Law in Thirukkural

Dr.P.K.Prabhakaran the resource person  explained about the famous “R v Dudley and Stephens”, the concept of self preservation and Thiruvalluvar’s take on self defence and murder. He continued the speech by explaining the different modes of punishment, The resource person compared Savigny and Salmond’s theory of punishment to that of Thiruvalluvar. “Prohibition Law” and its deep roots in Thirukkural was also clearly explained. Thiruvalluvar had complete disregard for ‘hunger’ as a defence for theft. Theft, even when committed with good intention, is not justifiable in the eyes of Thiruvalluvar. The history of messengers (Diplomacy) in tamil literature and the “ideal qualities” that must be present in a messenger according to Thiruvalluvar was beautifully elucidated. Thiruvalluvar’s commitment to economic justice and its influence on Article 39A of the Indian Constitution, as stated in the famous kural. 

 “பகுத்துண்டு பல்லுயிர் ஓம்புதல் நூலோர்

தொகுத்தவற்றுள் எல்லாந் தலை.”

The resource person completed the session  by stating that Thiruvalluvar managed to explain all the aspects of “Law and Justice” without mentioning these words separately, in the single concept “Aram (அறம்)”.