Page:Tamil proverbs.pdf/397

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TAMIL PROVERBS.
379
  1. நச்சு மரம் ஆனாலும் நட்டவர்கள் வெட்டுவார்களா?
    Though a poisonous tree, will those who planted it cut it down?

  2. நஞ்சுக்குள் இருந்தாலும் நாகமணி மாணிக்கமே, குப்பைக்குள் இருந்தாலும் குன்றிமணி குன்றிமணியே.
    Though associated with poison, the stone on a cobra’s head is a gem; though it may be found in a dunghill, a kunrimani is still the same.

  3. நஞ்சு நாற்கலம் வேண்டுமா?
    Are four kalams of poison required?

  4. நடக்க அறியாதவனுக்கு நடுவீதி காதவழி.
    To a person unaccustomed to walk, the middle of his house is ten miles off.

  5. நடக்கிறது நடக்கட்டும் தெய்வம் இருக்கிறது.
    Let things take their course; there is a God.

  6. நடக்கும்கால் தவறுவதிலும் நா தவறுதல் கெட்டது.
    A slip of the tongue is worse than that of the foot.

  7. நடந்த பிள்ளை தவறுதாம் தாயார் செய்த தவத்தால்.
    It is said to be owing to the penance of the mother that the child that could walk has begun to crawl.

  8. நடந்தவன் காலிலே சீதேவி, இருந்தவன் காலிலே மூதேவி.
    The goddess of fortune dwells in the feet of the industrious, the goddess of misfortune dwells in the feet of the sluggard.
    The goddess of prosperity or fortune, and the goddess of adversity or misfortune, two sisters, mentioned in this proverb, exercise a mysterious influence over the minds of the vulgar. These remarkable beings are said to have been produced when the celestials, in search of ambrosia, churned the milky ocean. The opinion expressed in the proverb is also contained in a stanza of Nitinerivillakkam a poem on moral subjects, justly admired by the learned, for the terseness and beauty of its composition, as well as for the general purity of its moral sentiments. The poet says:—