The Distress of Her Beauty
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kaṇṭā ruyiruṇṇun tōṟṟattāṟ peṇṭakaip / pētaik kamarttaṉa kaṇ
Everything about her says gentle and harmless — except her eyes, which take hold of whoever meets them. The speaker cannot make the two halves of her agree.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“In sweet simplicity, A woman's gracious form hath she; / But yet those eyes, that drink my life, Are with the form at strife!”
“She is simple and gracious, but yet her eyes are versed in the ways of waging war: for they drink the lives of those that look on her.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
பெண்டகைப் பேதைக்குக் கண்= பெண்டகையையுடைய இப்பேதைக்கு உளவாய கண்கள்; கண்டார் உயிர் உண்ணும் தோற்றத்தான் அமர்த்தன= தம்மைக் கண்டார் உயிருண்ணும் தோற்றத்துடனே கூடி அமர்த்திருந்தன.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
The eyes that belong to this gentle, artless woman are set as if drawn up for battle, and along with that they carry a look that devours the life of those who see them, Parimelazhagar explains.