ProverbPedia

“Malayalam Proverb:
എറുംപുര കല്ലുംതേയും”
— English Translation:
With the steady crawling of ants, even granite stone wears away. (Steady, unrelenting persistence overcomes the most unyielding barriers.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്നെക്കണ്ടാൽ കിണ്ണംകട്ടെന്നു തോന്നുമൊ?”
— English Translation:
Do I look like the one who stole the bronze bowl? (A protest of indignation against baseless suspicion.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എലവു കാത്തിരുന്ന പക്ഷിയെപ്പോലെ”
— English Translation:
Like the bird that waited for the silk-cotton fruit to ripen. (Patiently enduring long anticipation only to end up with mouthfuls of dry, inedible cotton; sheer disappointment.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എന്തെങ്കിലും ഒരു നല്ലതും തണ്ണിയതും കഴിപ്പാൻ തുടങ്ങുമ്പോൾ ചട്ടിയൊ വിട്ടിയൊ മറ്റൊ നോക്കീട്ടല്ലെ മുടക്കം വരുന്നതു?”
— English Translation:
Whenever one sits down to enjoy something wholesome and peaceful, doesn't an obstruction arise from nitpicking over inauspicious astrological hours? (Just when life offers a quiet moment of joy, pedantic rules and superstitions pop up to ruin it.)

“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:
ഊട്ടുകേട്ട പട്ടർ, ആട്ടുകേട്ട പന്നി, എന്തൊരു പാച്ചൽ”
— English Translation:
The priest who heard of a feast, and the wild boar that heard a shout: what a mad sprint! (Moving with frantic speed, whether driven by ravenous greed or blind panic.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എടുത്തപേറ്റിയെ മറക്കൊല്ലാ”
— English Translation:
Never forget the midwife who brought you into the world. (Never turn your back on the benefactor who helped you in your most vulnerable beginnings.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ഊട്ടും കാണാം ഉപ്പും വിൽക്കാം”
— English Translation:
Witness the grand feast and sell your salt at the same time. (Killing two birds with one stone; combining leisure or festival attendance with profitable business.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ഏൺചാണുടമ്പുക്കും ശിരസ്സേപ്രമാണം”
— English Translation:
For an eight-span body, the head remains the supreme authority. (The intellect must govern physical impulses, just as a wise leader must direct the community.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ഊഢമുള്ളവനെ ഓല വായിചുകൂടു”
— English Translation:
Only one endowed with deep discernment can truly read the palm-leaf manuscript. (Grasping profound wisdom requires innate maturity, not mere mechanical literacy.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
എടുത്തുചാടിയ പൂച്ച എലിയെ പിടിക്കയില്ല”
— English Translation:
A cat that pounces hastily catches no rat. (Haste makes waste; reckless impatience ruins an endeavor.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ഊണിനു രാജാവ്, ഊഴിയത്തിനു ചച്ചാപിച്ചാ”
— English Translation:
A king when it comes to dining, but clumsy and evasive when summoned for hard labor. (Always first to demand rights and luxuries, but lazy and incompetent when work must be done.)

“”
— English Translation:
Cracked here, burst there. (A hopeless state of disrepair, breaking apart at every seam.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
ഊനങ്ങൾ വന്നാൽ ഉപായങ്ങൾ വേണം”
— English Translation:
When defects and shortcomings arise, ingenious strategies are required. (Adversity and physical handicaps call for creative adaptation and sharp wit.)