Abstaining from Flesh
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aruḷalla tiyāteṉiṟ kollāmai kōṟal / poruḷalla tavvūṉ ṟiṉal
“'What's grace, or lack of grace'? 'To kill' is this, that 'not to kill'; / To eat dead flesh can never worthy end fulfil.”
“The killing of animals is veritable hardness of heart: but the eating of their flesh is iniquity indeed.”
If asked what compassion is: it is non-killing. If asked what is opposed to it: it is killing. Therefore, eating the flesh produced by that killing is not morally right.
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
அருள் யாது எனின் கொல்லாமை= அருள்யாது எனின், கொல்லாமை; அல்லது (யாதெனின்) கோறல்= அருள் அல்லது யாது எனின் கோறல்; அவ்வூன் தினல் பொருள் அல்லது= ஆகலான், அக்கோறலான் வந்த ஊனைத் தின்கை பாவம்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Compassion is defined by the refusal to kill any living creature, while the lack of compassion is killing; therefore, consuming the flesh obtained through such slaughter is fundamentally unrighteous.