Background
He was born in the area of Alapuzha in Kerala, India, to Perumal Pillai and Madathi Ammal.
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Manonmaniyam Manonmaniam Sundaram Pillai
Edit ProfileEducation
Pillai studied religious literature such as Tevaram Thiruvasagam during his childhood. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in 1876 and in the following year, he married Sivagami Ammal. Pillai later taught philosophy at His (or Her) Highness The Maharaja"s College, Thiruvananthapuram and he completed his Master of Arts
Career
Nagapattinam Narayana Samy Pillai was his Tamil language teacher. His career as an educator began in 1877. He became the Principal at a bilingual English-Tamil school in Tirunelveli, playing a key role in the school"s development. in 1880.
During that period he became acquainted with Robert Harvey.
Sundaram showed his respect for Harvey, a Scottish Professor of Philosophy and English at The Maharaja"s College, by dedicating his drama Manonmaniyam to him, and naming his farmhouse after him. Together they wrote the book, Some Early Sovereigns of Travancore.
He established Saiva Prakasha Sabha at Trivandram in 1885. He taught Swami Vivekananda about the Saiva Sidhantham.
In 1885, he published Chathira Saugiragam, commonly known as Nootrogai Villakkam.
He wrote and published his masterpiece Manonmaniam in 1891. In the same year, he became a member Fellow of Madras University (FMU). He published Some Mile-stones in the History of Tamil Literature in He was awarded an honorary doctorate by a German university.
He died from diabetes on 26 April 1897, at age 42.
Manonmaniam Sundaranar University was named after him. He started the Saivapraka sabai in Thiruvananthapuram.
His famous drama Manonmaniam was published in 1891. The 1942 cinema adaptation Manonmani, is considered a classic film.
The song "Niraarum Kadal Udutha" from Manonmaniam was adapted as "Invocation to Goddess Tamil" and approved by the Government of Tamil Nadu as the official Tamil anthem in June 1970.
Achievements
Membership
In 1897, Some Early Sovereigns of Travancore was published and he became a Member of Royal Asiatic Society (MRAS). Pillai became a Member of Fellow of Royal Historical Society (FRHS).
