Quarrelling with the Heart
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nāṇumaṟantē ṉavarmaṟak kallāveṉ / māṇā maṭaneñciṟ paṭṭu.
I have forgotten even my own self-respect, caught in this worthless and witless heart of mine that will not forget the man who forgot me.
▸Other translations · Pope (1886) & Aiyar (1916)
“Fall'n 'neath the sway of this ignoble foolish heart, / Which will not him forget, I have forgotten shame.”
“Fallen into the company of this foolish Heart that knoweth not to preserve its self-respect by forgetting him, I have myself forgotten my dignity.”
Parimelazhagar’s commentary
13th century · public domainParimelazhagar’s own words come first, unaltered. The plain reading follows below.
அவர் மறக்கல்லா என் மாணா மடநெஞ்சிற் பட்டு= தன்னைமறந்த காதலரைத் தான் மறக்கமாட்டாத என் மாட்சிமை இல்லாதமட நெஞ்சுடனே கூடி; நாணும் மறந்தேன்= என் உயிரினும் சிறந்த நாண் தன்னையும், மறந்துவிட்டேன், எ-று.
Source: Tamil Wikisource
Parimelazhagar reads the second line as the cause and the first as its cost. She has joined herself to a heart of no worth and no sense, one that will not forget the man who forgot her; and having stayed joined to it, she has let go of the self-respect she held dearer than her own life.