Thirukkural 134 in English
Tamil original, transliteration, English translation, meaning, commentary, pronunciation, and chapter context.
Tamil original
மறப்பினும் ஓத்துக் கொளலாகும் பார்ப்பான்
பிறப்பொழுக்கங் குன்றக் கெடும்.
Transliteration
Marappinum Oththuk Kolalaakum Paarppaan
Pirappozhukkang Kundrak Ketum
Modern English
“Knowledge you've forgotten can usually be relearned with enough effort, but a reputation ruined by bad conduct is far harder to recover.”
Modern Interpretation
Knowledge you've forgotten can usually be relearned with enough effort, but a reputation ruined by bad conduct is far harder to recover. What you know matters less than how you act. For example, a doctor who forgets a textbook detail can look it up again, but one caught cheating patients loses a kind of trust that's nearly impossible to rebuild.
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Modern Plain English
Knowledge you've forgotten can usually be relearned with enough effort, but a reputation ruined by bad conduct is far harder to recover.
Poetic Couplet (Bharati)
Readers recall forgotten lore, But conduct lost returns no more
G.U. Pope Translation
Though he forget, the Brahman may regain his Vedic lore;Failing in 'decorum due,' birthright's gone for evermore
Classical Meaning (Drew & Lazarus)
A Brahman though he should forget the Vedas may recover it by reading; but, if he fail in propriety of conduct even his high birth will be destroyed
Tamil commentary
பார்ப்பான் தான் கற்ற வேதத்தை மறந்து போனாலும் பிறகு கற்றுக் கொள்ளலாம்; ஆனால், அவன் பிறந்த குலத்திற்கு ஏற்ற, மேலான ஒழுக்கத்திலிருந்து தாழ்ந்தால் அவன் குலத்தாலும் தாழ்வான்.
Chapter 14
More from The Possession of Decorum
ஒழுக்கம் உடைமை
Decorum does one dignity More than life guard its purity
Kural 132Virtues of conduct all excel; The soul aid should be guarded well
Kural 133Good conduct shows good family Low manners mark anomaly
Kural 134Readers recall forgotten lore, But conduct lost returns no more
Kural 135The envious prosper but ill The ill-behaved sinks lower still
Kural 136The firm from virtue falter not They know the ills of evil thought
Kural 137Conduct good ennobles man, Bad conduct entails disgrace mean
Kural 138Good conduct sows seeds of blessings Bad conduct endless evil brings
Kural 139Foul words will never fall from lips Of righteous men even by slips
Kural 140Though read much they are ignorant Whose life is not world-accordant