Nammāḻvār
c. 9th century · Tirukkurugūr, Tamil Nadu · Āḻvār (Vaiṣṇava)
Nammāḻvār, “our own Āḻvār”, also called Śaṭhakopan, is regarded as the foremost of the twelve Āḻvārs. He was born at Tirukkurugūr (today Āḻvār Tirunagari) in southern Tamil Nadu.
His Tiruvāymoḻi, more than a thousand verses of longing, wonder and surrender to Viṣṇu, is honoured by Śrī Vaiṣṇavas as the “Tamil Veda” and recited in temples alongside the Sanskrit Veda. His four works form a major part of the Nālāyira Divya Prabandham, the four thousand sacred verses of the Āḻvārs collected by Nāthamuni.
Tradition says the child did not cry or speak from birth, and his parents left him under a tamarind tree at the temple, where he sat in silent meditation for years. The pilgrim Madhurakavi, following a light in the south, found him there and asked him a riddle; the young saint answered, and Madhurakavi became his devoted disciple.
Tiruvāymoḻi · “Tamil Veda” · Divya Prabandham