Tirukkural Chapter 43 - Couplets 4,5,6 Poem by Rajaram Ramachandran

திருக்குறள் -TIRUKKURAL
அதிகாரம் 43 -அறிவுடைமை
CHAPTER 43 - ON KNOWLEDGE
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43/04. எண்பொருள் வாகச் செலச்சொல்லித் தான்பிறர்வாய்
நுண்பொருள் காண்பது அறிவு.

43/04. Ennporull vaagach chelachchollith thaanpirrarvaay
Nunnporull kaannbadhu arivu.

43/04. Knowledge makes one understand rare things
Either realized by him or explained by others.
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Chandran: By acquiring knowledge wisdom expands.

Madhavan: Knowledge one gets
By one's own efforts
Or by others' lectures
If he patiently hears.

There is material knowledge,
Besides spiritual knowledge,
Material one for this world,
And spiritual one for heavenly abode.

One should approach teachers,
To know more about things,
As by his own efforts
Very little he learns.
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43/05. உலகம் தழீஇயது ஒட்பம்; மலர்தலும்
கூம்பலும் இல்லது அறிவு.

43/05. Ulagam thazheeiyadhu otpam; malardhalum
Koombam illadhu arrive.

43/05. To befriend great men show one's wisdom.
This friendship will not be like a flower that blooms and then fades.
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Chandran: Tell me who your friends are
I'll tell you who you are? There is a saying like this.

Madhavan: Just like a thread that binds flowers
Gets its aroma from those flowers,
A man in association with great men,
Will get knowledge from those men.

A flower in the morning blooms
And in the evening it fades.
But the knowledge once gained
Will remain with one till his end.

When money is given to others
Its quantity reduces,
But if knowledge is given to others
One's wisdom increases.

It's like one candle
Lighting another candle
Will not reduce the light
But will increase the light.
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43/06. எவ்வது உறைவது உலகம் உலகத்தோடு
அல்லது உறைவது அறிவு.

43/06. Evvadhu urraivadhu ulagam ulagathodu
Alladhu urraivadhu arrivu.

43/06. One's wisdom is to mix with great men
And to live like them.
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Chandran: If one follows the footsteps
Of great men he becomes wise.

Madhavan: When a wise man teaches,
Many good points he discloses,
That'll give one an advantage
To increase his general knowledge.

If one man lives like them
That'll enhance his wisdom.
Also in their company, if he is,
His knowledge naturally increases.

Wisdom is not a product
To purchase from market,
It's one's brain that absorbs
All the knowledge it receives.
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