Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.1 · verse 3101 of the four thousand
Meaning
What I say may make enemies, but still, listen to what I have to say: I will not give the sweet poetry on my tongue to anyone else at all, while there is my Elephant, my Father, my Lord at Thiruvenkatam, where the bees hum "thenna, thena".
Word by word
- coṉṉāl virōtam
- if I say it, it makes enemies
- kēṇmiṉō
- listen
- eṉ nāvil iṉ kavi
- the sweet poetry on my tongue
- teṉṉā teṉā eṉṟu vaṇṭu mural
- where bees hum "thenna, thena"
- eṉ āṉai
- my Elephant, my majestic Lord
- uḷaṉākavē
- while He is there
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.2 · verse 3102 of the four thousand
Meaning
Am I to sing poems on this mere man, who thinks himself someone of account and prizes his wealth as plenty, leaving aside my Father, my Father's Lord, who truly dwells at Kannan's Thirukkurungudi, ringed by fields brimming with ponds?
Word by word
- taṉṉai oṉṟāka
- thinking himself someone
- taṉ celvattai vaḷaṉā matikkum
- who prizes his wealth as plenty
- im māṉiṭattaik
- this mere man
- kuḷaṉ ār kaḻaṉi cūḻ
- ringed by fields brimming with ponds
- kaṇṇaṉ kuṟuṅkuṭi
- Kannan's Thirukkurungudi
- meymmaiyē uḷaṉāya
- who truly dwells there
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.3 · verse 3103 of the four thousand
Meaning
Our Lord of the immortals gives the way by which one may go and shine for age after age, through countless endless ages. O poets, passing Him by, what use is it to take your exceedingly fine poetry and think of lowering yourselves by singing of some mere man?
Word by word
- pal ūḻitōṟu ūḻi
- age after age, through many ages
- nilāvappōm vaḻiyait tarum
- who gives the way to go and shine
- naṅkaḷ vāṉavar īcaṉai
- our Lord of the immortals
- mika nallavāṉ kavi
- exceedingly fine poetry
- pulavīrkāḷ
- O poets
- iḻiyak karuti
- thinking to lower yourselves
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.4 · verse 3104 of the four thousand
Meaning
O poets, what does it come to, how many days will it last, the great wealth you gather by singing of men who do not endure? If you sing of the Father of the heavenly ones, whose gem-studded crown flashes like lightning, He will take you as His very own and grant you freedom from birth as well.
Word by word
- ettaṉai nāḷaikkup pōtum
- how many days will it last?
- maṉṉā maṉicaraip pāṭip
- singing of men who do not endure
- miṉ ār maṇi muṭi
- gem crown flashing like lightning
- viṇṇavar tātaiyaip
- the Father of the heavenly ones
- taṉṉākavē koṇṭu
- taking you as His very own
- caṉmam ceyyāmaiyum
- freedom from birth too
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.5 · verse 3105 of the four thousand
Meaning
There is nothing to be gained. O poets, you lose your truthfulness praising men as "great givers" for wealth that is like a stirred-up rubbish heap! Come, sing your poems on my great Giver, the flawless, sapphire-coloured One, who never grows less however much is taken from Him and gives everything one wants.
Word by word
- kuppai kiḷarttaṉṉa celvattai
- wealth like a stirred-up rubbish heap
- vaḷḷal pukaḻntu
- praising as a great giver
- num vāymai iḻakkum
- losing your truthfulness
- koḷḷak kuṟaivu ilaṉ
- never less, however much is taken
- vēṇṭiṟṟu ellām tarum
- who gives all that is wanted
- kavi colla vammiṉō
- come and sing poems
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.6 · verse 3106 of the four thousand
Meaning
Come, poets: rather than that, work with your bodies, labour with your hands, and live. We have looked: in this world there are no truly rich men now. And if you take your sweet poems and praise whatever god each of you loves, it will still reach my Tirumal, whose radiant crown flashes red like lightning.
