எச்சிலை நாடும் பச்சிளம் பாலர்
பச்சிலை தேடுவதேன்?
மச்சுமே லேறி யுச்சிமேல் நிற்பார்
வச்சிர ஞானியரே
echchil̤ai nādum pachchil̤am pālar
pachchil̤ai thēduvathēn?
machchumē lēṟi yuchchimēl niṟpār
vachchira ñāniyarē.
The very young (unripe) children who seek saliva—
why do they go searching for the green leaf?
Those who climb onto the loft and stand upon the crown (summit)
are the vajra-gnosis (adamant) knowers.
Immature seekers, craving “spittle” (the mouth’s taste, leftovers, outer tokens), run after the “green leaf” (something to chew—an external support or remedy). But the true Siddha-jnānis are of vajra-like knowledge: they rise beyond such outward pursuits, ascend to the inner ‘upper chamber,’ and abide on the crown—at the summit of awareness.
The verse contrasts two modes of seeking.
1) “Eccilai” (saliva/spittle/what is mouth-touched) points to appetite, taste, and the fascination with what is immediately gratifying or merely “touched by the mouth”—a symbol for second-hand, sensory, or token-based spirituality (and, by extension, obsession with external substances or signs).
2) “Paccilai” (green leaf) can be read as the leaf chewed to produce saliva (e.g., betel), or more broadly as “fresh greenery”—herbal medicine, plant-based expedients, or any outer prop that seems to promise quick transformation. The rhetorical question (“why search for the leaf?”) critiques the tendency to look outward for what is ultimately an inward realization.
3) “Maccu” (loft/upper room) and “uccimēl” (on the crown) are spatial metaphors for yogic ascent: the movement of consciousness (and/or kuṇḍalinī-prāṇa) to the cranial apex (often associated with the sahasrāra/crown). Standing on the crown signifies stabilized realization rather than momentary experiences.
4) “Vacciṟa ñāṉiyar” invokes “vajra” (diamond/thunderbolt): knowledge that is unbreakable, incisive, and steady—suggesting an inner alchemy of consciousness more definitive than external chewing, tasting, or collecting remedies.
Thus, the verse admonishes: do not remain childish, chasing taste and outward aids; become “vajra-like” by ascending and abiding in the highest inner station.