Praising Her Beauty
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aṉiccappūk kālkaḷaiyāḷ peytā ṇucuppiṟku / nalla paṭāa paṟai.
She put on anicham flowers and forgot to nip off the stalks — and he is convinced that even that thread of weight will finish her waist, so no happy drums will ever beat for her again. It is praise pushed until it turns into open dread.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“The flowers of the sensitive plant as a girdle around her she placed; / The stems she forgot to nip off; they 'll weigh down the delicate waist.”
“She hath adorned herself with anitcha flowers but hath not removed the stems from among them: alack! her waist will be crushed beneath the weight and will presently break!”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
அனிச்சப்பூக் கால் களையாள்= இவள் தன்மென்மை கருதாது அனிச்சப்பூவை முகிழ் களையாது சூடினாள்; நுசுப்பிற்கு நல்ல பறை படாஅ = இனி இவள் இடைக்கு நல்ல பறைகள் ஒலியா.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
The beloved wore the anicham flower, which is extremely soft, but she did not remove its stalk. She did not stop to consider how delicate her own body is. Her waist cannot bear the weight of that stalk, and so from now on no good drums will sound for her waist — this is how Parimelazhagar explains the verse.