Chapter 1 - Values
Thiruvalluvar’s first chapter deals
with civil and social values. He extols hardwork, objective knowledge,
kindness, and patience. He upholds moral codes as the highest virtue.
Thirukkural is a cultural legacy of an agrarian society upholding the virtues of
a farmer’s life and the system of family. His ideologies represent a
civilization that gave importance to family traditions and social networking
with an emphasis on relationships.
An ordered life needs a centre. It
needs a higher phenomenon. Thiruvalluvar places God as the highest power in
front the people. The society needs a faith. Only then it can operate the
social system. The poet does not mention any particular religious God. Instead,
he projects the concept of God. This makes Thirukkual universal as it can be
fitted into any religious system. Religious
faith becomes essential to lead a peaceful and successful life. Training the
mind to surrender the human will to God is the aim of humanity. Once we acquire
complete faith in God, we learn to approach life with composure. We keep
tension and stress outside our lives. We can continue to tackle the challenges
of life with more equanimity.
1.Agara mudala eluthellaam aadi
Bagawan muthatre ulagu.
Most of the languages have the sound
‘a’ as their first sound. Sounds precede letters. Similarly the world has God
as its primary concept. Every civilization that has sprung up in the world has
insisted on a God for worship. Religions have been born to create a platform
for worship. Scriptures have been written to help people pray.
2. Even if a man is highly educated, if
he does not believe in God his education is wasted. Faith in God gives him the
sensitivity to respect other human beings and kindness. A man who cannot pray
to God cannot understand fellow human beings. It does not give him the much
needed focus to do things effectively and calmly.
3. Keep the Lord in your heart
And be a part of eternity.
We have to keep God in our heart. It
gives us concentration and focus. Our minds normally are caught in various
emotions and thoughts. These thoughts take away our energy and bring down our
efficiency. If we practice thinking of God in our minds, it helps us to acquire
a high level of concentration. Also, it gives us calmness and thus paves way
for good health.
4. Detached heart has no troubles
As it thinks of God always.
God is a concept. He does not have any
qualities. He has no region or personal qualities. A man who learns to think of
God acquires these qualtities too. He becomes detached from the bondage of
emotions and thoughts. He gets the ability to look at the big picture as he
positions himself away enough to get a clear picture of things around him.
5. Keep the Lord in heart
Be beyond good and evil.
We are generally caught in the results
of our actions. We think certain actions are good, but in the long run we
realise these ‘good’ actions bring bad results. That is why Indian philosophy
does not always trust in ‘good’ as something right. We may mean well, still our
actions can bring bad results. Such situations are common in all our lives. How
do we keep ourselves out of these results of actions? The only way is to think
of God and surrender our actions and their results to Him.
6. Praying, controlling senses
Will result in long life.
Controlling senses is the most
important aspect of Indian intellectual training. God is personified as a great
scholar who has mastered his five senses. We have kept the model of a God who
has controlled his body, ears, eyes, mouth, and nose. If we live with this
ideology, we acquire a calm and composed attitude that paves the way for
longitude.
7. It is hard to be at ease
If God doesn't live in you
Unless we worship God ion our mind, we
feel we are carrying the burden of life on our shoulders. How do we meet the
problems of our life? Our short life on this earth has to face a lot of issues
on its way. Can we get upset for every little problem? Nervousness and
depression and anger may not help us solve issues. We need to be rational and
calm to find solutions. Faith in God and surrendering our will to God will help
us become calm to see and understand the situations better.
8. Worship the feet of the Lord
Swim across life's problems.
Indian mind has created the metaphor of
the sea to refer to the difficulties of life. Life is difficult ofr all of us.
We need to have certain skills to sail across comfortably. Surrendering
ourselves to God is one such spiritual skill that helps us handle the issues of
life easily.
9. Heads not bowing to God
Lose sensory perception.
Thinking of God makes one more alert.
