Wealth Without Benefit
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vaittāṉ vāycāṉṟa perumporu ḷaḵtuṇṇāṉ / cettāṉ ceyakkiṭanta til.
“Who fills his house with ample store, enjoying none, / Is dead. Nought with the useless heap is done.”
“Behold the man who hath laid by in his home treasures in abundance but enjoyeth them not: he is as good as dead, for he maketh no use of them.”
One who hoards vast wealth but refuses to enjoy it is dead while living; he can do nothing with it.
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
வாய் சான்ற பெரும்பொருள் வைத்தான் அஃது உண்ணான்= தன் மனை அகலம் எல்லாம் நிறைதற்கு ஏதுவாய பெரும்பொருளை ஈட்டிவைத்து உலோபத்தால் அதனை உண்ணாதவன்; செத்தான் செயக்கிடந்தது இல்= உளனாயினும் செத்தானாம், அதன்கண் அவனால் செயக் கிடந்ததோர் உரிமை இன்மையான்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
One who hoards vast wealth enough to fill a house, yet out of stinginess never enjoys it, is as good as dead while alive; for he derives no benefit from what he gathered.