Resolute Effort
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ākka miḻantēmeṉ ṟallāvā rūkka / moruvantaṅ kaittuṭai yār.
Those who hold firmly established resolve in hand as their resource do not cry in despair, ‘We have lost our prosperity.’
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“'Lost is our wealth,' they utter not this cry distressed, / The men of firm concentred energy of soul possessed.”
“Behold the men that hold in their hands the resource called energy: they will never despair, saying, Alas, we are ruined!”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
ஆக்கம் இழந்தேம் என்று அல்லாவார்= இழந்தாராயினும் யாம் கைப்பொருளை இழந்தேம் என்று அலமரார்; ஒருவந்தம் கைத்து உடையவர்= நிலைபெற்ற ஊக்கத்தைக் கைப்பொருளாக உடையார்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar says that even after losing prosperity, people who hold firmly established resolve as their resource do not wander in distress crying that their wealth is gone. The rhetoric praises non-collapse; it need not forbid grief.