I recently had a wonderful conversation with Jenny Bhatt of Desi Books on the inner journey of translating the classical Tamil masterpiece on ethics, power, and love, THE KURAL: Tiruvalluvar’s Tirukkural.
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author, poet, teacher, and performer
From and about The Kural: Tiruvalluvar's Tirukkural.
I recently had a wonderful conversation with Jenny Bhatt of Desi Books on the inner journey of translating the classical Tamil masterpiece on ethics, power, and love, THE KURAL: Tiruvalluvar’s Tirukkural.
A verse on how humbleness leads to greatness and how largeness of heart grows from humility.
978
Smallness adores and adorns itself—greatness
Is always humble
பணியுமாம் என்றும் பெருமை சிறுமை
அணியுமாம் தன்னை வியந்து
From chapter 98, “Greatness.”
Translated from the Tamil by Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma
THE KURAL: Tiruvalluvar’s Tirukkural
Beacon Press, Boston
For the book launch of the Kural on January 11, 2022, the Elliott Bay Book Company and Tasveer hosted an online conversation between Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma and Archana Venkatesan, who wrote the marvelous introduction to the book.
You can watch a complete recording below!
My thanks to Archana Venkatesan for her wonderful and inspired questions, and to Elliott Bay and Tasveer for hosting this beautiful event.
World Literature Today shared two chapters from my new translation of THE KURAL: Tiruvalluvar’s Tirukkural, released on Tuesday from Beacon Press: “The Glory of Rain” and “The Greatness of Letting Go.”
You can read the excerpts on their website:
https://www.worldliteraturetoday.org/blog/words-thought/tiruvalluvars-tirukkural-excerpt
With writer, composer, and music director extraordinaire Eric Lane Barnes I was delighted to explore the music of compassion and the quantum physics of creativity around three verses from THE KURAL.
Here are a few highlights and where in the video you can find them:
Eric Lane Barnes is the author of the critically acclaimed Fairy Tales, which received several awards in Chicago and New York, with a run Off Broadway and in London’s West End. His show The Stops has played in cities across the US, winning “best musical” at the National Gay and Lesbian Theater Festival in 2006. His songs and larger works have been performed by choruses and theater groups all across the US and in Canada, Australia, the UK, France and Beijing. These days Eric has found great joy in providing music and directing choruses for numerous senior communities in the Seattle area, and is co-founder and ¼ of Seattle’s Most Fabulous Vocal Quartet, Princess Guy.
Learn more about Eric on his website:
https://www.ericlanebarnes.com/
Here are the verses we talked about, in both English and Tamil:
30
Those who let go embody grace—they show
Compassion to all
அந்தணர் என்போர் அறவோர்மற் றெவ்வுயிர்க்கும்
செந்தண்மை பூண்டொழுக லான்
221
Giving to those with nothing is giving—all else
Expects a return
வறியார்க்கொன் றீவதே ஈகைமற் றெல்லாம்
குறியெதிர்ப்பை நீர துடைத்து
472
For those who stand firm in knowledge and possibility
No deed is undoable
ஒல்வ தறிவ தறிந்ததன் கண்தங்கிச்
செல்வார்க்குச் செல்லாத தில்
Translated from the Tamil by Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma
THE KURAL: Tiruvalluvar’s Tirukkural
Beacon Press, Boston