Praising Her Beauty
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kāṇiṟ kuvaḷai kaviḻntu nilaṉōkku / māṇiḻai kaṇṇovvō meṉṟu.
The flower everyone reaches for as the standard of beauty would, if it could see her, drop its head and admit it does not match. Praise by comparison collapses at the exact point where it is most wanted.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“The lotus, seeing her, with head demiss, the ground would eye, / And say, 'With eyes of her, rich gems who wears, we cannot vie.'”
“The sky-blue flower despaireth of ever equalling her eye in beauty, and droopeth down its head whenever it looketh on her.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
குவளை= குவளைப் பூக்கள் தாமும்; காணின்= காண்டல் தொழிலை உடையவாயின்; மாண் இழை கண் ஒவ்வேம் என்று கவிழ்ந்து நிலன் நோக்கும்= மாண்ட கண்களை உடையாள் கண்களை யாம் ஒவ்வேம் என்று கருதி, அந்நாணினால் இறைஞ்சி நிலத்தினை நோக்கும்.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
If the kuvalai flowers themselves had the power of sight, they would judge that they do not equal the eyes of the woman who wears fine jewels, and out of that shame they would bow their heads and look at the ground — so Parimelazhagar explains.