It gives him a fine perception of life. What is a fine perception? It is the
ability to see more and nderstand more by keeping oneself away. It is like
having a better view of a hill when we stand away from it. God does not bow down
to human perceptions. He has no good or evil. For him everyone is the same. We
have to move in this direction of thinking to get calmness. If we believe in
the evil of some one, it means we secretly blame that person for our failures.
God does not have such limitations. So, we have to bow down to this great
entity called God who is limitless.
10. Only the blessings of God
Take you across seas of troubles.
This life is full of challenges.
Thinking of God always will help us tackle these challenges well.
Thiruvalluvar insists on keeping God in
the mind always. To lead a meaningful life, to achive great things in life, we
have to learn to rest our emotions and thoughts on a higher concept than the
actual issue. If you are going to write an examination, and if you keep
thinking about it again and again, you might become nervous at a point.
Focusing on God and praying might help you avoid this nervousness. Mahatma
Gandhi began his life as a highly nervous man. He couldn’t even argue a case in
the court in Gujarat. Gandhi spent years focusing his mind in prayer and that
gave him the charisma to win over the hearts of a sub-continent that belonged
to two races and spoke a variety of languages. Prayer helped him to train his
emotions and thoughts; he was able to operate his senses; he managed to acquire
a personality that did not recognize any thing as evil; everyone was his
friend; he became detached from the
results of his actions as he left the results to God.In 1920, Gandhi came back
to India as an internationally well-known leader. The youngman who left India
earlier in shame because he couldn’t argue a case, now returned as a powerful
leader with a huge following. He could go to places where no one understood
Hindi or English or Gujarati and still keep the crowds waiting for him to
listen to him. India calls him Mahatma – the great soul.This is the possibility
of prayers in heart always. Thiruvalluvar keeps prayer as the foundation of a
civilized mind and therefore begins Thirukkural with 10 verses on the power of
prayer. Norman Vincent Peale in his various books on personality development
also insists on prayer to cleanse the mind.
These ten couplets are in praise of an
agrarian society where the landowning farmer decides the economy. The farming
class was considered as a civilized class where as other forms of economical
efforts are classified as less cultured ones by Thiruvalluvar. He hails the
rains as the savior of an agrarian society on its way to progess and success.
Protecting lives.
The rains are like the nectar of Gods
to human beings. Without it there can be
no life on earth.
Offering itself as food.
The rains help food production. Also it
becomes drinkable water. Without rain we cannot be alive as the sea water is
extremely salty.
Starvation to people.
If there are no rains people will only
starve as there will not be any agricultural work in the world. The rains are
the foundation of plant growth and thus human growth too.
If rains are absent.
The farmer will not plough his lands if
there is no rain. There will be famine in the country.
Its presence restores.
If there is no rain, people will
suffer. If there is rain, it will make people prosperous.
Even grass can't grow.
Clouds play a major role in the
climate-change equation. They bring
rains. Even grass will not grow if there is no rain. Drops of rain are so important for any growth in
the world.
If clouds don't rain.
If there is no rain in the seas, they
will gradually die. Rain plays a major role in the hydrologic cycle. It is born
from the moisture from the oceans that evaporates. This later condenses into
clouds and precipitates back to earth. Eventually it returns to the ocean via
streams and rivers to repeat the cycle again.
If clouds are dry
People will not have the mood to
celebrate if there are no rains. Extreme weather will have an impact on food
supply.
Disappear if rains fail
If there are no rains there will be no
generosity in the minds of people. The
poet is talking about the social implications of climat change. A rain is a
physical phenomenon of the planet Earth. The changes in its presence bring
about ethical changes as people repond to climate changes and form new ways of
thinking. A society that is starving has no mental space for generosity and
meditation. It has no scope for spirituality as its people are only worried
about hunger – the fundamental need that has to be fulfilled.
Skies decide rules.
The rains decide the kind of life we
need. Ethics and economics go hand in
hand the poet argues. We have to provide for all in the society. If we provide
only for a few, the rest of the people will have a severe moral crisis. They
will be forced to braek the codes of society for survival. Rains help the land
remain fertile and produce more products, and thus help the market to keep
affordable prices and thus protect ethics. When people find actual living
difficult, they decide to live by any means. Such a society will become
lawless. Fertile soil and regular rains are very important for a country to
keep its ethical codes alive. Starvation will induce the population to go in
search of food that they bein to rob or steal or kill to get material things. A
government can effectively practice codes of conduct only if the rains are
regular.
