Modi’s Thirukkural gift to Putin brings an old Tamil-Russian literary connection into focus
Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented Russian President Vladimir Putin with a Russian-language edition of the Thirukkural during their meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi.
The gesture carried an unusual cultural significance, highlighting the long-standing interest in Indian philosophy and literature within Russia.
The edition, published in 2026 by the Central Institute of Classical Tamil, contains the original Tamil verses along with transliteration and a Russian translation by Naira Mkrtchyan.
While presenting the book, Modi described the Thirukkural as a work of enduring wisdom and expressed hope that Russian readers would find value in its teachings.
The relationship between Russian intellectual circles and Indian philosophy is not new. Interest in Indian thought can be traced back several centuries, while the Thirukkural gradually became accessible to Russian readers through translations and its circulation in European intellectual circles.
Leo Tolstoy is among the Russian literary figures associated with an interest in Indian philosophical ideas. Historical accounts suggest that he encountered the Thirukkural through an English translation during the 19th century.
The work’s themes of morality, compassion and non-violence have often been discussed in connection with Tolstoy’s philosophical thinking. There have also been accounts connecting Tolstoy’s interest in the Thirukkural with his correspondence with Mahatma Gandhi. Some narratives suggest that Tolstoy recommended the work to Gandhi and that its ideas contributed to Gandhi’s thinking on non-violence.
However, historians have not established the precise extent of the Thirukkural’s influence on Tolstoy or Gandhi, and such claims should therefore be treated with some caution. Modi’s decision to present a Russian translation of the classic nevertheless gives this historical cultural connection a contemporary setting within India-Russia relations.