Not Stealing
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aḷaviṉka ṇiṉṟoḻuka lāṟṟār kaḷaviṉkaṭ / kaṉṟiya kāta lavar
Those whose desire is deeply fixed on theft cannot live by the measured discernment of soul, moral consequence, and liberation.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“They cannot walk restrained in wisdom's measured bound, / In whom inveterate lust of fraudful gain is found.”
“The man who thirsteth after plunder cannot weigh things aright: nor can he walk in the way of righteousness.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
அளவின்கண் நின்று ஒழுகல் ஆற்றார்- உயிர் முதலியவற்றை அளத்தலாகிய நெறியின்கண் நின்று அதற்கு ஏற்ப ஒழு்கமாட்டார்; களவின்கண் கன்றிய காதலவர்= களவின்கண்ணே மிக் வேட்கையை உடையார்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
People intensely attached to theft cannot live according to the discernment that rightly examines soul, beginningless good and harmful action, rebirth, the disciplines that end it, and liberation.