Wealth Without Benefit
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īṭṭa mivaṟi yicaivēṇṭā vāṭavar / tōṟṟa nilakkup poṟai.
People who grip the gathering itself and want none of the good name that its use would bring: their very appearing is weight upon the earth.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Who lust to heap up wealth, but glory hold not dear, / It burthens earth when on the stage of being they appear.”
“Behold the men that are always after hoarding but care not for fame: their existence is a burden unto the earth.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
ஈட்டம் இவறி இசை வேண்டா ஆடவர் தோற்றம்= யாம் பிறரின் மிக ஈட்டுதும் என்று, பொருளினது ஈட்டல் மாத்திரத்தையே விரும்பி, அதன் பயனாய புகழை விரும்பாத மக்களது பிறப்பு; நிலக்குப் பொறை= நிலத்திற்குப் பாரமாம் அத்துணையே.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Thinking we shall gather more than others, wanting only the gathering of wealth and not the renown that is its fruit — the appearing of such people, Parimelazhagar says, is weight to the earth, அத்துணையே: that much and no further. His closing word matters. The judgement is bounded, and it falls on a drive and what it produces, not on a class of persons.