Abstention from Sloth
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maṭimaṭik koṇṭoḻukum pētai piṟanta / kuṭimaṭiyun taṉṉiṉu muntu.
The house of the foolish person who holds destructive sloth within will decline even before that person does.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Who fosters indolence within his breast, the silly elf! / The house from which he springs shall perish ere himself.”
“Behold the fool who huggeth assassin sloth unto his heart: his family will fall even before his day is ended.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
மடி மடிக்கொண்டு ஒழுகும் பேதை பிறந்த குடி= விடத்தகுவதாய மடியைத் தன்னுள்ளே கொண்டொழுகும் அறிவில்லாதான் பிறந்த குடி; தன்னினும் முந்து மடியும்= அவன்தன்னினும் முந்துற அழியும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar describes a foolish person carrying within what ought to be abandoned—sloth. The severe sequence is that the house into which this person was born falls before the person's own end arrives.