நாக்குளரல் விட்டு நாவண்மை பெற்றே
நலனடைய யீச னடிபணிதல் வேண்டும்
மீக்குயரும் பழச்சாற்றி லேகுளித்து விட்டே
வில்வத்தி னடியிலிலை விருந்துண்ண வேண்டும்
ஆக்கமுறப் பற்றுவிட லோடுதவம் பற்றல்
அருள்நினைவாம் முக்குணங்க ளவையமைய வேண்டும்
பாக்கியமாம் திருக்கோயி லவைபணிதல் மற்றும்
பரமவுப காரமெனும் தயையுடனே தானம்
naakkularal vittu naavanmai petre
nalanadaiya yeesa nadipanithal vendum
meekkuyarum pazhachchaattri lekuliththu vitte
vilvaththi nadiyililai virundhunn vendum
aakkamurap patruvidal oduthavam patral
arulninaivaam mukkunanga lavaiyamai vendum
paakkiyamaam thirukkoyi lavaipanithal matrum
paramavupa kaaramenum thayaiyudane thaanam.
Abandoning the tongue’s slipping/looseness and attaining true fitness of speech,
one must bow at the feet of Īśa (Śiva) in order to gain wellbeing.
Having bathed in the fruit-juice that rises/lofts one up,
one should eat a leaf-meal beneath the bilva tree.
With firmness, letting go of attachments and taking up tapas,
the three guṇas should become stilled—through the remembrance that is grace.
Also, reverencing the blessed holy temples,
one should give alms with compassion, as the ‘supreme help’ (parama-upakāram).
Restrain the tongue—both in speech and in taste—and cultivate speech that is disciplined and truthful. For true welfare, take refuge at Śiva’s feet.
Purify and rejuvenate the body-mind through an ‘immersion in essence’ (spoken as bathing in fruit-juice), then live simply—like eating a modest leaf-portion under the sacred bilva, the tree of Śiva.
Release worldly clinging and commit to austerity; by keeping grace in remembrance, let the restless guṇas (sattva–rajas–tamas) settle into balance or quietude.
Honor outer shrines (and the inner shrine) through service, and practice charity that is moved by compassion—presented here as the highest form of benefit one can give.
The verse reads like a compact regimen that joins ethics, devotion, and yogic purification.
1) Speech/tongue discipline: “naakkuḷaral vittu” can indicate stopping careless talk, harsh speech, or sensory indulgence (the tongue as both organ of speech and taste). “nāvaṇmai” then becomes not mere eloquence, but a purified, purposeful speech aligned with dharma. In Siddhar literature, mastery of the tongue often stands at the gate of mastery over prāṇa and mind.
2) Bhakti as medicine: Bowing to “Īśa’s feet” is both devotional and therapeutic: surrender is presented as the condition for “nalan” (wellbeing), implying that health is inseparable from right orientation of mind.
3) “Bathing in fruit-juice” (pazha-cāṟu): Literally it suggests a bodily bath in fruit essence; symbolically it can signify immersion in “rasa” (essence)—a rejuvenative or alchemical register (rasāyana/kāya-kalpa hints), where “fruit” marks ripeness, maturation, and distilled nourishment. The phrase “mīkku(y)arum” can be read as “that which elevates the body/life” or “that which rises upward,” keeping open the yogic sense of uplift of prāṇa.
4) Bilva and leaf-meal: Bilva is Śiva’s tree; eating a simple meal “on leaves” beneath it points to austerity, restraint, and sanctification of food. The bilva’s trifoliate form is traditionally mapped to triads (three guṇas, three nāḍīs, three eyes of Śiva, etc.), so the act can also be read as internalizing a triadic harmony.
5) Detachment + tapas + guṇa-transformation: The verse links “letting go of attachment” with “taking up tapas,” implying that austerity is not self-torture but a method for loosening clinging. “Arul-ninaivu” (remembrance of grace) is offered as the stabilizer by which the guṇas are ‘set right’ or quieted—suggesting a bhakti-infused yoga where grace, not willpower alone, completes the work.
6) Temple service and compassionate dāna: Service to temples is named “fortune” (bākkīyam), but the closing line insists that the highest ‘help’ is compassionate giving. In Siddhar framing, dāna can include food, medicine, labor, protection, or even instruction—any act that reduces suffering without strengthening ego.
Overall, the verse outlines a Siddhar ethic: control of sense-and-speech, devotion, purification (possibly medicinal/alchemical), simplicity in diet, tapas with detachment, guṇa-quieting through grace-remembrance, and social compassion expressed through service and charity.