The poet puts the rain in front of us
as a symbol of working without any expectation. Also these 10 couplets sing the
glory of nature. Nature quietly works without complain. It does not develop
theories of life or philosophies of life. It just exists. Its presence decides
the quality of life. Geography and location decide the culture of the place. A
rainless land will have peculiar charecteristics different from a fertlile land
which gets periodical rains. Thiruvalluvar does not talk about the God of
rains, Indhiran here. He prefers to look at the rain as an entity that exists
for the welfare of mankind. The rains do their work quietly as a part of the
planetary system in total objectivity, the poet suggests. He does not use any
mythological base to express his views. In the process of planet building,
rains played a major role. Lack of rains will affect the ecosystem and will
minimize the opportunities for the human species to continue. Society depends
upon bio-diversity and eco system and if there are no rains this will bring
disaster to us. Climate change affects economics, politics and sociology.The
farmer is affected if there is no rain. There would be no festival if there is
no rain. Society ceases to function. Thiruvalluvar understands his world as dependent
on rains for survival as the economy was agrarian, and rains were the main part of this kind of economy. Crime rates
increase during a famine in society. There is a close interaction between
climatic conditions and human societies. We have understood the importance of
rains that we have myths centring on rains. In Mahabharatham, there is a story
about sage Rishya Shringar. His father’s name was Vibhandakar. Rishya Shringar
did not come into human contact other than his mother as his mother was no
more. The father and son lived iin deep forest away from the humdrum of life.
Rishya Shringar grew up seeped into scholarship and meditation and prayers. He
had great spiritual powers, therefore. The neighbouring country Anka Desam was
caught in a famine. Rains did not favour the country at all for many years.
People were dying of starvation. Scholars told the king Romapathan that if a
great sage sets foot on the country it would rain. They identified Rishya
Shringar as the right person. With great difficulty the sage was brought to the
famine struck country and immediately it began to rain.
Are ends of knowledge.
To acquire complete knowledge we have
to restrain our emotions. We need a
rational approach towards the situations around us. Assessing any position,
studying its facets are the primary functions on the way to knowledge.
Literature praises people who have trained their minds to read life with such
objectivity. Humanity has put up great leaders’ lives in front of us as models.
Is hard as counting souls.
Is it even possible to list the
numerous good things that result out of an objective approach to life? People
who have learnt this art achieve a lot in this life. These are the people who
contribute to society as they have learnt to put their personal emotions behind
and instead focus on the affairs of the world. They direct their energies
towards the welfare of the world.
Is in analyzing both worlds.
The great men are people who know the
limitations of this birth. They know most of the aspects of life have two
sides. Any situation will have two sides. Any thing can be interpreted in two
ways. We can read a situation as positive or negative. Our ideas are usually
caught in ne of these two ways of looking at life. A great man has to be aware
of this possibility and walking on this balanced path makes him achieve great
things. The world celebrates such people.
Commanding five senses.
Intelligence is the weapon of a leader.
With critical thinking we have to assess the experiences around us. A thoroughly rational approach to happenings
around us will help us plan and execute things well. Quite normally our senses will
intervene and affect our judgement. Our likes and dislikes will silently affect
our judgements. A leader has to take care that his perceptions do not affect
his judgement.
Of self-discipline's power.
Indhiran is the God of Devas according
to Vedic Hinduism and later Buddhism and Jainism. He is a great leader who commands the entire
heaven as he has already mastered his five senses. He knows the right in wrong
and the wrong in the right. Certain things may appear as right; certain things
might appear wrong. The thing is if we analyse closely without confusing
ourselves with our emotional responses, we might see the complexitites in the things.
Then we realise nothing can be completely right and nothing can be completely
wrong. That is the moment of greatness. A leader needs this quality of seeing
through situations.
