Wisdom

Aranarindhu mootha arivudaiyaar kaenmaiThiranarindhu thaerndhu kolalThe king should carefully and selectively opt for the friendshipOf ethically oriented and wise counselors.A good king will choose as his friends and advisers ethically oriented wise men of ripe scholarship, who have ‘grown old in ...

Arivudaiyaar ellaam udaiyaar arivilaarEnnudaiya raenum ilarThe wise have all blessings, even if not possessed with worldly goods,But the ignorant rich have nothing.The implication here, Rajaji would say, is that a discriminating mind is the greatest of all human assets. Without it, ...

Arivudaiyaar aava tharivaar arivilaarAkthari kalla thavar.Men of wisdom know and are prepared for what is coming;The ignorant do not know what is ahead of them.Men of deep knowledge and understanding will surely be able to think and plan ahead. Foreseeing ...

Evva thuraivadhu ulakam ulakaththoaduAvva thuraivadhu arivu.In respect of this Kural, one cannot do better than just adopt the brief and telling translation by V V S Iyer.It is a part of wisdom to conformTo the ways of the worldRajaji would say ...

Ulakam thalee eya thotpam malardhalumKoombalum illa tharivuThe wise man loves all the world with a certain constancy,Unlike the kind of bloom that opens and closes frequently.In this Kural the word, 'Ulakam' (i.e) world, refers to the wise of the world.Rajaji would ...

Enporulavaakachch selachch sollithaan pirarvaaiNunporul kanbadharivu.The wise express even profound thoughts in simple terms,But would grasp the subtleties of all what others say.V.V.S. Iyer’s interpretation of this Kural is as follows:“What he speaketh, the wise man speaketh so as to be understood ...

Epporul yaryaarvaaik kaetpinum apporulMeypporul kanpa tharivuTo discern the truth from whatever source it emanatesIs the true quality of wisdomParimel Azhagar gives an elaborate interpretation of this Kural, when he says that the truth may be found in disguised forms in the ...

cenra idathaal selavidaa theethoariianrinpaal uypa dharivuIt is the hall-mark of wisdom to concentrate on the wise and the good instead of letting the mind wander aimlessly everywhere.True knowledge or wisdom, will surely control thought and behaviour, and keep both away from ...

Arivu atram kaakkum karuvi seruvaarkkumUll azikkalaaka aran. Wisdom is the ultimate and impregnable defence for protection against destruction;It is also the fortress of inner strength against enemy onslaughts.The title of the chapter has been given as wisdom, in preference to ...

Kaetpinum kaelaath thakaiyave kaelviyaalThoatkap padaadha seviEars that have not been penetrated by words of instruction from the learned,Will be effectively deaf, even if functionally in order.K M Balasubramaniam, in his commentary on Thirukural, says with reference to this Kural that the ...

The world is a rest house! A Sufi story reveals the aforesaid truth. A pious prince called Ibrahim who was of a charitable nature, arranged for the poor and the holy to take food and drink on the porches of his ...

Enaithaanum nallavai kaetka anaiththaanumAndra perumai tharumEven if it is just a little, listen and assimilate good instruction,It will be productive of great benefitOn this, Rajaji would comment that Valluvar has expressed this as a piece of consolation to those who feel ...