Most Fav. Love-Poem : Red Earth and Pouring Rain

Greetings to all who are celebrating LOVE today (Val.Day)
and to all who have made LOVE the background music for their entire lives.

I wish to share with you my most favourite love poem:

It is a Classical Tamil poem from The Kurunthogai Anthology of Sangam Literature. Author is unknown, but for reference's sake, Tamil Pandits have called him(?) "Chempulap-Peineerar" which refers to the picturesque idiom used in its last line.
The period assigned to it is between 1 BC to 3AD.

"Yaayum (n)yaayum yaaraagiyaro
Yendaiyum Nundaiyum emmurai kelir
Yaanum neeyum evvazhi aridhum
chempulap-peineer pola
anbudai nenjamthan kalandanavey

The translation ( by renowned folklorist, the late AK Ramanujan):

What could my mother be to yours ?
What kin my father to yours anyway ?
How did you and I meet ever?
But in love, our hearts have mingled
As red earth and pouring rain.

I adore this poem for its simplicity, its straightforewardness and the evocative similie at the end. Besides, its all heart. What can denote a more complete mingling than rain and earth , where both the components still hold their individuality but cannot be seen seperate ?
Its a poem which has no age. It can be quoted by a Neanderthal as well as a Software geek and make perfect sense to their respective love -interests.

There is no indication of the poet's gender here. But I am convinced that it could have only come out of a woman in love. A girl who has lived all her life in the shelter of loving parents, when suddenly confronted by the awakening of an emotion as strong as romantic love for a stranger, is in a state of bewilderment, awe and irresistible passion, which is amply exhibited in the short lines. Only a girl can have the sensitivity to think of her loving parents at a point like this.

Left to a man( and a classical poet at that !) he would have sqandered the first four lines on doe-eyes, wasp-waist, pearl-teeth and banana stem-limbs, I'm sure !
A few years ago, this poem ( as a poster) was exhibited in the Underground stations in UK ( Tube train), as part of a running effort to develop/popularise literary appreciation among general public. Poems from all over the world are used in this campaign. I think it was Gowri Ramnarayan ( correct me if wrong, I'm not very sure) who helped in selecting this one for the World Classical Age entries.

The imagery of Red Earth and Pouring Rain is so powerful and eloquent, lending itself to many layers of significances, that author Vikram Chandra used it as the title for his magic-realism book about Identity in colonial times.

Recently, a pair of ancient skeletons in eternal embrace was dug up by Italian archeologists. The moment I saw the picture in newspapers, my heart started reciting "Yaayum Yaayum....."

Manjula