97.3 Honor

 97.3 Honor

Question:

      What happens to honorable people when they lose their honor?

Answer:

Just like a yak that dies when it loses its hair, noble people will

die if they lose their honor.                                                    (Couplet – 969)

 

மயிர்நீப்பின் வாழாக் கவரிமா அன்னார்

உயிர்நீப்பர் மானம் வரின்.                                                       (குறள் – 969)

 

Explanation:

            The yak is a species of cattle with highly dense, long hair that hangs down lower than its belly and is found throughout the Himalayan region. The long hair protects the yak from the severe cold weather of the Himalayan region. Unable to withstand the cold weather, the yak will die if it loses its hair. For the yak, its hair is a real asset. So also, men of honor consider their honor as their real asset. In Couplet 969, Valluvar says that men of honor will die when they lose their honor, just like the yak that dies if it loses its hair.

            In poem 74 in Puranaanuuru, we hear about the death of a king who preferred to die rather than endure an insult he encountered while imprisoned after his defeat. Cheran Kanaikkaal Irumporai (சேரமான் கணைக்கால் இரும்பொறை) was defeated in a war against the Chola king Senganaan (சோழன் செங்கணான்). After his defeat, the Chera king was imprisoned. While in prison, he felt thirsty and asked the prison guards to get him some water. They delayed bringing water to him. The king felt insulted, and he wrote a poem[1]. In that poem, he says, “It is my family tradition to die only after being killed on a battlefield. Even if a child was stillborn or was born just as a mass of flesh, in our families, it is customary to cut it with a sword before disposing of it. I am from such a chivalrous family. Here I am, suffering like a dog in a chain, begging to be given a little water by these people without generosity. Did my parents give birth to me for this?”

The king is supposed to have died after writing the poem. In this poem, we see an example illustrating what Valluvar says in Couplet 969.

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[1].குழவி இறப்பினும் ஊன்தடி பிறப்பினும்

 ஆள்அன்று என்று வாளின் தப்பார்

 தொடர்ப்படு ஞமலியின் இடர்ப்படுத்து இரீஇய

 கேளல் கேளிர் வேளாண் சிறுபதம்,

 மதுகை இன்றி, வயிற்றுத்தீத் தணியத்                               5

 தாம்இரந்து உண்ணும் அளவை

 ஈன்ம ரோஇவ் உலகத் தானே?

                                                (சேரமான் கணைக்கால் இரும்பொறை, புறநானூறு – 74)