Thirukkural 216 in English
Tamil original, transliteration, English translation, meaning, commentary, pronunciation, and chapter context.
Tamil original
பயன்மரம் உள்ளூர்ப் பழுத்தற்றால் செல்வம்
நயனுடை யான்கண் படின்.
Transliteration
Payanmaram Ulloorp Pazhuththatraal Selvam
Nayanutai Yaankan Patin
Modern English
“When wealth ends up with a kind-hearted person, it works like a fruit tree ripening in the middle of town, open for anyone to enjoy.”
Modern Interpretation
When wealth ends up with a kind-hearted person, it works like a fruit tree ripening in the middle of town, open for anyone to enjoy. Good fortune in the right hands becomes everyone's good fortune. For example, a generous relative's home often becomes the place where the whole family gathers and is looked after.
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Tamil pronunciation
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Modern Plain English
When wealth ends up with a kind-hearted person, it works like a fruit tree ripening in the middle of town, open for anyone to enjoy.
Poetic Couplet (Bharati)
Who plenty gets and plenty gives Is like town-tree teeming with fruits
G.U. Pope Translation
A tree that fruits in th' hamlet's central mart,Is wealth that falls to men of liberal heart
Classical Meaning (Drew & Lazarus)
The wealth of a man (possessed of the virtue) of benevolence is like the ripening of a fruitful tree in the midst of a town
Tamil commentary
பிறரால் விரும்பப்படுபவனிடம் சேரும் செல்வம், உண்ணத் தகும், கனிதரும் மரம் ஊருக்கு உள்ளே பழுத்திருப்பதைப் போல எல்லார்க்கும் பொதுவாகும்.
Chapter 22
More from Duty to Society
ஒப்புரவறிதல்
Duty demands nothing in turn; How can the world recompense rain?
Kural 212All the wealth that toils give Is meant to serve those who deserve
Kural 213In heav'n and earth 'tis hard to find A greater good than being kind
Kural 214He lives who knows befitting act Others are deemed as dead in fact
Kural 215The wealth that wise and kind do make Is like water that fills a lake
Kural 216Who plenty gets and plenty gives Is like town-tree teeming with fruits
Kural 217The wealth of a wide-hearted soul Is a herbal tree that healeth all
Kural 218Though seers may fall on evil days Their sense of duty never strays
Kural 219The good man's poverty and grief Is want of means to give relief
Kural 220By good if ruin comes across Sell yourself to save that loss