Tirukkural-On Virtue-Fear of Evil-Kural 205

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Poverty should not incite one to wrong-doing, for It will result in absence of virtue in all births.

Poverty does not justify wrong action. From just a state of want in respect of worldly goods, such a man will degrade himself to state of poverty of all virtues. Kural 174 gives a connected idea and similar construction in,

Ilam yendru vekkudhal seyyaar

As I have commented earlier, this does not absolve society in general and the well-to-do ones in particular of their obligation to ensure social justice, not only through spontaneous good works but organized legal and executive measures for ensuring social justice. The Directive Principles in Chapter IV of our constitution, are intended to ensure just this.