Chapters 121 to 133

The Tirukkural: Getting close to the original In Spirit, Content and Style The 'choicest' of all translations in English First edition in 2006; revised edition in 2024 This Tirukkural translation in English is drawn from translations by more than 25 different authors - mostly published in print, some unpublished and some in press. Twenty of these were either complete or partial translations and the remaining ten were isolated translations that appeared in articles, monographs and books authored by different scholars on the Tirukkural and Tiruvalluvar. The choicest translation of every couplet that is close to the original - in spirit, content and style - has been chosen for presentation. Preference has been given for brevity, simplicity and clarity. Emphasize was also laid on translations that manage to reflect, as much as possible, every word found in the original.  Sometimes translations of two authors were combined to produce the best reflection of the original. The translator or translators of every couplet have been acknowledged with their initials (eg. PS, SS, SB, VS, RM etc.) in a separate column. The initials have been expanded with the names of these translators at the end of every page, and the full citation of the source has been given at the end of all translations. When no translation was found particularly satisfactory, I chose to render them myself. These have been marked by initial NV. An astrix (*) at the end of a translation indicate that the rendering has been improved upon, either by adding/replacing words or deleting words found to be unnecessary. To know more on the process of this comparison and criteria of selection, click here: ComparingTirukkural translations to unfold the best.

Division III. Love (Continuation)

121	Nostalgic memories	Translators	Notes
1201	Love is sweeter than wine; Its mere thought intoxicates.	PS	Yes
1202	Nothing better than sweet memories of love To overcome the pain of loneliness! *	KV
1203	Is it because of my lover’s incomplete thoughts That my sneeze passes off incomplete?	NV
1204	No doubt my lord abides in my heart. Do I also likewise abide in his?	NV
1205	Having kept me out of his heart, Is he not ashamed to enter mine?	SI, KV
1206	You know why I live? To live in remembrance of the days I lived in union with him.	SM
1207	What will happen if I forget him, When his memory itself burns my heart? *	SB	Yes
1208	He never resents, however much I think of him. Isn’t it an honor from my lover? *	MS	Yes
1209	My dear life wastes thinking of his cruelty; For once he said we are not different. *	DL
1210	Hail Moon! Set not till I set my eyes on him Who left me but not from my heart.	SB, KV

Notes:
1201. Compare with: 1090: "Wine won't delight unless imbibed, but love with a look delights!" - PS and with 1281 "To please with the thought and delight with the sight, belongs not to liquor but love" –PS
1207. Compare with 1165. "If his friendship can bring so much misery, how will it be in enmity?" * - GV, PS
1208. An explanatory translation: "The greatness of my love is that he never finds fault with me for remembering him often" - KK

122	Dream remembered	Translators	Notes
1211	How shall I feast this dream which brought A message from my lord?	PS
1212	If only my painted eyes could sleep, I will tell him in my dream of my true predicament. *	KV
1213	Though I miss him when I am awake, My life lingers on as I see him in my dreams. *	JN
1214	Dreams sustain my love for in it I seek him Who visits not while I am awake.	DL, KV
1215	The very sight of him is joyous. Be it in dreams or while I am awake.	NV
1216	Save for that thing called waking, My dream-lover won't leave me indeed.	PS	Yes
1217	Why does he haunt me in my dreams When he cruelly deserts me when awake? *	VS
1218	Asleep he is round my shoulders. Awake he hurries back to my heart. *	PS
1219	Only those starved of love dreams, Rue missing their beloved in wakefulness. *	JN	Yes
1220	He is a deserter, people say. But how can they see his visits in my dreams?	NV, PS

Notes:
1216. In other words: "But for this state of wakefulness, I would have my beloved always in my dreams" * - KV, DL
1219. A good alternate translation is given by SI: "They blame him for not visiting me; they know not what dreams can do"

123	Evening sorrows	Translators	Notes
1221	Farewell, evening! You are no more just, For you devour the souls of brides!	GU, DZ
1222	Bless you, muddled, lack-lustre twilight! Is your love too heartless like mine? *	PS
1223	The evening that once sighed with unease, Now comes with growing hatred causing pain.	NV
1224	There goes my love and in strides the evening, Like slayers at the slaughter *	PS, JN
1225	What good did I do to dawn? And what harm to evening? *	PS
1226	When my love was with me, I did not know How cruel evening could be.	PS
1227	Budding at dawn and growing all day, This disease blooms by evening. *	SB
1228	The cowboy’s flutes now sound as envoys of death Forecasting the fiery evening.	NV
1229	This place will all be dizzy and grieved When the evening spreads and smothers me.	PS
1230	Longing for him who left longing for wealth, The evenings take toll of my undying soul.	NV	Yes

Notes:
1230. Compare with 1263. "He parted from me longing for conquests; and if I live yet, it is longing for his return" * - VS

