no specific religious affiliation. The Tirukkural is a collection of 1,330 couplets organized into 133 chapters, covering virtue (aram), wealth and governance (porul), and love (inbam). It is considered one of the greatest works of ethics in world literature and has been translated into over forty languages.