Which one of the following explains the practice of Vattakirutal as mentioned in Sangam poems?

Question

Accepted Answer

Sangam poems are pervaded with a warrior ethic. The goal of the hero of the puram poems was pukal (glory, fame) and a heroic death was greatly valued. It was believed that the spirit of a warrior who died in battle dwelt in paradise. A poem in the Purananuru suggests that the bodies of warriors who did not die in battle were cut with swords before the funerary rites, to simulate death in battle.The practice of vattakirutal was one in which a defeated king committed ritual suicide by starving himself to death, accompanied by those who had been close to him during his lifetime. The worship of memorial stones (natukal) was a corollary of the importance of the heroic ideal. Memorial stones were erected in honour of heroes who died fighting valiantly in battle; the spirit of the fallen hero was believed to reside in these stones.Hence option (d) is the correct answer.Source Attribution: A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India by Upinder Singh: Sangam Literature and Later Tamil Works