Purity of Action
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kaṭinta kaṭintorār ceytārk kavaitā / muṭintālum pīḻai tarum.
To those who knowingly do what moral teaching condemns, those very deeds bring suffering even if they first succeed.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“To those who hate reproof and do forbidden thing. / What prospers now, in after days shall anguish bring.”
“Behold the men that shun not those things that are forbidden by good morals: they will come to grief even if they succeed in their designs.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
கடிந்த கடிந்து ஒரார் செய்தார்க்கு= நூலோர் கடிந்த வினைகளைத் தாமும் கடிந்துஒழியாது, பொருள்நோக்கிச் செய்த அமைச்சர்க்கு; அவைதாம் முடிந்தாலும் பீழை தரும்= அவை தூயவன்மையின் முடியா, ஒருவாற்றான் முடியினும் பின் துன்பத்தையே கொடுக்கும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar says ministers who knowingly pursue condemned acts for gain will receive suffering from those very impure acts, even if the immediate plan somehow succeeds.