124	Wasting away	Translators	Notes
Her friend to her
1231	To lift us from want, he left us afar. Brooding over him, Your eyes now quail before flowers.	SB, PS
1232	The pale and tear-filled eyes seem to convey That your lover has been unkind. *	KK
1233	Sagging shoulders that once stood firm on the bridal day Seem to clearly point to parting.	PS, NV
1234	Your lord away, your think shoulders droop, Beauty and bracelets lost.	PS
1235	Drooping shoulders, its fading beauty And slipping bracelets declare his cruelty.	NV
She
1236	Drooping shoulders and slipping bracelets, These I bear; to call him cruel, unbearable. *	PS
1237	Can you, O heart, gain glory by relating that cruel man The woes of my fading shoulders? *	DL, JN
He
1238	For once I relaxed my hugging arms, This poor girl’s forehead turned pale. *	PS, KV
1239	Cool breeze crept between our embrace; Her large rain-cloud eyes paled at once.	SB
1240	Seeing the once bright forehead grow pale, Her eyes too suffered and grew pale!	DZ, KV

125	Heart to heart	Translators	Notes
1241	My heart, can't you suggest any remedy at all For this incurable sickness?	PS
1242	O my heart! How foolish you are to grieve for him Who has no love for me!	KV, PS
1243	O heart, what use to stay here and pine When he who caused this sickness is heartless?	PS
1244	Rid me of these eyes, O my heart! For they, Longing to see him, wear my life away.	GU	Yes
1245	O heart, can I call him a foe and dump him Who longs not for me though I long for him? *	GU
1246	My heart that pretends to be angry will at once Yield and jell seeing my lover.	NV
1247	O my good heart! Either shed shame or shed love For I cannot bear both. *	KK
1248	O my poor soul! You persist in pursuit of the departed, Longing for his favours! *	JN
1249	Where are you searching my heart While you know my dear one is within? *	KK, PS
1250	To retain the deserter still in my heart Is to suffer losing more charm. *	KK

Notes:

1244. Compare with 1170. "If eyes could also reach him like the heart, they won’t be swimming in a flood of tears" - NV

126	Loss of modesty	Translators	Notes
1251	The axe of love can break open the door of chastity Secured by the bolt of modesty. *	DL, JN	Yes
1252	That pitiless thing called Love Exploits my heart even at night. *	PS
1253	Fain would I hide my love, but it breaks out Unawares like a sneeze. *	PS
1254	In modesty I deemed myself beyond assail; But love has now cast away the veil. *	GU
1255	The dignity of not pursuing the indifferent Is one thing unknown to the love-sick. *	MS
1256	What sort of passion is this that induces me To follow the very one who deserted me?	KV
1257	When the lover does all we desire, We forget all shame unawares.	SB
1258	Are not the enticing words of this wily fraud Weapons that break my feminine reserve? *	DL
1259	Determined to sulk I went, but when my heart merged, I too went and clasped him. *	JN, PS
1260	Can they ever think of refusing to be reconciled, Whose hearts melt like fat in fire?	VS

Notes:
1251. Compare with 71. "Can love be latched and hidden? A trickling tear will proclaim it loud" - PS
1259. Compare with 1284. “My friend, I went all set to quarrel, but my heart forgot and clasped him”. (PS)

127	Mutual longings	Translators	Notes
She
1261	My eyes have lost their glow and my fingers worn out Marking the days of his absence. *	KK
1262	What if I forget him now, my bright jewel? For it costs my beauty and armlets! *	SI, DZ	Yes
1263	He parted from me longing for conquests; And if I live yet, it is longing for his return. *	VS	Yes
1264	The thought of reunion when my love returns Makes my heart burgeon higher and higher.	PS	Yes
1265	Pallor will soon disappear from my slim shoulders, Once my eyes feast seeing him.	NV
1266	Enough if he returns for a day, I will gorge him till all my ills vanish.	NV
1267	When he, dear as my eyes, returns, Should I frown or embrace him or do both? *	SI
He
1268	May the king succeed in his efforts! I can then join my wife and party in the evenings.	NV
1269	Even a day will seem seven to those Who long for the day of their mate’s return.	NV
1270	To one dead of a broken heart, what avails my return, Meeting or even embrace?	VS, PS

Notes:
1262. Can be translated differently based on how the word "என்" is being interpreted, whether as "what" or "mine". The phrase "மறப்பின் என்" could therefore mean either "What if I forget" or "If I forget, my" and thus giving different meanings. SI, SB, VS, DZ and KV have preferred the first one, while PS, KK, JN, MS, GU and DL have opted for the second interpretation. The first one has been preferred here. If the second rendering is chosen, then the couplet would be taken to mean: "My bright jewel, if I forget him now, bracelets will slide off my shoulders, losing its beauty" *- MS, JN. On the contrary, bracelets should actually slip and shoulders lose their beauty only when the lady keeps remembering her lover, not when she forgets!

