Reserve Overcome
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ceṟṟavar piṉcēṟal vēṇṭi yaḷittarō / veṟṟeṉṉai yuṟṟa tuyar.
How very gracious of it: the grief that has come upon me wants nothing except that I should go after the one who cut me off.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“My grief how full of grace, I pray you see! / It seeks to follow him that hateth me.”
“How thou lovest me, O Grief! Thou wantest me to follow after him who hath deserted me cruelly!”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
செற்றவர் பின் சேறல் வேண்டி= என்னை அகன்று சென்றார் பின்னே யான் சேறலை வேண்டுதலான்; என்னை உற்ற துயர் எற்று அளித்தரோ= என்னை உற்றதுயர் எத்தன்மையது, சால நன்று, எ-று.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar splits the couplet into a reason and the verdict drawn from it. The reason comes first: because I want to go after the very person who left me and went away. He keeps the word for going plain, and he keeps her as the one who would do the going. Then he gives the verdict, and he gives it twice — what kind of thing is this suffering of mine, and then, in three words, it is very good indeed. He does not soften the second half or mark it as bitter. He lets the praise stand exactly as she says it, which is what makes it read as the opposite of praise.