Rejoicing in the Embrace
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nīṅkiṟ ṟeṟūuṅ kuṟukuṅkāṟ ṟaṇṇeṉṉun / tīyāṇṭup peṟṟā ḷivaḷ.
Away from her, something in me burns; near her, the same something turns cool. What kind of fire is this, and where on earth did she find it?
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Withdraw, it burns; approach, it soothes the pain; / Whence did the maid this wondrous fire obtain?”
“When she is at a distance she burneth, but when she is near she is refreshingly cool: ah! whence did she obtain this strange fire?”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
நீங்கின்தெறூஉம் குறுகுங்கால் தண் என்னும் தீ= தன்னை அகன்றுழிச் சுடாநிற்கும், அணுகுழிக் குளிராநிற்கும், இப்பெற்றித்தாய தீயை; இவள் யாண்டுப்பெற்றாள்= என்கண் தருதற்கு இவள் எவ்வுலகத்துப் பெற்றாள்?
Source: Tamil Wikisource
There is a fire that scorches when one moves away from it and turns cool when one draws near it. In which world, the lover asks in wonder, did this woman obtain such a fire, that she might give it to him? — so Parimelazhagar explains.