Austerity
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cuṭaccuṭarum poṉpō loḷiviṭun tuṉpañ / cuṭaccuṭa nōṟkiṟ pavarkku
“The hotter glows the fining fire, the gold the brighter shines; / The pain of penitence, like fire, the soul of man refines.”
“The fiercer the fire in which it is melted the more brilliant becometh the lustre of the gold: even so the severer the sufferings endured by the austere, the purer their nature shineth.”
As gold shines brighter with repeated heating, those capable of austerity are said to shine more as its hardship presses them.
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
(இதன்பொருள்) சுடச்சுடரும் பொன்போல்= தீயின்கண் ஓடும் பொன்னுக்கு அது சுடச்சுடத் தன்னோடு கலந்த குற்றம் நீங்கி ஒளிமிகுமாறு போல; நோற்கிற்பவர்க்குத் துன்பம் சுடச் சுட ஒளிவிடும்= தவஞ்செய்ய வல்லார்க்கு அதனான் வருந் துன்பம் வருத்த வருத்தந் தம்மொடு கலந்த பாவ நீங்கி ஞானம்மிகும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Just as raw gold purifies itself and shines with greater brilliance the more intensely it is heated in fire, the spiritual wisdom of disciplined souls radiates brighter the more hardship tests them.