Neurochemical Mediators in Emotion Regulation and Somatic Expression in Gnana Nondi Natakam

Abstract

Human emotions are no longer understood merely as individual psychological experiences; rather, they are integrated phenomena that emerge through the combined functioning of neurochemical, biological, and cognitive processes. This article examines the Tholkappiyamconcept of somatic expressions (Meippadu) found in Tamil literary theory from the perspective of neurochemistry. Vedhanayaga Sasthriyar’s Gnana Nondi Natakam is taken as the primary textual data, and the eight somatic expressions defined in Tholkappiyamis comparatively analyzed in relation to the functional roles of neurotransmitters and hormones such as dopamine, serotonin, cortisol, norepinephrine, oxytocin, and GABA in the generation of emotions. Through this comparative analysis, the study identifies how emotional states arise from neurochemical activity and expressed as Meippaduin literary representation. The article further demonstrates how Vedhanayaga
Sasthriyar employs the somatic expressions with exceptional aesthetic and functional precision in Gnana Nondi Natakam. The study ultimately establishes that Tamil literary theories conceptualize emotions as embodied experiences and that they anticipate key insights of modern affective science.