1263. An alternate good translation but not close to original: "With his mind set on conquests he left, while I live here with my eyes set on his return" - KV. Compare this with 1230: "Longing for him who left longing for wealth, the evenings have their toll on my undying soul" - NV
1264. The phrase "கூடிய காமம் பிரிந்தார்" has been taken to mean differently. As [i] "One who embraced and parted" by MS, DZ, VS and [ii] "reunion when my love returns" by SB, PS. Both views seem to be correct, but KV and DL take somewhat a middle path "the lover returning with enhanced love" by taking the word "கூடிய" as enhanced. But the context of the buoyant heart going higher and higher at the thought of the lover’s return imply that she is thinking about the reunion of love.

128	Sign language	Translators	Notes
He
1271	Even if you hide, your divulging eyes reveal That something lurks your mind.	NV
1272	Her eye catching beauty and bamboo shoulders Simply enhance her feminine reserve!	NV, JN
1273	Something shines in her jeweled charm, Like the thread shining in a crystal bead.	PS, SB
1274	Something lurks behind her half smile Like the fragrance in a flower bud. *	PS
1275	The trickery caused by the braceleted one Carries the medicine to cure my ills as well. *	KV	Yes
She
1276	The lack of love in his embrace implies that More sufferings are in store for me. *	KV
1277	Even before I could, my bangles figured out The immanent separation from my lord.	NV
1278	My lord left only yesterday, And I already have a week's pallor. *	PS
Her friend to Him
1279	She did no more than show me her loose bracelets, Slender shoulders and swollen feet.	KV, JN	Yes
1280	They say a woman is most womanly When she makes her eyes declare and plead. *	PS

Notes:
1275. Compare with 1102. "The cure for a disease is always different. But this jewel is both disease and cure" - DL, PS

1279. This statement is made by the lady drawing the attention of the now returned husband to the changes her physique has undergone owing to separation.

129	Yearning for union	Translators	Notes
1281	To please with the thought and delight with the sight, Belongs not to liquor but love.	PS	Yes
1282	Where love is as large as a palm tree, Even millet of sulk is misplaced. *	KV, PS
1283	Let him neglect me and do what he will. My eyes will not rest till they see him.	PS
1284	My friend, I went all set to quarrel, But my heart forgot and clasped him.	PS	Yes
1285	Like eyes that can’t see the painting brush, I don’t see his faults when I see him. *	MS
1286	When I see him I see no faults, and when I don't, I see nothing but faults! *	PS
1287	It is folly to plunge into a known raging stream. Likewise, why sulk and plumb known lies? *	PS
1288	The drunkard seeks wine knowing well its shame; So does your bosom to me, O thief! *	SI	Yes
1289	Love is more delicate than flower; Not many handle it properly. *	JN
1290	Though hostile in the eyes, she was faster than me To break down and unite.	KK

Notes:
1281. Compare with 1090: "Wine won't delight unless imbibed, but love with a look delights!" - PS and with 1201: "Love is sweeter than wine; its mere thought intoxicates" – PS

1282. Compare with couplets 104 & 433 for the use of same similes “Millet” and “Palm tree”. “To the discerning even millet of aid is as big as a palm tree.” and “To those ashamed of wrong doings, even a millet of fault is as big as a palm-tree”
1283. Compare with 1178. Five of the seven seers (metrical feet) between these two couplets are same! “பேணாது பெட்டார் உளர்-மன்னோ மற்று அவர்க் காணாது அமைவு இல கண்.”
1284. Compare with 1294. "Who will consult you hereafter, my heart, having failed to sulk before yielding?" * - MS, PS. Also with 1259. “Determined to sulk I went, but when my heart merged, I too went and clasped him.” * (JN, PS)
1288. Through disgraceful, drunkards seek to drink again. Even so, I long for your bosom in spite of your trickery.

130	Complaint to the heart	Translators	Notes
1291	My heart! You see his heart and stand by him, But why don’t you stand by me? *	DL
1292	My heart! Having seen his indifference, Why do you go after him in hope? *	PS, KV
1293	O my heart! Is it because the fallen have no friends That you madly run after him?	SB, NV
1294	Who will consult you hereafter, my heart, Having failed to sulk before yielding? *	MS, PS	Yes
1295	Anxious of not getting, and of losing when got, Either way my heart is always anxious.	NV, PS	Yes
1296	If my heart stays with me here, It is to devour me when I am musing alone. *	PS, VS
1297	Even modesty I have forgotten, Due to my meek and foolish heart unable to forget him. *	DL, PS
1298	My dear loving heart decrees, my lord is not to be shamed And thus hails only his glory. *	SI, SB
1299	Who will help one in distress, When one’s own heart refuses to help? *	DL
1300	When one's own heart behaves like a stranger, Why talk of strangers?	PS

