PART I. VIRTUE - Domestic Virtue

Chapter. 16. The Possession of Patience, Forbearance

Kural-151
As earth bears up the men who delve into her breast,
To bear with scornful men of virtues is the best.
To bear with those who revile us, just as the earth bears up those who dig it, is the first of virtues.

Kural-152
Forgiving trespasses is good always;
Forgetting them hath even higher praise;
Bear with reproach even when you can retaliate; but to forget it will be still better than that.

Kural-153
The sorest poverty is bidding guest unfed depart;
The mightiest might to bear with men of foolish heart.
To neglect hospitality is poverty of poverty. To bear with the ignorant is might of might.

Kural-154
Seek'st thou honour never tarnished to retain;
So must thou patience, guarding evermore, maintain.
If you desire that greatness should never leave, you preserve in your conduct the exercise of patience.

Kural-155
Who wreak their wrath as worthless are despised;
Who patiently forbear as gold are prized.
(The wise) will not at all esteem the resentful. They will esteem the patient just as the gold which they lay up with care.

Kural-156
Who wreak their wrath have pleasure for a day;
Who bear have praise till earth shall pass away.
The pleasure of the resentful continues for a day. The praise of the patient will continue until (the final destruction of) the world.

Kural-157
Though others work thee ill, thus shalt thou blessing reap;
Grieve for their sin, thyself from vicious action keep!
Though others inflict injuries on you, yet compassionating the evil (that will come upon them) it will be well not to do them anything contrary to virtue.

Kural-158
With overweening pride when men with injuries assail,
By thine own righteous dealing shalt thou mightily prevail.
Let a man by patience overcome those who through pride commit excesses.

Kural-159
They who transgressors' evil words endure
With patience, are as stern ascetics pure.
Those who bear with the uncourteous speech of the insolent are as pure as the ascetics.

Kural-160
Though 'great' we deem the men that fast and suffer pain,
Who others' bitter words endure, the foremost place obtain.
Those who endure abstinence from food are great, next to those who endure the uncourteous speech of others.

Chapter. 17. Not Envying

Kural-162
If man can learn to envy none on earth,
'Tis richest gift, -beyond compare its worth.
Amongst all attainable excellences there is none equal to that of being free from envy towords others.

Kural-163
Nor wealth nor virtue does that man desire 'tis plain,
Whom others' wealth delights not, feeling envious pain.
Of him who instead of rejoicing in the wealth of others, envies it, it will be said "he neither desires virtue not wealth."

Kural-164
The wise through envy break not virtue's laws,
Knowing ill-deeds of foul disgrace the cause.
(The wise) knowing the misery that comes from transgression will not through envy commit unrighteous deeds.

Kural-165
Envy they have within! Enough to seat their fate!
Though foemen fail, envy can ruin consummate.
To those who cherish envy that is enough. Though free from enemies that (envy) will bring destruction.

Kural-166
Who scans good gifts to others given with envious eye,
His kin, with none to clothe or feed them, surely die.
He who is envious at a gift (made to another) will with his relations utterly perish destitute of food and rainment.

Kural-167
From envious man good fortune's goddess turns away,
Grudging him good, and points him out misfortune's prey.
Lakshmi envying (the prosperity) of the envious man will depart and introduce him to her sister.

Kural-168
Envy, embodied ill, incomparable bane,
Good fortune slays, and soul consigns to fiery pain.
Envy will destroy (a man's) wealth (in his world) and drive him into the pit of fire (in the world to come.)

Kural-169
To men of envious heart, when comes increase of joy,
Or loss to blameless men, the 'why' will thoughtful hearts employ.
The wealth of a man of envious mind and the poverty of the righteous will be pondered.

Kural-170
No envious men to large and full felicity attain;
No men from envy free have failed a sure increase to gain.
Never have the envious become great; never have those who are free from envy been without greatness.

Chapter. 18. Not Coveting

Kural-172
Through lust of gain, no deeds that retribution bring,
Do they, who shrink with shame from every unjust thing.
Those who blush at the want of equity will not commit disgraceful acts through desire of the profit that may be gained.

Kural-173
No deeds of ill, misled by base desire,
Do they, whose souls to other joys aspire.
Those who desire the higher pleasures (of heaven) will not act unjustly through desire of the trifling joy. (in this life.)

Kural-174
Men who have conquered sense, with sight from sordid vision freed,
Desire not other's goods, e'en in the hour of sorest need.
The wise who have conquered their senses and are free from crime, will not covet (the things of others), with the thought "we are destitute."

Kural-175
What gain, though lore refined of amplest reach he learn,
His acts towards all mankind if covetous desire to folly turn?
What is the advantage of extensive and accurate knowledge if a man through covetousness act senselessly towards all ?

