A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE SANSKRIT, TAMIL, THAI AND ...

182 S. Singaravelu
different combinations both passage·s have also some different motifs
of their own. Among the motifs that appear to be similar is at least
one which is more striking then the others, namely, the motif referring
to the flags fluttering from poles (and the tiered umbrellas) as
though they were welcoming the royal and divine visitor to the city
of Mithila to receive Sita. Though this mottj is so strikingly similar,
it would nevertheless seem to have received an added refinement at
the hand of the royal poet King Rama I, to the effect that the image
conveyed is one of flags fluttering from the tiered royal umbrellas in
addition to the ordinary flag-masts. The additional refinement is
understandable in view of the fact that, though the white umbrella
has been a common emblem of royalty in South and South-east Asia
since early times, the tiered royal umbrella is particularly a noteworthy
feature of the Thai royal regalia. (The multi-tiered royal umbrella
is believed to have been a development from the traditional practice
of kings symbolically adding their own umbrellas on top of those of
former rulers). 45
Again, to cite another motif in the Thai version, the description
of the royal mansion as having gabled roofs decorated with the naga or
makara mottj is obviously in consonance with a style of architecture
which has been typical of the Thai tradition.
From these two instances it would seem that in literary
acculturation as indeed in artistic or even linguistic acculturation, the
final treatment often rests with the people who choose to adopt
elements from other sources.
Now, as for the motif of a man and a woman falling in love
at first sight. This is probably one of the oldest mottjs in the cultural
traditions of the world's peoples, and especially so in the Tamil
literary tradition and probably in the Thai literary tradition as well.
It is also of some interest to note that this motif would in fact seem
to be in contradistinction to an opposite motif, which we may come
across elsewhere, namely, the prohibition against seeing the prospective
bride or the bridegroom, which is known to be enforced even by
supernatural sanction of punishment for infringing such a taboo. In
45) See Quaritch Wales, H. G., Siamese State Ceremonies London 1931 pp 93-95.