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Kural 214 · Modesty

ஒருமையுள் ஆமை போல் நைந்து அடங்கித் தற்காத்துக்
கொள்ளல் வேண்டும் கீழ்மேல் எனப்படும்.

Orumaiyuḷ āmai pōl naindadangit taṯkāttuk
koḷḷal vēṇṭum kīzhmel eṉappaḍum.

Meaning

Pulling inward like a tortoise — protecting one's wholeness — is what separates the high from the low.

Ask yourself

There is a moment in every day when the environment demands more reaction than you have capacity for. The tortoise does not abandon its shell — it retreats into it. What is your equivalent of the shell? Where do you restore wholeness?

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