The Pallor of Longing
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Tap an underlined Tamil word to explore its sound, meaning, and use.
avartantā reṉṉun takaiyā livartanteṉ / mēṉimē lūrum pacappu.
It carries the standing of a thing he himself gave — and on the strength of that, this pallor has climbed my body and rides it.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“'He gave': this sickly hue thus proudly speaks, / Then climbs, and all my frame its chariot makes.”
“Pallor is proud of being his child, and creeping all over my frame rideth on me.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
(யான் ஆற்றியுளேன் ஆகவும்) பசப்பு= இப்பசப்புத்தான்; அவர்தந்தார் என்னும் தகையால்= என்னைஉண்டாக்கினார் அவர் என்னும் பெருமிதத்தான்; என்மேனிமேல் இவர்தந்து ஊரும்= என்மேனியை மேற்கொண்டு செலுத்தாநின்றது, எ-று.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Though she has held up, she says, the change in her body has not left her. Parimelazhagar speaks of that change as though it were alive. It carries a pride of its own: he is the one who brought me into being. On the strength of that pride it has mounted her body and is driving it along as a rider drives what he sits on. The fine point of the commentary is that the thing is not standing there as suffering. It is standing there as a claim.