The Ambassador
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viṭumāṟṟam vēntark kuraippāṉ vaṭumāṟṟam / vāycōrā vaṉka ṇavaṉ.
“His faltering lips must utter no unworthy thing, / Who stands, with steady eye, to speak the mandates of his king.”
“Behold the firm-minded man that will never let fall from his lips words that are weak and unbecoming: he is the fit man to deliver the messages of princes at foreign courts.”
The firm envoy who carries a ruler's mandate does not let fear make his mouth utter a blemishing or demeaning version of the entrusted message.
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Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
விடு மாற்றம் வேந்தர்க்கு உரைப்பான்= தன்அரசன் சொல்லிவிட்ட வார்த்தையை வேற்றரசர்க்குச் சென்று சொல்லவுரியான்; வடு மாற்றம் வாய்சோரா வன்கணவன்= தனக்கு வரும் ஏதத்திற்கு அஞ்சி அவனுக்குத் தாழ்வான வார்த்தையை வாய்சோர்ந்துஞ் சொல்லாத திண்மையை உடையான்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
He who conveys his sovereign's mandate to foreign kings must possess the steadfast resolve never to let slip a word that demeans his leader.