Friendship
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Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
naṭpiṟku vīṟṟirukkai yāteṉiṟ koṭpiṉṟi / yollumvā yūṉṟu nilai.
If one asks where friendship sits enthroned, it is in the state of not wavering inwardly and sustaining a friend, wherever one is genuinely able.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“And where is friendship's royal seat? In stable mind, / Where friend in every time of need support may find.”
“Where doth friendship hold its court? It is where two hearts beat in perfect unison and combine to lift each other up in every possible way.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
நட்பிற்கு வீற்றிருக்கை யாது எனின்= நட்பினுக்கு அரசிருக்கை யாது எனின்; கொட்பு இன்றி ஒல்லும்வாய் ஊன்றும் நிலை= அஃது எஞ்ஞான்றும், திரிபின்றி இயலும் எல்லை எல்லாம் அறம் பொருள்களின் தளராமைத்? தாங்கும் தன்மை.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar calls friendship’s royal seat the condition of remaining inwardly unturned and sustaining a friend in worthy concerns, at all times and as far as one is able.