Thirukkural 78 in English
Tamil original, transliteration, English translation, meaning, commentary, pronunciation, and chapter context.
Tamil original
அன்பகத் தில்லா உயிர்வாழ்க்கை வன்பாற்கண்
வற்றல் மரந்தளிர்த் தற்று.
Transliteration
Anpakath Thillaa Uyirvaazhkkai Vanpaarkan
Vatral Marandhalirth Thatru
Modern English
“A life without love is like a dried tree trying to grow in a desert.”
Modern Interpretation
A life without love is like a dried tree trying to grow in a desert. A home may have people, furniture, and money, but it cannot truly flourish without affection and care. For example, family members who never listen or help one another may live under one roof while still feeling completely alone.
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Tamil pronunciation
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Modern Plain English
A life without love is like a dried tree trying to grow in a desert.
Poetic Couplet (Bharati)
Life bereft of love is gloom Can sapless tree in desert bloom?
G.U. Pope Translation
The loveless soul, the very joys of life may know,When flowers, in barren soil, on sapless trees, shall blow
Classical Meaning (Drew & Lazarus)
The domestic state of that man whose mind is without love is like the flourishing of a withered tree upon the parched desert
Tamil commentary
மனத்தில் அன்பு இல்லாமல் குடும்பத்தோடு வாழும் வாழ்க்கை, வறண்ட பாலை நிலத்தில் காய்ந்து சுக்காகிப் போன மரம் மீண்டும் இலை விடுவது போலாம்.
Chapter 8
More from The Possession of Love
அன்புடைமை
What bolt can bar true love in fact The tricking tears reveal the heart
Kural 72To selves belong the loveless ones; To oth'rs the loving e'en to bones
Kural 73Soul is encased in frame of bone To taste the life of love alone
Kural 74Love yields aspiration and thence Friendship springs up in excellence
Kural 75The crowning joy of home life flows From peaceful psychic love always
Kural 76\"Love is virtue's friend\" say know-nots It helps us against evil plots
Kural 77Justice burns the loveless form Like solar blaze the boneless worm
Kural 78Life bereft of love is gloom Can sapless tree in desert bloom?
Kural 79Love is the heart which limbs must move, Or vain the outer parts will prove
Kural 80The seat of life is love alone; Or beings are but skin and bone!