ProverbPedia

“ മരത്തോക്കിനു മണ്ണുണ്”
English Translation:
For a wooden toy musket, a clay pellet. (Matching a counterfeit or harmless tool with an equally futile component; a completely ineffective setup.)

— Malayalam

Related Mantras

“ തീക്കട്ട കഴുകിയാൽ കരിക്കട്”
English Translation:
Wash a glowing red ember, and it turns into dead charcoal. (Clumsy, misguided attempts to “cleanse” a fiery, dynamic spirit end up extinguishing its vital power.)

“ കാഞ്ഞിരംകയിക്കും, കരിഞ്ഞൊട്ടകയിക്കും, കാണരുതാത്തവനെ കാണുമ്പോൾ കയിക്കും”
English Translation:
Strychnine is bitter, bitter-bark is bitter, and the sight of an abhorred face tastes just as bitter. (The sheer, visceral revulsion felt when forced to look upon a despised enemy.)

“ ചൊല്ലാതെവന്നാലുണ്ണാതെപോകും”
English Translation:
Arrive unannounced, and you will depart without a meal. (Showing up uninvited leads to being ignored and leaving empty-handed.)