tirukurral

 

https://thirukkural133.wordpress.com/2011/11/12/chapter-1-invocation-2/

pdf version:

https://www.projectmadurai.org/pm_etexts/pdf/pm0153.pdf

above website gives a translation in the poetical form first and then in easy form.

A is the first of the alphabet; God is the primary force of the world.	1
What is the use of all your learning, if you can’t surrender yourself at the feet of God.	2
Those who surrender themselves at feet of the one, who resides in the flower-like hearts of all, will live long and well.	3
Those who surrender at the feet of the one, who doesn’t have wants or hates, will never have any hassles anywhere.	4
Fate, which impacts those in the darkness of ignorance, will not impede those who hail the true glory of God.	5
Those who follow the true moral path of the one, who has doused the desires of the five senses, will last long.	6
Except for those who surrender at the feet of the one, for whom, there is no simile, it is tough to cure the mental rues.	7

Except those who surrender at the feet of God, the ocean of morality, others will struggle to cross the ocean of desire.	8
The head that doesn’t bow to God, is similar to the organs that don’t have the right senses.	9
Those who surrender at the feet of God, will cross the great ocean of life; others won’t.

All books willingly conclude as the most excellent, the greatness of those with the right conduct who have given up attachment.\	21
Trying to quantify the greatness of those who have overcome desire is like counting those who have died till now.	22
The greatness of those who have known the nature of both worlds, And have eschewed desire to live a righteous life, is most admirable in this world.	23
The greatness of those, who have known both worlds but have chosen to live a righteous life, makes this world meaningful.	23 V2
Using the ankus called resoluteness, one who controls the elephant named five senses, is sowing for future glory.	24
God, the king of heavens, is an example of what the ability to conquer one’s five senses can result in.	25
What separates the great from the ordinary is their ability to do the seemingly impossible.	26
One who has analysed and conquered the urges of taste, sight, touch, sound and smell, will control this world.	27

The words of those glorious people, who control their minds completely, become the gospel.	28
Those who have scaled the mountain of morality will not allow their anger to last for a moment.	29
Those who have scaled the altitudes of rectitude will not hold their anger even for a second.	29 V2
All (and only) those righteous people, who shower love on all living beings, can be classified as Anthanar*.	30

Rectitude is the most precious possession; there is nothing more pernicious than straying from it.	32
Keep doing the morally right things, in every possible manner, wherever you go.	33
True moral integrity lies in being flawless in your thoughts; everything else is loud and blatant posturing.	34
Righteousness is all about removing the four flaws – envy, desire, anger and harmful words.	35
Do the righteous deeds now without waiting for senility to set in; they will remain your permanent companions then.

The words uttered by enlightened scholars will only be kind words carrying love and no malice.	91
To be someone who speaks sweet words with a smile is even better than being philanthropic with a happy heart.	92
To look at someone with kindness, to smile at them and to say pleasant words, is a nice virtue.	93
Painful poverty will not afflict someone who speaks only pleasant words to everyone.	94
Humility and pleasant words are the true jewels for anyone and not anything else.	95
If one seeks and speaks pleasant words that cause good all around, righteousness resides and harm recedes.

Speech that is inseparable from sweetness will yield just-consequences and will reflect right virtues.	97
A sweet word, said without the slightest spite, will provide delight in this life and the next.	98
Having seen the sweet benefits of pleasant words, why should one utter harsh words?	99
Who will, if he sees the sweet benefits of pleasant words, utter harsh words?	99 V2
To be nasty when you can say nice words, is like tasting an unripe fruit when you have a ripe one.	100
To say harsh words when you have nice words, is like plucking an unripe fruit when there are ripe ones.	100 V

Those who don’t learn to abide by the decorous norms of the society,
even if well-read, are unwise.

If you want to lead an unabated fulfilling life, you have to preserve and practice forbearance.	154
One who retaliates is not held in high regard; one who is patient is precious as gold.	155
Those who retaliate rarely rejoice for a day; the repute of the patient remains till the end of the world.	156
Even if an untoward evil is done unto you, it is better not to resent and do an unrighteous deed.	157
Defeat a person who has, out of arrogance, done you harm, by your forbearance.	158
One who, patiently, bears the harsh words of a transgressor, is purer than a puritan.	159
Great ascetics who conquer hunger, by fasting, are inferior to those who patiently endure the harsh words of others.

One who is flawless and wise and has mastered all senses, will never feel ‘I’m poor’ and yearn for other’s wealth.	174
What is the use of deep wisdom and broad knowledge, if one acts indiscreetly with anyone, coveting his wealth.	175
One who seeks to be compassionate and manifests it in virtuous ways, will succumb to destructive thoughts and acts, if he falters and covets others’ possession.	176
Do not covet others’ wealth; on fruition, the consequences are always contemptible.	177
How will one’s wealth never shrink? By, not desiring to usurp the wealth of others.

Wealth will find means to bestow itself on those who, knowing the virtue of not coveting others’ property, wisely desist from it.	179
Coveting others’ wealth injudiciously will result in dire consequences; one who takes pride in not so desiring will meet success.

Those who make vain discourses, detested by many wise, will be disparaged by all.	191
It is more harmful to speak vain words in front of many, than to do contemptible deeds to your friends.	192
One’s gracelessness is exposed by his elaborate hollow speeches.	193
Vain words spoken without dignity to a group, are ungainly, unrighteous and yield no gains.	194
Reputation and respect will be lost, when an affable person speaks worthless words.	195
Call him not a man, one who speaks vain words; he is a scum.	196
A noble scholar may speak ungraciously, if he has to; but he must refrain from speaking vain words.	197
The wise, who seek to understand deeper significance of things, will not utter words with no substantial worth.	198

Those who are flawlessly wise, and have overcome all delusion, will desist from speaking worthless words, even unconsciously.	199
Speak, such that what you speak is worthy; speak not if what you speak is not worthy.