Great and small.
Great leaders spend their lives
planning for difficult things. They get themselves involved in the work so
thoroughly that the end up enjoying the work it slef. Work becomes a pleasant
challenge for them. These great and complex deeds make the people great.
Greatness is not in birth; it is in actions and achievements. Any one who
learns to enjoy the difficulties on the way to success becomes a great man.
Small men do not even try. They spend their time talking about great people.
To analyze emotions.
A leader knows the five ways of
acquiring perceptions – taste, light, body, sound and smell. Racial prejudices
are received through eyes – light. Class consciousness is received through
smell and sight, as poverty can’t afford the style and decorum of the rich.
Academic arrogance or humility is practiced by listening to some one speak – we
easily judge some one as stupid or intelligent depending upon our intellectual
status. An objective man is aware of these five perceptions in him, and
accordingly he uses them in his day to day life. He will not be a slave to
these five perceptions. He knows they are only perceived notions. Above all,
every human being has to be respected, he knows.
Is revealed in their words.
Truths have to differentiate themselves
from perceptions. What is truth? It is not one person feels or even thinks. It
is the presentation of the two sides of an argument. Seeing the two sides of any experience is the
practice of objective thinking. A leader speaks without any prejudices or likes.
There is a dignity in his approach. There is something universal in his
attitude. His ides are not limited to nation or region. They talk about the
welfare of the world.
Of the detached ones.
Can we consider such objective thinking
as unworldly? Can people who practice objectivity survive in this world?
Definitely. Their objective thought gradually builds a spiritual power around
them as they have not spent their energies in spreading negative stories about
their fello human beings. They have not wasted their births in character assasinantion or similar
such negative attitudes. Therefore their will and energies are complete. If any
one hurts them purposely, they do not retaliate as they understand the reason.
They use ther ntelligence to understand how right actions also can create wrong
reactions. Hence there is no anger inthem. But this angerless attitude harms
the person who tries to hurt spiritually
great men.
Man becomes noble.
Who are the the really noble people? The
people who cannot hate others are the really noble people. There is a blessing
in them for others. If we spend some time with them, we feel truly blessed.
They make our lives meaningful. They do
not burn in anger. They forgive as they can understand human fraility. Their
intelligence is so high that they hold no grudge over others. Only when we do
not understand human heart, we hate. Objective thinking opens our minds and our
level of understanding increases tremendously. We truly become wise.
Thiruvalluvar puts infront of us the
model of objectivity in intellectual approach when we study people and
political or economic situations around us. Our decisions are decided by the
clarity of seeing. The poet gives the blue print for an unprejudiced and clear
approach to life. Statesmen and leaders or any person in charge of other people
in their lives need to develop this strategy for understanding life to take
correct decisions. King Janaka [the
father of Sita in the epic Ramayana] was hailed as a Raja Rishi. He was a great
scholar as well as a statesman and warrior. He was supposed to have had the
detachment necessary for a great leader from ordinary mundane issues. He was a
rare man who tackled samsara along with the detachment of a sage. This kind of
attitude was an important model that has been put up for future leaders by
written texts. A powerful leader is expected to negotiate between his family
and his society, keeping his clarity of deliberation and clarity of psyche
consistently.Bernard Shaw created a similar character called King Magnus
steeped in statesmanship and administrative skills in his play The Apple Cart.
King Magnus tackles challenges with an
ease normally not achievable, as he uses his rational approach to understand
problems. Shaw gives the character very high intellectual ability that helps
him analyse situations well. Epics and literature project this model of
behavior for a king or a leader. Thiruvalluvar calls it as the greatness of
objectivity.
4. அறன் வலியுறுத்தல்
Virtue has been declared as an
important tool to lead a significant life by the poet. Along with faith in
God, valuing environment, objective
thinking, living a virtuous life has been recommended by Thiruvalluvar as the
fundamental needs for a society. He emphsises on the need to follow certain
principles to regulate our lives.
31. Source of greatness and wealth
Virtue is crucial to life.
