There are student editions of the poems of Dafyd ap Gwilym, and of Y Gododdin, the strange, and rather difficult medieval Welsh epic poem about the battle of the men of the north at Catraeth, part of the Welsh contribution to Celtic Arthurian literature.

Iliad was typical of early works such as the Epic of Gilgamesh of Mesopotamia or the Mayan Popol Vuh. This epic literature served as common reference points for entire cultures, telling their audiences where they came from and who they were.

Like Fate in Greek tragedies, Destiny plays a significant role in Silappadikaram. As Ilango says, it announces itself in the yaazh (harp) that Kovalan plays, leading to his separation from Madhavi the courtesan and his subsequent death in Madurai, the Pandyan capital. Again, it is Destiny that visits the tongue of the Pandya king who, instead of saying ‘Bring the culprit, inquire, and if he is the one who stole the queen’s anklet, then kill him,’ blabbers without thinking, ‘Kill him if he has the anklet and bring it to me’.

e spoke, and the river stayed his current, stopped the waves breaking,and made all quiet in front of him and let him get safelyinto the outlet of the river.