The Wasting Away
மெலிந்த கைகளில் இருந்து வளையல்கள் நழுவுவதைக் கண்டு தோழியிடம் வாடுதல். — Her bracelets slipping loose from wasted arms as separation drains her vitality.
Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
koṭiyār koṭumai uraikkun toṭiyoṭu / tolkaviṉ vāṭiya tōḷ.
“These wasted arms, the bracelet with their wonted beauty gone, / The cruelty declare of that most cruel one.”
“The arms which have lost their wonted comeliness together with the bracelets that they were wearing, proclaim loudly to the world the cruelty of that cruel one.”
These arms, their bangles slipped away and their old beauty faded, are themselves speaking aloud the cruelty of that cruel man.
Ask about this Kural
Answers are drawn only from this Kural's sourced text and named commentary, and always cite what they used.
Choose a section
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
கொடியார் கொடுமை உரைக்கும்= கவவுக்கை நெகிழினும் ஆற்றாதாட்கு, இக்கால நீட்டத்து என்னாம் என்று நினையாத கொடியாரது கொடுமையைத் தாமே சொல்லாநின்றன; தொடியொடு தொல்கவின் வாடிய தோள்= வளைகளும் கழன்று, பழைய இயற்கை அழகும் இழந்த இத்தோள்கள், இனி அதனை யாம் மறைக்குமாறு என்னை, எ-று.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
These arms, stripped of their ancient beauty and shedding their loose bangles, proclaim the cruelty of my lover; how can we conceal it now?