A virtuous life brings both honour and
wealth. There is nothing as benefitting to human beings as virtue. It is a step
taken towards self-preservation in an advanced manner. Virtue is like protecting one’s self further,
as it brings lots of good friends, acquaintances, contacts and a network of
family. Honour can also refer to spiritual strength and mental stability. A
spiritually strengthened person becomes an honourable person. He has the
spiritual power to follow the path of dharma in spite of hurdles.
Following its path brings success.
There is nothing more beneficial to
humanity than virtue. There is nothing worse than forgetting virtue. It denotes
a behavior that balances itself against selfishness and selflessness. The poet puts this chapter on virtue after
the one on objective thinking. A rational approach to life gradually brings
about a balanced attitude to people and other experiences in our life. A man
guided by virtuous behavior meets great success.
33. Take all efforts to be virtuous
Keep doing it continuously.
It is very important that we practice
virtue wherever we are and wherever we go. It should be the frame within which
we operate.
34. A clean heart is virtuous
Else it is an empty clatter.
This couplet defines virtue. What is
virtue? Every age might have different definitions. Thiruvalluvar says a clean
heart is the key to become righteous. A clean heart leads to honorable
behavior. Negative thoughts and ill-feelings mar the purity of human hearts. Ambiguous
feelings slowly make the heart become conflict oriented. A certain amount of
trust in life and people will help us attain purity of mind. Doubts will create
a lot of stress and will create a lot of conflicts. People who doubt themselves
and others end up failing in life.
35. Jealousy, greed, anger, harshness
Take you away from virtue.
This couplet further defines virtue in
an accurate manner. What brings conflict? What makes a person become
non-virtuous? The poet identifies four attitudes of mind – jealousy, greed,
anger and harsh words. People who are harsh bring about a lot of illwill around
them or they build enemies around them. Their lives will be spent on fighting
with these perceived enemies. Similarly, jealousy takes away the charm from a
person’s behavior. Also, showing too much of jealousy towards fellow beings
will isolate one. An angry man makes a lot of mistakes an assessing people. He
is dominated by his egoism rather than objective thinking. These four attitudes
block a person’s success in family life and professional life. The twin benefits
of being virtuous, as the poet has pointed out in the earlier couplets are,
that brings material success a spiritual strength.
It'll guard you till you die.
Let us not postpone good actions. We
need not wait till we become old to do good deeds. Being virtuous has to become
a way of life. These good actions will become our support systems in future.
37.
Observe the rich and the poor
Result of good and bad.
Thirukkural shows faith in rebirth
quite strongly. According to this belief, we carry the burden of our actions
even beyond our death. Therefore when we see people leading a good life, we
have to interpret it as their previous birth’s good actions, the poet argues.
The repercussions of our actions follow us throughout our various lives. We
need to become aware of this and become conscious about our actions in this
world, the poet says.
To stop being born again.
As we tend to believe in rebirths, the
next question that arises is – how do we stop being born again and again? There
is no choice, but do good things every moment.
Good deeds will become the blocking stone that will stop us from being
born again.
Else will bring sorrow.
Happiness that results out of a
virtuous life lives longer. Happiness that springs out of misdeeds will be
shortlived, as the affected people will be waiting to payback. A virtuous life
is the only way to keep peace of mind for a longer span of time.
Vice should be ruled out.
Thiruvalluvar classifies human actions
into a clear ‘good’ and ‘bad.’ We have to take care to do good things in life.
We have to avoid bad things in life. We have to train our minds to distinguish
between good and bad.
Why should we be virtuous? What is the
role of virtue in our lives? It is a myth that foul play wins in this world.
Every action has an equal reaction. Our deeds also create an equal reaction.
Any rational enquiry will tell us this. Morality
has been born into societies as a result of rational thinking and statistical
analysis of human lives. Mother Teresa
has lived a life of sacrifice and service exemplifying the qualities
recommended by Thiruvalluvar. These qualities have helped human society grow
and sustain from time immemorial. People with these qualities are born in every
age. Society creates these rare selfless people to keep up the social dynamism so that society evolves.
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