Abstaining from Flesh
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taṉṉūṉ perukkaṟkut tāṉpiṟi tūṉuṇpā / ṉeṅṅaṉa māḷu maruḷ
“How can the wont of 'kindly grace' to him be known, / Who other creatures' flesh consumes to feed his own?”
“How can he feel pity, who eateth other flesh in order to fatten his own?”
How can compassion govern someone who, to enlarge their own flesh, eats the flesh of another living being?
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
தன் ஊன் பெருக்கற்குத் தான் பிறிது ஊன் உண்பான்= தன் உடம்பை வீக்குதற்பொருட்டுத் தான் பிறிதோர் உயிரின் உடம்பைத் தின்பவன்; எங்ஙனம் ஆளும் அருள்= எவ்வகையான் நடத்தும் அருளினை.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
One who consumes the flesh of another living creature merely to nourish and fatten their own body cannot embody true compassion, for genuine mercy requires extending the same care to other lives as one does to one's own.