Question

A 14th century text Lilatilakam dealt with which of the following?
A.Grammar
B.Poetics
C.Dances
D.Both 1 and 2

Answer 1

Hint:Kerala was ruled by the Cheras during ancient times, the Cheras adopted the scripts from the Sanskrit language and wrote their own scripts in Manipravalam literally.
Lilatilakam was also called “Leelathilakam” and it was prepared by Dr.Angelos Francis. The contribution made by Caldwell, Hermann Gundert, Arnos Pathiri, and Clement Pathiri is immense.
George Mathan, Vaikkom Pachu Moothattu, Kovunni Nedungadi, A.R. Rajaraja Varma, A. Seshagiri Prabhu, P.K. Narayana Pillai, I.C.Chacko, Kuttikrishna Marar were some of the important people who focused on linguistics.

Complete answer:
The Sanskrit tradition was adopted by the Cheras. In the 12th century the first literary works of Malayalam were created and they were directly indebted to the Sanskrit language. Interestingly a fourteenth-century text Lilatilakam dealt with grammar and poetics and followed Manipravalam literally. Manipravalam is a macaronic language found in some manuscripts of South India. It is a hybrid language, typically written in the Grantha scripts, which are a combination of Sanskrit and the regional languages of the states. Sanskrit and the regional languages were mentioned as diamonds and corals. Lilatilakam was the precursor for the Malayalam language spoken by the Kerala people nowadays. Lilatilakam was attested by two manuscripts. Lilatilakam was not referred to by any other existing pre-modern sources. The word Lilatilakam literally means the “diadem of poetry”. Lilatilakam calls itself the only disciplinary treatise on Manipravalam; it is a union of Sanskrit and Kerala languages. The text is written in the Sanskrit language, in form of a series of verses with commentary; it also features examples of Manipravalam-language verses. The author of the lilatilakam was unknown. Professor Ilamkulam Kunjan Pillai gave his commentary on the eight silpam of the lilatilakam edition. Lilatilakam was not treated with dance. The word lilatilakam itself shows that it was all about grammar and poems.

Hence, the correct answer is option (D).

Note:There are books on visual arts like drama, kathakali, painting, dance, and music in Malayalam. The books depict the philosophical, theoretical, practical, and aesthetic values of the art forms.
The contributions of A.D.Hari Sarma, R.Narayana Paniker, N.N.Pillai, K.P.S.Menon, Kalamandalam Kalyanikutty Amma, Attoor Krishna Pisharady, and A.K.Raveendranath are the reason for the visual arts books in Malayalam. There are books about dance in Malayalam. But the Lilatilakam is only concentrated on grammar and poems.