மணமகல கடடம பணணய சநதனகள / Feminist Thoughts Evinced in Manimegalai

The primary purpose of the epic “Manimegalai” is to relieve hunger. Manimegalai is a role model showed the way to cure hunger. Manimegalai, the daughter of Madhavi, is portrayed in the epic as a one who has the attitude of helping people as much as she can to reduce poverty. The character Manimegalai lived like a lighthouse guiding the people who were wandering in poverty. Even though she was born in the Devadasi community, she came out of the profession and became a Buddhist monk spreading the principles of Budda. She takes the concept of feeding the starved as the goal of her life. She gives food to the hungry and wipes away the misery of hunger. Manimegalai became Annapoorani because she had done the job of eradicating poverty perfectly and the record of virtue shows Manimegalai as a woman of noble thought. Among the two great Tamil epics out of five, Manimegalai is a Buddhist epic. Her attitude toward charity presents the basic moral principle that has been insisted on by all religions. Hence, this study examines the principles of chastity, charity and giving food to the needy to emphasize morality.