Troublesome Forty [36 To 40: Tamil Quatrains] Poem by Rajendran Muthiah

36. Painful, if one in the grip of penury wants to help others!
Being empty handed in a town with palaces is distressing.
If the guest has to wait for someone, to eat, it is sickening.
Friendship with the robber of the poor is repressing.

37. A beautiful flower bereft of smell is perplexing.
Passing through the still water-course is embarrassing.
Conversing of the wise with the dullards makes grieving.
Being angry with the weak ones is painful.

38. Ignorance of following someone's wife is harmful.
A cowardly king's march to the war field is endangering.
To ride on a steed without shackles is dangerous.
The acts of one who knows not the ways of acting are miserable.

39. The munificence in the impoverished gives anguish.
Stones in nibbled areca-nuts are niggling.
Unrewarding the seeking poets is nerve-racking.
Stopping singing when hindrances impede is damaging.

40. The arrogance in a restraint man is shocking.
The brags of a bungler are disgusting.
Embezzling the deposits made with us is horrendous.
Words spoken to the unrestrained wreak havoc.