Kural-176
Though, grace desiring, he in virtue's way stand strong,
He's lost who wealth desires, and ponders deeds of wrong.
If he, who through desire of the virtue of kindness abides in the domestic state i.e., the path in which it may be obtained, covet (the property of others) and think of evil methods (to obtain it), he will perish.

Kural-177
Seek not increase by greed of gain acquired;
That fruit matured yields never good desired.
Desire not the gain of covetousness. In the enjoyment of its fruits there is no glory.

Kural-178
What saves prosperity from swift decline?
Absence of lust to make another's cherished riches thine!
If it is weighed, "what is the indestructibility of wealth," it is freedom from covetousness.

Kural-179
Good fortune draws anigh in helpful time of need,
To him who, schooled in virtue, guards his soul from greed.
Lakshmi, knowing the manner (in which she may approach) will immediately come to those wise men who, knowing that it is virtue, covet not the property of others.

Kural-180
From thoughtless lust of other's goods springs fatal ill,
Greatness of soul that covets not shall triumph still.
To covet (the wealth of another) regardless of consequences will bring destruction. That greatness (of mind) which covets not will give victory.

Chapter. 19. Not Backbiting

Kural-182
Than he who virtue scorns, and evil deeds performs, more vile,
Is he that slanders friend, then meets him with false smile.
To smile deceitfully (in another's presence) after having reviled him to his destruction (behind his back) is a greater evil than the commission of (every other) sin and the destruction of (every) virtue.

Kural-183
'Tis greater gain of virtuous good for man to die,
Than live to slander absent friend, and falsely praise when nigh.
Death rather than life will confer upon the deceitful backbiter the profit which (the treatises on) virtue point out.

Kural-184
In presence though unkindly words you speak, say not
In absence words whose ill result exceeds your thought.
Though you speak without kindness before another's face speak not in his absence words which regard not the evil subsequently resulting from it.

Kural-185
The slanderous meanness that an absent friend defames,
'This man in words owns virtue, not in heart,' proclaims.
The emptiness of that man's mind who (merely) praises virtue will be seen from the meanness of reviling another behind his back.

Kural-186
Who on his neighbours' sins delights to dwell,
The story of his sins, culled out with care, the world will tell.
The character of the faults of that man who publishes abroad the faults of others will be sought out and published.

Kural-187
With friendly art who know not pleasant words to say,
Speak words that sever hearts, and drive choice friends away.
Those who know not to live in friendship with amusing conversation will by back-biting estrange even their relatives.

Kural-188
Whose nature bids them faults of closest friends proclaim
What mercy will they show to other men's good name?
What will those not do to strangers whose nature leads them to publish abroad the faults of their intimate friends ?

Kural-189
'Tis charity, I ween, that makes the earth sustain their load.
Who, neighbours' absence watching, tales or slander tell abroad.
The world through charity supports the weight of those who reproach others observing their absence.

Kural-190
If each his own, as neighbours' faults would scan,
Could any evil hap to living man?
If they observed their own faults as they observe the faults of others, would any evil happen to men ?

Chapter. 20. The Not Speaking Profitless Words

Kural-192
Words without sense, where many wise men hear, to pour
Than deeds to friends ungracious done offendeth more.
To speak useless things in the presence of many is a greater evil than to do unkind things towards friends.

Kural-193
Diffusive speech of useless words proclaims
A man who never righteous wisdom gains.
That conversation in which a man utters forth useless things will say of him "he is without virtue."

Kural-194
Unmeaning, worthless words, said to the multitude,
To none delight afford, and sever men from good.
The words devoid of profit or pleasure which a man speaks will, being inconsistent with virtue, remove him from goodness.

Kural-195
Gone are both fame and boasted excellence,
When men of worth speak of words devoid of sense.
If the good speak vain words their eminence and excellence will leave them.

Kural-196
Who makes display of idle words' inanity,
Call him not man, -chaff of humanity!
Call not him a man who parades forth his empty words. Call him the chaff of men.

Kural-197
Let those who list speak things that no delight afford,
'Tis good for men of worth to speak no idle word.
Let the wise if they will, speak things without excellence; it will be well for them not to speak useless things.

Kural-198
The wise who weigh the worth of every utterance,
Speak none but words of deep significance.
The wise who seek after rare pleasures will not speak words that have not much weight in them.

Kural-199
The men of vision pure, from wildering folly free,
Not e'en in thoughtless hour, speak words of vanity.
Those wise men who are without faults and are freed from ignorance will not even forgetfully speak things that profit not.

Kural-200
If speak you will, speak words that fruit afford,
If speak you will, speak never fruitless word.
Speak what is useful, and speak not useless words.