Kural #548
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Tamil text
எண்பதத்தான் ஓரா முறைசெய்யா
மன்னவன் தண்பதத்தான் தானே கெடும்
Eṇpatatāṉ ōrā muṟaiceyyā
Maṉṉavaṉ taṇpatatāṉ tāṉē keṭum
English translation
The king who is not accessible, does not investigate, and does not administer justice will quickly perish on his own.
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Explanation
Three failures destroy a ruler: inaccessibility (எண்பதத்தான் அல்லாது), not investigating matters (ஓரா), and not dispensing justice (முறைசெய்யா). Such a king needs no enemy - he destroys himself (தானே கெடும்).
விளக்கம்
எளிதில் அணுக முடியாத, விசாரித்து அறியாத, நீதி வழங்காத அரசன் தன்னைத்தானே அழித்துக் கொள்வான். செங்கோன்மை அதிகாரத்தில், நல்லாட்சிக்கு இது முக்கியம். நீதி தவறினால் அழிவு நிச்சயம்.
Word meanings
- எண்eṇeasy/accessible
- பதத்தான்patatāṉof manner
- ஓராōrānot investigating
- முறைmuṟaijustice
- செய்யாceyyānot doing
- மன்னவன்maṉṉavaṉking
- தண்taṇlow/humble
- தானேtāṉēby himself
- கெடும்keṭumwill perish
Story behind this kural
King Alaric, cloistered in his high tower, rarely met his people. He received reports from advisors, but seldom listened to the villagers' pleas. One day, a merchant accused a farmer of theft. The King, without hearing the farmer's side, ordered him imprisoned. The farmer’s crops rotted, and his family starved. The merchant, emboldened by the King's favor, began seizing other small farms. Soon, whispers of discontent filled the village. People stopped bringing gifts to the King, and the royal granaries emptied. When a neighboring kingdom threatened war, Alaric found he had no allies. His soldiers, unpaid and disheartened, deserted. The merchant, having amassed wealth, fled, taking his riches elsewhere. Without support, the King sat alone in his tower as the kingdom crumbled around him.