Notes:
1294. Compare with 1284. "My friend, I went all set to quarrel, but my heart forgot and clasped him" - PS
1295. Compare with 1179. "Sleepless when he is not here, sleepless when he is, either way my eyes never rest" - PS

131	Coyness	Translators	Notes
1301	Let me feign to be angry And see his pain of suffering for a while.	NV	Yes
1302	Sulking is the salt of love. To prolong it Is like salt a little too much. *	SB, DL	Yes
She to Him
1303	To leave a sulky woman alone Is to cause more pain to the suffering.	PS, NV
1304	To ignore a lady in pout is to cut An already withering climber at its root. *	SB
He to Himself
1305	The beauty of her feigned anger has an attraction Even for the spotlessly pure men.	NV, VS
1306	Without frowns and sulking, Love is like a fruit unripe or overripe. *	KK, JN
1307	Coyness has this one drawback. That is the worry of delayed union. *	PS, NV
1308	Why grieve when the lover is not there To know whether you are grieving? *	PS
1309	Just as the refreshing water in the shade, Pouting has its charms only between lovers. *	KV
1310	Only my desire makes my heart pine for union With one who keeps on sulking.	PS

Notes:
1301. Compare with 1321. "Though he is not to blame, I feign sulking to bring out the best from of him" - NV
1302. An alternate translation, easy to comprehend, but not close to original: "Love's salt is sulk. A pinch of it is welcome but too much will ruin the taste" - PS

132	Lovers’ quarrels	Translators	Notes
She
1311	I won't clasp your broad chest, A common dish for all women's eyes to gorge! *	PS	Yes
1312	When I sulked, he sneezed: hoping I would forget and say "Bless you".	PS
He
1313	If I wear a wreath, she cries enraged: "For which woman's sake is this?" *	PS
1314	If I say "I love you more than any one", She frowned asking, "Than whom, than whom?" *	KV
1315	The moment I said we won’t part in this life, Her eyes were filled with tears.	DZ	Yes
1316	"I remembered you", I said; "After forgetting?" said she withdrawing herself! *	PS
1317	She blessed as I sneezed, but soon recalled it crying: "Thinking whom did you sneeze?" *	VS
1318	When I suppressed my sneeze, she wept saying, "Whom are you hiding from me?"	DL, NV
1319	If I try making up with her, she would ask enraged, "Is this how you coax others as well?" *	PS, JN
1320	If I gaze at her in silence, she would fume and ask, "Thinking of whom this comparison?" *	SI, PS

Notes:
1311. SI’s translation, though not literal, would explain this scenario: "All women graze on your breast, O false one! I reject your advances"
1315. ….. thinking of next birth

133	Joys of sulking	Translators	Notes
She
1321	Though he is not to blame, I feign sulking To bring out the best in him.	NV
1322	The pinpricks of sulking do not discourage But strengthen love.	PS
1323	Is there a heaven higher than love’s sulk With hearts that join like earth and water?	SB, VS
1324	From this prolonged pout arises the weapon To break the defence of my heart.	JN, NV
He
1325	Even for the guiltless it is a joy to forgo briefly The shoulders from one’s clasp. *	PS
1326	More joyous than the meal is its digestion. So is sulking more joyous than union.	NV, VS
1327	In lovers' quarrels the loser wins, As shown when they make up.	PS
1328	Will she sulk again to bring back the pleasure Of that union drenched in sweat? *	KK
1329	May the bright-jewel sulk, And may the night be prolonged for me to implore her! *	DL
1330	The joy of love lies in sulking, for that joy is realized While embracing in union.	NV

Notes:
1321. Compare with 1301: "Let me feign to be angry and see his pain of suffering for a while" - NV 

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Key to the initials of different translators:

CR - C. Rajagopalachari	KS - Kasthuri Sreenivasan	SI - K.R. Srinivasa Iyengar
DL -W.H. Drew and  J. Lazarus	KV - K. Krishnaswamy & Vijaya Ramkumar	SM -S. Maharajan
DZ - S.M. Diaz	MS - M.S. Poornalingam Pillai	SS - Satguru  Subramuniyaswami
EL - F.W. Ellis	NC - Norman Cutler	TD - S. Thandapani Desikar
GU - G.U. Pope	NV - N.V.K. Ashraf	TK - T.K. Chidambaranatha Mudaliar
GV - G. Vanmikanathan	PS - P.S. Sundaram	VC - V.C. Kulandai Swamy
JN - J. Narayanaswamy	SB - Shuddhananda Bharatiar	VR  - V. Ramasamy
KK - K. Kannan	SD - S.D. Rajendran	VS - V.V.S. Aiyar
KN - K.N. Subramanyam	SG - G. Siromoney, S. Govindaraju & M. Chandrasekaran,

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