Possession of Knowledge
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eṇporuḷa vākac celaccollit tāṉpiṟarvāy / nuṇporuḷ kāṇpa taṟivu
“Wisdom hath use of lucid speech, words that acceptance win, / And subtle sense of other men's discourse takes in.”
“What he speaketh, the wise man speaketh so as to be understood by all: and from the lips of others he gathereth their subtle meanings.”
Wisdom expresses even difficult ideas so that they become easy to grasp, and discerns subtle meaning in the words of others.
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
தான் எண் பொருளவாகச் செலச் சொல்லி= தான் சொல்லும் சொற்களை அரிய பொருளவாயினும் கேட்பார்க்கு எளிய பொருளவாமாறு சொல்லி; பிறர் வாய் நுண்பொருள் காண்பது அறிவு= பிறர் வாய்க் கேட்கும் சொற்களின் நுண்ணிய பொருள் காண அரிதாயினும், அதனைக் காண வல்லது அறிவு.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Expressing even profound and difficult concepts so lucidly that listeners grasp them with ease, while piercingly discerning subtle depths in the speech of others, is wisdom.