Learning
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uvappat talaikkūṭi yuḷḷap pirita / laṉaittē pulavar toḻil
The scholar's art is to gather so joyfully that, after parting, people continue to long for the next meeting.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“You meet with joy, with pleasant thought you part; / Such is the learned scholar's wonderous art!”
“The scholar bringeth joy with him wherever he cometh: but when he departeth he leaveth regrets behind.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
உவப்பத் தலைக்கூடி உள்ளப் பிரிதல் அனைத்தே= யாவரையும் அவர் உவக்குமாறு தலைப்பெய்து, இனி அவரை யாம் எங்ஙனங் கூடுதும் என நினையுமாறு நீங்குதலாகிய அத்தன்மைத்து; புலவர் தொழில்= கற்றறிந்தாரது தொழில்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar describes learned people whose company brings delight when they meet and affectionate longing when they part. The point is generous intellectual fellowship, not charisma that demands access, loyalty, or blurred personal boundaries.