Thondiaman was a young king of Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. He was jealous of King Adiyaman, who ruled over Tagadur. The young king thought he was braver than Adiyaman, who was no match to him. Adiyaman ignored the young king, thinking he would mature someday.
Avvaiyar, the famous poet used to visit courts of many kings. When she visited Thondiaman, the young king took her to his armory and showed her his collection of shiny weapons. He wanted to impress upon her that he was more powerful than Adiyaman, who Avvaiyar held in high esteem.
Avvaiyar did not want the two kings to fight each other and shed blood.
She sang in praise of the young king of Kanchipuram: “O Thondiaman, your weapons are new, clean and shiny unlike those of Adiyaman, whose weapons are always stained with blood.”
The young king got the message. Avvaiyar was hinting that Adiyaman was a veteran of many battles, and that the young king stood no chance of defeating him in battle. So, he dropped the idea of waging war against Adiyaman, much to the relief of Avvaiyar.
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