Transactional Relationships
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Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
aṉpiṉ viḻaiyār poruḷviḻaiyu māytoṭiyā / riṉco liḻukkut tarum.
The pleasant words of the bangled women who desire a man not from love but for his wealth will later bring him misery.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Those that choice armlets wear who seek not thee with love, / But seek thy wealth, their pleasant words will ruin prove.”
“Behold the women that desire a man for the sake of his gold and not for the sake of love: their cajoleries will lead only to misery.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
அன்பின் விழையார் பொருள் விழையும் ஆய் தொடியார்= ஒருவனை அன்புபற்றி விழையாது, பொருள்பற்றி விழையும் மகளிர்; இன்சொல் இழுக்குத் தரும்= அது கையுறுந்துணையும் தாம் அன்புபற்றி விழைந்தாராகச் சொல்லும் இனியசொல், அவனுக்குப் பின் இன்னாமையைப் பயக்கும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar explicitly describes women who do not desire a male patron out of love but desire his wealth. He says their pleasant words claim love until the expected payment or gift is obtained and afterward cause him misery. This is a historically gendered and sexually stigmatizing frame, not a modern judgment on women or sex workers; the limited modern analogy concerns freely chosen counterfeit affection used to secure material gain.