Sinners do not dread, while great men dread the delusion of evil deeds.	201
Vile deeds yield vile results; and hence, vile deeds are more fearsome than fire.	202
The foremost among all wise deeds, is to refrain from doing harmful deeds even to those who detest you.	203
Desire not the destruction of another, even sub-consciously; else, virtue will determine the destruction of the one who desires so.	204
Don’t commit anything evil in the name of poverty; the poorer, it will render you.	205
Don’t harm someone, because he is poor; it will prod you into poverty.

If one wishes not to be tormented by painful reactions, do not harm others.	206
There is scope for surviving any sort of enmity; but there can be no respite from the repercussions of an evil deed.	207
The shadow stays rooted to the foot; the evil that men do will remain to torment them.	208
If one loves himself, he shouldn’t do an evil act, howsoever small it is.	209
Know a man to be free of torment, if he doesn’t take a shortcut to do an evil deed.

Giving to the poor is charity; all else have the quality of anticipating a return.	221
To receive is a vice, even if it is accepted as a good virtue; to give, is good, even if the heaven is denied.	222
Charity, without mention of the distress of poverty, is present only in those from a good family.	223
To be asked to give is bitter too, until seeing the smiling face of the recipient.	224
The strength of the strongest is to endure hunger; it trails the ability to eradicate that hunger.	22

To douse the destructive hunger of the destitute, is the safe to store the riches of the rich.	226
Hunger, the deadly disease, never touches one who is accustomed to share his food with others.	227
Do they not know to enjoy the joy of giving, those loveless people, who keep their wealth only to lose it.	228
Eating alone to increase one’s accumulated wealth, is more distressing than begging.	229
There is nothing more harrowing than death; that too seems sweet, if one is unable to give a thing to the needy.	230

# 222 – To receive is a vice, even if it leads down a good path; to give, is good, even if the heaven is denied.V2

# 223 – Charity, without mention of the distress of poverty, is the mark of noble birth. V2

1. Not telling about the poverty of the recipient to others

2. Before the recipient mentions “I have nothing”

3. The donor, even if he is poor, doesn’t mention “I have nothing”

4. Give so much that the recipient doesnt ever have to say “I have nothing”.

Doing one’s duty without desiring any favours, is like rain; what can the world do in return for the rains.	211
The purpose of one’s hard-earned money is to be deployed to help the deserving.	212
In this world and the other, it is tough to attain anything better than beneficence.	213
One who is aligned to the right ways of the world, lives amongst the alive; the others are placed amongst the dead.	214
The wealth of the wise one who loves, and is loved by, the world, is like a public pond brimming with water.	215
Riches falling upon the benevolent, resemble a ripe tree laden with fruits, in the middle of a village.	216
Riches falling upon a person of great qualities, resemble an unfailing herbal tree that is a source of medicines.	217
Even in times of distress, those who dont shy away from beneficence, have clear vision of their moral responsibilities.

A benevolent person turns poor when he laments his inability to do the good deeds he is used to doing.	219
What harm can come out of beneficence? Such harm deserves to be bought even by selling oneself.

Giving to the poor is charity; all else have the quality of anticipating a return.	221
To receive is a vice, even if it is accepted as a good virtue; to give, is good, even if the heaven is denied.	222
Charity, without mention of the distress of poverty, is present only in those from a good family.	223
To be asked to give is bitter too, until seeing the smiling face of the recipient.	224
The strength of the strongest is to endure hunger; it trails the ability to eradicate that hunger.	225
To douse the destructive hunger of the destitute, is the safe to store the riches of the rich.	226
Hunger, the deadly disease, never touches one who is accustomed to share his food with others.	227
Do they not know to enjoy the joy of giving, those loveless people, who keep their wealth only to lose it.	228

Eating alone to increase one’s accumulated wealth, is more distressing than begging.	229
There is nothing more harrowing than death; that too seems sweet, if one is unable to give a thing to the needy.

The uncompassionate doing a righteous deed is like
the unwise finding true enlightenment.

To endure any ordeal and to cause none to other lives, embodies penance.	261
Penance makes sense only for those who have been virtuous; for others, it is useless.	262
Is it to assist the ascetics that the others have forgotten penance?	263
Those who do penance, if they so choose, can crush those who harm them and elevate those who delight them.	264
Since it gives the power to attain whatever one wishes to, penance needs to be attempted at the earliest.	265
Those who do penance do their duty; others, engage in futile tasks, ensnared in desire.	266
Like flame that makes gold glitter more, pangs of pain can only enlighten those who do penance.	267
One, who has given up the thought of ‘I,myself’, will be hailed by all.

One who has taken control of his life, will be hailed by all.	268 V2
Those, who have mastered penance, will find it possible to even defer death.	269
The poor are abundant, since those who observe abstinence are few, and those who dont are more.

One who has taken control of his life, will be hailed by all.	268 V2
Those, who have mastered penance, will find it possible to even defer death.	269
The poor are abundant, since those who observe abstinence are few, and those who dont are more.

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7 Anxiety of mind cannot be removed, except from those who are united to the feet of Him who is incomparable.

8 None can swim the sea of vice, but those who are united to the feet of that gracious Being who is a sea of virtue.

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kritopasaka

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bramhabhyasa = thinking of that only, talking of that only.

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asangosi, nirakarosi