தக்கார் தகவிலர் என்பது அவரவர்
எச்சத்தாற் காணப்ப படும்.
Thakkaar Thakavilar Enpadhu Avaravar
Echchaththaar Kaanap Patum (114)
The just and unjust shall be known by the reputation that they leave behind.
अयं माध्यस्थ्यवर्तीति विपरीतोऽयमित्यपि ।
सदसत्पुत्रजन्मभ्यां ज्ञातुं शक्यं विशेषत: ॥ (११४)
कोई ईमान्दार है, अथवा बेईमान ।
उन उनके अवशेष से, होती यह पहचान ॥ (११४)
ಸಮಭಾವವುಳ್ಳವರೆ, ಅಲ್ಲವೆ ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ಅವರವರ ಮಕ್ಕಳ (ಸಂತತಿ) ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಿಂದ ತಿಳಿಯಬಹುದು. (೧೧೪)
നീതിപാലിപ്പവൻ, നീതി ലംഘനം ചെയ്തിടുന്നവൻ; സന്താനജിവിതം നോക്കിയറിയാം രണ്ടുപേരെയും (൱൰൪)
Ob ein Mann gerecht ist oder nicht, kommt durch sein Vermächtnis ans Licht.
சமன்செய்து சீர்தூக்குங் கோல்போல் அமைந்தொருபால்
கோடாமை சான்றோர்க் கணி.
Samanseydhu Seerdhookkung Kolpol Amaindhorupaal
Kotaamai Saandrork Kani (118)
To be unbiased like a balanced weighing scale, is a quality of great men.
मध्ये स्थिता तुला द्रव्यं न्यायतस्तुलयेद्यथा ।
तथा निष्पक्षपातित्वं माध्यस्थं लक्षणं सताम् ॥ (११८)
रहते सुमधुर वचन सम रेखा पर हो तुला, ज्यों तोले सामान ।
भूषण महानुभाव का, पक्ष न लेना मान ॥ (११८)
ಮೊದಲೇ ತಾನು ಸಮನಾಗಿ ನಿಂತು, ಸರಿತೂಗುವ ತಕ್ಕಡಿ ಕೋಲಿನಂತೆ, ಒಂದು ಪಕ್ಕಕ್ಕೆ ಬಾಗದೆ ಸಮತೋಲವನ್ನು ತೋರಿಸುವುದು ತಿಳಿದವರಿಗೆ ಭೂಷಣ. (೧೧೮)
മുമ്പിലും തൂക്കിടുമ്പോഴും സമം നിൽക്കും തുലാസ്സുപോൽ മനം നിഷ്പക്ഷമായ്നിൽപ്പതഴകാകുന്നു വിജ്ഞരിൽ (൱൰൮)
Der Schmuck des Weisen ist, sich keiner Seite anzuschließen, sondern unparteiisch zu bleiben wie die Zunge einer richtigen Waage.
Impartiality – being just and fair. Tiruvalluvar says that தகுதி எனவொன்று நன்றே பகுதியால்பா ற்பட்டு ஒழுகப் பெறின் – Thakudhi Enavondru Nandre Pakudhiyaal Paarpattu Ozhukap Perin – to be just is to act impartially towards enemies, strangers and friends.
This is easier said than done. We would always tend to favour or be biased towards our friends, and against our enemies. Valluvar says that such men are few, who are able to act as a balanced weighing scale, being impartial to all and deciding on the right course of action solely based on merit and merit alone.
A question may arise as you read this. How is this relevant to me? These qualities may be required in a king, or in present times, a judge in a court. We normal human beings have our fallacies, our biases, and while the ideal scenario would be that what Valluvar describes, in reality, this may not happen, given our deep-rooted biases and favouritism. So how do we implement these teachings in real life?
Part of the answer is given by Tiruvalluvar himself, in the 120th Kural.
வாணிகம் செய்வார்க்கு வாணிகம் பேணிப்
பிறவும் தமபோல் செயின்.
Vaanikam Seyvaarkku Vaanikam Penip
Piravum Thamapol Seyin (120)
Those businessmen prosper, whose business protects as their own the interests of others.
अन्येषामपि वस्तूनि स्वकीयानीव पश्यता ।
क्रियते यत्तु वाणिज्यं तद्वाणिज्यमितीर्यते ॥ (१२०)
यदि रखते पर माल को, अपना माल समान ।
वणिक करे वाणीज्य तो, वही सही तू जान ॥ (१२०)
ಪರರ ವಸ್ತುಗಳನ್ನು ತಮ್ಮ ವಸ್ತುಗಳಂತೆ ಪ್ರೀತಿಸಿ ಕಾಪಾಡಿದರೆ, ವಣಿಜರಿಗೆ ಅದೇ ನಿಜವಾದ ವ್ಯವಹಾರ ಧರ್ಮವೆನಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು. (೧೨೦)
തൻറെ വ്യാപാരതാൽപ്പര്യം സംരക്ഷിപ്പത് പോലവേ അന്യരിൻ നന്മ രക്ഷിക്കൽ വണിജന്നുടെ ധർമ്മമാം (൱൨൰)
Güter anderer hüten und wie die eigenen handhaben – das ist das wahre Handeln eines Kaufmanns.
Contemporary management speaks of the “competitive edge”, schools are all about promoting competition – today’s world is all about winning at any cost. This “winner-takes-all” attitude is detrimental to the society, argues Tiruvalluvar. You win, and I win too, is an approach that makes a more balanced and happy society.
What applies in business also applies to other spheres of life. While we may not be judges in a courtroom, we do make a lot of decisions in daily life. For instance, when we go shopping.
