ProverbPedia

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലിക്കു മരണവേദന, പൂച്ചക്കു വിളയാട്ടം”
— English Translation:
For the mouse it is mortal agony; for the cat it is just playful sport. (What is cruel entertainment to the tyrant is life-and-death torment to the victim.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്നെക്കണ്ടതു മിണ്ടല്ലെ”
— English Translation:
Say not a word of having seen me. (A plea for total secrecy and keeping quiet about someone's whereabouts.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലിക്കു മുറുക്കം, ചേരെക്കു വിളയാട്ടം”
— English Translation:
Tight terror for the trapped rat, easy sport for the rat snake. (Unequal encounters where one party's survival struggle is merely a game to the other.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്റെ ആശാന്റെ ‌എഴുത്തെ എനിക്കു വായിച്ചുകൂടു”
— English Translation:
I can only decipher the handwriting of my own teacher. (Parochial narrow-mindedness; unable to comprehend anything outside one's own familiar training.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലിക്കുഞ്ഞിനെ നെല്ലുകൊറിക്കാൻ പഠിപ്പിക്കേണമോ”
— English Translation:
Does a rat pup need lessons in nibbling paddy grains? (Destructive habits and opportunistic traits come naturally without schooling.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്റെ പുളിച്ചിയും പൂക്കും”
— English Translation:
Even my sour wild tamarind will blossom someday. (Every dog has its day; even the humblest will have their moment of fruition.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലിക്കുശുവിനാൽ കടൽ കലങ്ങുമൊ”
— English Translation:
Will the vast ocean turn muddy because a mouse passed gas? (Petty slander or insignificant malice cannot trouble true greatness.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്റെ വായ് കുറ്റികൊണ്ടുകീറിയതല്ല”
— English Translation:
My mouth was not pried open with a wooden wedge. (I possess my own voice and speak freely without fear or favor.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലി നിരങ്ങിയാൽ പിട്ടം തഴകയില്ല”
— English Translation:
A rat scurrying over the floor will not develop calluses on its rump. (Fidgety, trivial movements achieve nothing of enduring substance.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എംപ്രാന്റെ വിളക്കത്തു വാരിയന്റെ അത്താഴം”
— English Translation:
By the light of the priest's lamp, the temple assistant eats his supper. (Riding on another person's resources to get your own business done without cost.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലി, പന്നി, പെരിച്ചാഴി, പട്ടരും, വാനരൻതഥാ, ഇവർ ഐവരുമില്ലെങ്കിൽ മലയാളം മഹോത്സവം”
— English Translation:
The rat, the wild boar, the bandicoot, the parasitic priest, and the monkey—if these five were gone, Kerala would be an endless celebration. (A satirical complaint against destructive agricultural pests and social freeloaders.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എയ്പാൻ വിചാരിച്ചതു് നാശങ്ങളും ചെയ്യും”
— English Translation:
What was aimed as an arrow can unleash widespread destruction. (Reckless schemes and words loosed in haste often cause far more devastation than intended.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലിപിടിക്കുംപൂച്ച കലവും ഉടെക്കും”
— English Translation:
The cat that hunts the rat is bound to shatter a few pots along the way. (Aggressive problem-solvers often cause collateral damage while getting the job done.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എരിച്ചോൻ കോഴ പറിച്ചെന്നാക്കരുതു”
— English Translation:
Do not claim that the one who burned down the place merely pulled out a stray firebrand. (Do not whitewash grave destruction as a minor, harmless accident.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ചട്ടി, വിട്ടി = ഷഷ്ഠി, വിഷ്ഠി”
— English Translation:
[Linguistic gloss from source text: Clarifies that "Chatti" and "Vitti" in proverb #564 refer to Shashti and Vishti, inauspicious astrological timings.]

“Malayalam Proverb:
കോഴ = കൊള്ളി; എരിഞ്ഞുനിൽക്കുന്ന തീയിൽ എണ്ണ ഒഴിക്കുംപോലെ”
— English Translation:
Like pouring oil onto a blazing fire. (Gloss notes that "Kozha" means a burning brand; worsening an already furious conflict.)