The Utterance of Pleasant Words
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iṉsol iṉidu īṉṟal kāṇbāṉ evaṉkolō / vaṉsol vazhaṅguvadu
Why would one who has experienced the joy of kind speech give needless harshness to others? Firm boundaries, safety warnings, and truthful resistance are not needless cruelty.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Who sees the pleasure kindly speech affords, Why makes he use of harsh, repellant words?”
“Why doth not a man cease from violent words, even after he hath felt the sweetness that kind words give?”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
இன்சொல் இனிது ஈன்றல் காண்பான் = பிறர் கூறும் இன்சொல் தனக்கு இன்பம் பயத்தலை அனுபவித்து அறிகின்றவன்; வன்சொல் வழங்குவது எவன்கொல் = அது நிற்கப் பிறர்மாட்டு வன்சொல்லைச் சொல்லுவது என்ன பயன் கருதி? (கடுஞ்சொல் பிறர்க்கும் இன்னாதாகலின் அது கூறலாகாது என்பது கருத்து.)
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Someone who has felt for themselves how much joy another's kind words bring — why would such a person still go on speaking harsh words to others? Having tasted the sweetness of gentle speech, it makes no sense to deal out harshness, which only hurts.