Do we bargain at an Apple store? We don’t. Why then, do we bargain when we go to purchase vegetables at the Sunday market?
The reason we do that is leverage – we know that we don’t have an option at the Apple Store, but we do have leverage over the vegetable-seller, who lives on what he earns daily. He would be more desperate to sell, and hence more willing to agree to a bargain. This is not fair on our part. If you can pay the right price elsewhere, you should also be willing to pay the vegetable-seller a fair price for his goods.
When we purchase clothes, do we take into consideration whether the brand has a fair-price policy for it’s vendors? Do they operate sweatshops? If so, a just decision on our part would be not to buy from them, and instead, promote a brand that pays its workers fairly, and doesn’t resort to unjust and exploitative practices.
These are just two examples, but I hope that you understand what I am getting at. Justice doesn’t have to imply being fair on large life-and-death decisions only, justice is about being fair, and you can follow these principles in daily life, by treating everyone fairly, regardless of their social stature or where they are from. And people will know you by this attitude, when you are gone. The rest – your degrees, your wealth, your houses and property – all stay behind.
தேரா மன்னா செப்புவது உடையேன்
எள்ளறு சிறப்பின் இமையவர் வியப்பப்
புள்ளுறு புன்கண் தீர்த்தோன் அன்றியும்
வாயிற் கடைமணி நடுநா நடுங்க
ஆவின் கடைமணி உகுநீர் நெஞ்சுசுடத் தான்தன்
அரும்பெறல் புதல்வனை ஆழியின் மடித்தோன்
பெரும்பெயர்ப் புகார்என் பதியே அவ்வூர்
ஏசாச் சிறப்பின் இசைவிளங்கு பெருங்குடி
மாசாத்து வாணிகன் மகனை ஆகி
வாழ்தல் வேண்டி ஊழ்வினை துரப்பச்
சூழ்கழல் மன்னா நின்னகர்ப் புகுந்தீங்கு
என்கால் சிலம்பு பகர்தல் வேண்டி நின்பால்
கொலைக்களப் பட்ட கோவலன் மனைவி
thaera manna seppuvadhu udaiyaen
ellaru sirappin imaiyavar viyappap
pulluru punkan theerththon anriyum
vaayir kadaimani naduna nadunga
aavin kadaimani uguneer nenjusudath thaanthan
arumperal pudhalvanai aazhiyin madiththoan
perumpeyarp pukaren padhiye avvoor
aesaach sirappin isaivilangu perungudi
maasaathu vanigan maganai aagi
vaazhdhal vaendi oozhvinai thurappach
soozhgazhal manna ninnagar puguntheengu
enkaal silambu pagardhal vaendi ninpaal
kolaikkalap patta kovalan manaivi
Oh foolish king – you did not care to find out the truth. I have a few things to say.
To ease the pain of the cow who lost her calf in the chariot driven by his son, the Chozha king – Raja Raja Chozhan, killed his son to ensure justice for the cow, in the wonderful town of Poompuhar.
Maasaathaan is a famous trader that belongs to a well known family of this town.
Having been born as his son, having desired to make a living in trading, and driven by fate, Kovalan came to this city of yours to sell one of my anklets for his capital.
I am his wife Kannaki.
The Silappadhigaram is set in a flourishing seaport city of the early Chola kingdom. Kannaki and Kovalan are a newly married couple, in love, and living in bliss. Over time, Kovalan meets Matavi – a courtesan. He falls for her, leaves Kannaki and moves in with Matavi. He spends lavishly on her. Kannaki is heartbroken, but as the chaste woman, she waits despite her husband’s unfaithfulness.
During the festival for Indra, the rain god, there is a singing competition.Kovalan sings a poem about a woman who hurt her lover. Matavi then sings a song about a man who betrayed his lover. Each interprets the song as a message to the other.
Kovalan feels Matavi is unfaithful to him, and leaves her. Kannaki is still waiting for him. She takes him back.
Kannaki and Kovalan leave the city and travel to Madurai in the Pandya kingdom. Kovalan is penniless and destitute. He confesses his mistakes to Kannaki. She forgives him and tells him the pain his unfaithfulness gave her. Then she encourages her husband to rebuild their life together and gives him one of her jeweled anklets to sell to use the money to start a new business.
Kovalan sells it to a merchant, but the merchant falsely frames him as having stolen the anklet from the queen. The king arrests Kovalan and then executes him, without the due checks and processes of justice.
When Kovalan does not return home, Kannaki goes searching for him, and learns what happened. Enraged, she goes to the palace and enters the king’s court.
The scene that follows is one of the best described scenes in Tamil literature. Kannaki introduces herself, citing her origins and the importance of justice in society, all in a few lines that shake everybody to the core.
The king, seeing Kannaki standing alone in his court, her body covered with dust, her hair disheveled, tears in her eyes and a single anklet in her hand – and realises the gross injustice that he had done. He drops dead that very instant, a victim of his own sense of justice.
Kannaki then curses the people of Madurai, tearing off her left breast and throwing it at the gathered public. The society that had made her suffer, suffers in retribution as the city of Madurai is burnt to the ground because of her curse. So is the power of a wronged woman, and such is the importance of justice in society.
Silappadhigaram is one of the major epics of Tamil Literature written by the great Ilango Adigal. It is a story of love and rejection, happiness and pain, good and evil like all classic epics of the world. Yet unlike other epics that deal with kings and armies caught up with universal questions and existential wars, the Silappathikaram is an epic about an ordinary couple caught up with universal questions and internal, emotional war.
If you are interested in reading Silappadhigaram, you can download the English translation below.