Baseness
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naṉṟaṟi vāriṟ kayavar tiruvuṭaiyar / neñcat tavala milar.
The base are luckier than those who know what is good, since nothing weighs on their minds. The praise is not meant.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Than those of grateful heart the base must luckier be, / Their minds from every anxious thought are free!”
“Happier than men of conscience are these despicable ones! For they never have any pangs of the mind to feel.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
நன்று அறிவாரின் கயவர் திரு உடையர்= தமக்கு உறுதியாவன அறிவாரின் அவை அறியாத கீழ்மக்கள் நன்மை உடையர்; நெஞ்சத்து அவலம் இலர்= அவர்போல அவை காரணமாகத் தம் நெஞ்சத்தின்கண் கவலை இலர் ஆகலான்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
The base are better off than those who know what is good for them, since none of that knowledge sits on their minds as worry. The line is sarcasm, not praise.