Kural #149
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Tamil text
நலக்குரியார் யாரெனின் நாமநீர்
வைப்பின் பிறர்க்குரியாள் தோள்தோயா தார்
Nalakkuriyār yāreṉiṉ nāmanīr
Vaippiṉ piṟakkuriyāḷ tōḷtōyā tār
English translation
If you ask who deserves goodness in this sea-girt world, it is those who have never embraced the shoulders of another's wife.
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Explanation
In this world surrounded by oceans (நாமநீர் வைப்பு), who truly deserves prosperity and well-being? Those who have never touched (தோள் தோயாதார்) another man's wife. Such moral discipline earns all good fortune.
விளக்கம்
பிறனில் விழையாமை அதிகாரத்தில், பிறர் மனைவி தோளைத் தீண்டாதவரே உலகில் நலம் பெறுவர். பிறர் பொருளை விரும்பாத அறமே எல்லா நன்மையும் தரும். இது ஒழுக்கத்தின் உயர்வை உணர்த்துகிறது.
Word meanings
- நலக்குnalakkufor goodness/prosperity
- உரியார்uriyārthose who deserve
- யாரெனின்yāreṉiṉif asked who
- நாமம்nāmamfear-inspiring
- நீர்nīrwater/sea
- வைப்பின்vaippiṉin this place (world)
- பிறர்க்குpiṟarkkuto another
- உரியாள்uriyāḷshe who belongs
- தோள்tōḷshoulders
- தோயாதார்tōyātārthose who have not embraced
Story behind this kural
In a village nestled beside a shimmering lake, lived two merchants, Arun and Bala. Arun, known for his honesty, built a prosperous trade by offering fair prices. Bala, however, coveted his neighbor’s wife, Maya. He’d often stare at her, dreaming of her beauty. One year, a terrible drought struck. Arun’s granaries, filled by honest dealings, remained stocked. He shared his grain, helping the villagers. Bala, whose business had suffered due to his wandering focus, found his storehouses empty. He begged for help, but few trusted him, remembering his envious eyes upon Maya. Seeking aid, Bala approached Maya’s husband, offering a trade for grain. The husband, remembering Bala’s disrespectful gazes, refused. As the rains finally returned, Arun's fields blossomed. Bala, humbled and desperate, learned a hard lesson.