TRICKLES
OF WISDOM
(English version of verses
from ‘Sumati Satakam’)
K. V. Ramachandran
Do not live in a place
where there’s no trace
Of a lender, a doctor or a Brahman
And, water sure, OH! Good man.
Better take to bulls and yoke,
And plough to living eke,
Than serve and croak
For an unpaying bloke.
A son-in-law’s good nature,
A shepherd’s literature,
A woman’s gross veracity,
Are perhaps scarcities?
A mouth which can’t express,
A mouth which can’t address:
“O Mother” and “O Father”
Is like the hole of a potter.
Insatiable hunger of a man,
Inseparable linger of a fan
With pregnant pros are miry
Like the product of sheep’s dairy.
Brass cannot be gold by burning,
Bad cannot be good by shining.
To help a helpful,
Is mere casual,
But, to help an unhelpful
Is an act soulful.
When you acquire wealth,
Relatives enquire health
And come near you
Richness keeping in view.
When the pond is full,
The frogs plenty call.