Golden Lay Verses

Verse 369 (சித்த வைப்பு)

தமிழ் பாடல்

அறியத் தெளிந்து சொன்னேளே

அறமாம் பெரிய மெய்ஞ்ஞானம்

தெரியப் புரிந்து கொள்விரே

திறமாம் தெய்வத் திருவழியே

Transliteration

aṟiyat teḷintu sonṉēḷē

aṟamām periya meyññāṉam

teriyap purintu koḷvirē

tiṟamām teyvat tiruvaḻiyē

Literal Translation

“So that you may know, I have spoken with clarity.

Dharma (aram) is the great true-knowledge.

Understand it and grasp it rightly.

Competence (thiram) is the divine, auspicious path (tiruvazhi).”

Interpretive Translation

“I am stating this plainly for those who seek to know: true wisdom is not separate from righteous conduct. If you comprehend this inwardly, you will see that the ‘divine path’ is not merely belief or ritual, but the steady capacity—discipline, maturity, and skill—to live and realize it.”

Philosophical Explanation

The verse links three layers: (1) clarity of instruction, (2) the identity or inseparability of aram (ethical order/righteousness) and mey-jnanam (true, experiential knowledge), and (3) the need for ‘thiram’—inner strength/competence—to walk the ‘tiruvazhi’ (sacred path).

In Siddhar idiom, mey-jnanam is not book-learning; it is a knowledge that becomes “body-true” (mey = true/real, also implying embodied verification). By declaring “aram is great true-knowledge,” the text can be read as correcting a common split: spirituality without ethics, or ethics without realization. The divine path is therefore not external sanctity but an attained fitness: steadiness of mind, disciplined practice, and the practical intelligence to embody what one understands.

The closing phrase can also hint at yogic soteriology: the “divine path” may be the inner way (a subtle ‘path’ within), accessible only when one has the required thiram—purity, firmness, and competence—often achieved through right conduct, tapas, and regulated practice. The verse remains instructional rather than ornamental: understand, internalize, and then walk.

Key Concepts

  • அறிவு/தெளிவு (knowing and clarity)
  • அறம் (aram: dharma, righteousness, ethical order)
  • மெய்ஞ்ஞானம் (mey-jnanam: true/experiential wisdom)
  • புரிதல்/கொள்வது (understanding and inward assimilation)
  • திறம் (thiram: competence, discipline, inner strength)
  • தெய்வம் (the divine as guiding principle/realization)
  • திருவழி (tiruvazhi: sacred/auspicious path; inner way)

Ambiguities or Multiple Readings

  • “அறியத் தெளிந்து சொன்னேளே” can be read as the poet speaking to disciples (“I have spoken clearly for you to know”) or as a voice of realized instruction addressing the seeker within.
  • “அறமாம் பெரிய மெய்ஞ்ஞானம்” may mean (a) dharma itself is the greatest true knowledge, or (b) true knowledge flowers as dharma—ethics as the outward sign and proof of realization.
  • “திறமாம்” can denote (a) personal capacity/skill to follow the path, (b) firmness/steadfastness, or (c) an accomplished state where the path itself becomes ‘competence’—effortless right action.
  • “தெய்வத் திருவழி” may be read as (a) the religious/sacred way of life, (b) the guru-given path, or (c) an inner yogic route (a ‘path’ within the subtle body) that opens only through purification and discipline.