Words

தீயினால் சுட்டபுண் உள்ளாறும் ஆறாதே
நாவினால் சுட்ட வடு
குறள்129

The above is a couplet from Thirukural. I read it for the first time on a PTC Bus in Chennai and immediately mugged it up enough to search through google and get the write verse.

Meaning - Even if you get a fire burn, it will heal inside, but a bad burn(words) uttered by you will never heal.

This is something I feel very strongly about. I hate bad words and more so negative words. I think uttering negative words like "You won't do it, You will not be able to complete this unless... ,I don't have the knowledge to do it.. etc", they all subconsciously contribute to us being unable to complete the task. Well, I haven't done any scientific analysis on it to say its always true - but I believe I am right. You pick any self-help, personality development book and the first thing they say is think positive and a positive person will never utter the above words! So probably, we need to work at our vocabulary first for success!!

I hate to utter bad words and detest somebody using one against me. There have been numerous occasions where I have talked off a friend/ room mate for saying something as silly as "Dog" (Naye in Tamil). I agree they never meant to offend, but I don't like it and I don't think its healthy. I never say them and don't say them to me. Many a times, I fight with my Dad for speaking negative... He has the right to guide me/advise me, but he should not say I would not be able to do it!

From the looks of it, I guess I have projected myself as some saint! I am not, I do use some unmentionables, mostly in English..! The other day I couldn't stop myself from cursing an auto fella in the choicest of expletives.. He cheated me :(. In hindsight, I guess it affected me more than anything else!. Anyway, the point is I make a conscious effort to avoid speaking such words. I do fail sometimes, but its a struggle worth doing.

Anyway, I feel strongly about this, so the topic found its way into my blog! The next time around, I will discuss something light and frothy ;)

Bye then!