Greatness
.
Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
aṟṟa maṟaikkum perumai ciṟumaitāṉ / kuṟṟamē kūṟi viṭum.
Greatness covers the place where somebody falls short; smallness states the fault and nothing but the fault — and the commentary adds that greatness also speaks the honour, and smallness also covers the merit.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Greatness will hide a neighbour's shame; / Meanness his faults to all the world proclaim.”
“Greatness is always for screening the infirmities of others: but littleness will talk nothing but scandal.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
பெருமை அற்றம் மறைக்கும்= பெருமையுடையார் பிறர் மானத்தையே கூறி அவமானத்தை மறையாநிற்பர்; சிறுமைதான் குற்றமே கூறிவிடும்= மற்றைச் சிறுமையுடையார், பிறர் குணத்தை மறைத்துக் குற்றத்தையே கூறி விடுவர்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Greatness covers the place where somebody falls short; smallness states the fault and nothing but the fault. (That greatness also speaks the honour is Parimelazhagar's addition.)