Intrepidity in the Face of Misfortune
Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
veḷḷat taṉaiya viṭumpai yaṟivuṭaiyā / ṉuḷḷatti ṉuḷḷak keṭum.
“Though sorrow, like a flood, comes rolling on, / When wise men's mind regards it,- it is gone.”
“A whole sea of troubles will abase themselves the moment a shifty mind collecteth itself to face them.”
Even when troubles swell like a flood, a discerning mind can regard and contain them clearly; they then lose their power to overwhelm the inner life.
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.
வெள்ளத்து அனைய இடும்பை= வெள்ளம்போலக் கரையிலவாய இடும்பைகள் எல்லாம்; அறிவுடையான் உள்ளத்தின் உள்ளக் கெடும்= அறிவுடையவன் தன் உள்ளத்தான் ஒன்றனை நினைக்க, அத்துணையானே கெடும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Even sorrow surging as huge as a boundless flood will dissolve and vanish when a person of discerning wisdom calmly reflects upon it in their mind.