Feels Like Our Language: Vernacular Poetics in Premodern Kerala


This paper deals with the Līlātilakam, a premodern work from Kerala that analyzes the grammar and poetics of “Rubies and Coral” (Maṇipravāḷam), Kerala’s main premodern literary form, which combines Sanskrit and the local language. By examining the poetic sections of the Līlātilakam, I show some of the ways in which they are used to demonstrate that Rubies and Coral is not only a fitting tool for writing poetry in the Sanskrit style but also an autonomous literature with an internal structure of its own. In my analysis I illustrate this through the use of three case studies focusing on syntax, bi-textuality, and poetic convention.