Farming
.
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toṭippuḻuti kaḵcā uṇakkiṉ piṭitteruvum / vēṇṭātu cālap paṭum.
If the earth is dried until a measure of its dust comes down to a quarter of that weight, the crop will thicken and yield without even a handful of manure.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Reduce your soil to that dry state, When ounce is quarter-ounce's weight; / Without one handful of manure, Abundant crops you thus secure.”
“If thou dry the soil of thy field till an ounce of mould is reduced to a quarter-ounce of dust, then not even a handful of manure will be needed, and the yield would be abundant.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
தொடிப் புழுதி கஃசா உணக்கின் = ஒரு நிலத்தினை உழுதவன் பலப்புழுதி கஃசாம் வண்ணம் அதனைக் காயவிடுவானாயின்; பிடித்து எருவும் வேண்டாது சாலப்படும்= அதன்கண் செய்த பயிர், ஒரு பிடியின்கண் அடங்கிய எருவும் இட வேண்டாமல், பணைத்து விளையும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
If a man who has ploughed a field dries it until a measure of its dust comes down to a quarter, the crop grown there will thicken and yield without even a handful of manure put in.