Word by word
- num mey varuttik kaiceytu
- labouring with your bodies and hands
- uymmiṉō
- live by it
- celvar ippōtu illai
- there are no rich men now
- num num iṭṭā teyvam
- whatever god each of you loves
- cem miṉ cuṭar muṭi
- crown flashing red like lightning
- tirumālukkuc cērumē
- it will reach Tirumal
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.7 · verse 3107 of the four thousand
Meaning
Apart from the Lord whose fame for giving has no limit, the Lord who has a thousand names, I cannot sing of anyone, telling raw, green lies about some shrub of a man on this earth: "Your hand gives like the rain! Your strong shoulders are like a great mountain!"
Word by word
- koṭai pukaḻ ellai ilāṉai
- whose fame for giving has no limit
- ōr āyiram pērum uṭaiya
- who has a thousand names
- māri aṉaiya kai
- a hand like the rain
- māl varai okkum tiṇ tōḷ
- strong shoulders like a great mountain
- pāril ōr paṟṟaiyaip
- some shrub on the earth
- paccaip pacum poykaḷ
- raw, green lies
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.8 · verse 3108 of the four thousand
Meaning
I long to go singing the great, limitless glories of the Bridegroom of Nappinnai, whose shoulders are like full bamboo, and, leaving this body, to enter beneath His two feet. What could I say, with this mouth of mine, about men who pass away like an illusion?
Word by word
- vēyiṉ malipurai tōḷi
- she whose shoulders are like full bamboo
- piṉṉaikku maṇāḷaṉai
- the Bridegroom of Nappinnai
- ellai ilātaṉa pāṭippōy
- going on singing the limitless
- kāyam kaḻittu
- leaving this body
- tāḷ iṇaikkīḻp pukum kātalaṉ
- I who long to enter beneath His feet
- māya maṉicarai
- men who pass like an illusion
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.9 · verse 3109 of the four thousand
Meaning
I am not a poet who came to sing of men with my mouth. The great Giver, the Lord of the discus, whose glories are tested and proven, is there for me alone. He makes this present life full, and saying, "See the land of the immortals for yourself", He will give me liberation too, standing by me always.
Word by word
- māṉiṭam pāṭa vanta kaviyēṉ allēṉ
- I am not a poet come to sing of men
- āykoṇṭa cīr vaḷḷal
- the great Giver of proven glories
- āḻip pirāṉ
- the Lord of the discus
- eṉakkē uḷaṉ
- is there for me alone
- vāṉavar nāṭṭaiyum
- the land of the immortals too
- vīṭum tarum
- will give liberation
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.10 · verse 3110 of the four thousand
Meaning
I mean to leave this body, which drags on for many days, to go on and on until I see Him and end all birth. I have become, ever more closely, the poet of Him who created the world. For me, will anyone else's praise ever be fitting, now or ever?
Word by word
- pala nāḷ uykkum iv uṭal
- this body that drags on many days
- ceṉṟu ceṉṟu
- going on and on
- caṉmam kaḻippāṉ eṇṇi
- intending to end birth
- oṉṟioṉṟi
- ever more closely joined
- ulakam paṭaittāṉ kavi
- the poet of the world's Creator
- maṟṟoruvar kavi ēṟkumē
- will anyone else's poem suit me?
Tiruvaymozhi 3.9.11 · verse 3111 of the four thousand
Meaning
For Kannan, Lord of the immortals, whose great glory befits Him, Satakopan, Nammalwar, of rich Kurugur, whose great glory befits him, spoke a thousand verses of fitting, great glory. For those who can recite these ten among them, with their fitting, great glory, there is no more birth.
Word by word
- ēṟkum perum pukaḻ
- great, fitting glory
- vāṉavar īcaṉ kaṇṇaṉ
- Kannan, Lord of the immortals
- vaṇ kurukūrc caṭakōpaṉ
- Satakopan of rich Kurugur
- colla vallārkku
- for those who can recite
- illai caṉmamē
- there is no more birth
Verse text: the word-separated e-text of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham by Project Madurai, checked verse by verse against its second edition. Meanings are simple renderings in the light of the acharyas' commentaries, written for this site, and are awaiting a scholar's review.