கண்கள் யான் வேண்டுவதுபோல் தூங்குமானால், ( அப்போது வரும் கனவில் காணும்) காதலர்க்கு யான் தப்பிப் பிழைத்திருக்கும்‌ தன்மையைச் சொல்வேன்.

நான் வேண்டுவதற்கு இணங்கி என் மை எழுதிய கயல் விழிகள் உறங்கிடுமானால், அப்போது என் கனவில் வரும் காதலர்க்கு நான் இன்னமும் உயிரோடு இருப்பதைச் சொல்லுவேன்

கண்கள் யான் வேண்டுவதுபோல் தூங்குமானால், ( அப்போது வரும் கனவில் காணும்) காதலர்க்கு யான் தப்பிப் பிழைத்திருக்கும்‌ தன்மையைச் சொல்வேன்.

If my fish-like painted eyes should, at my begging, close in sleep, I could fully relate my sufferings to my lord

This verse, Kural 1212, is a poignant expression of longing and love. In this verse, the poet's persona is a woman deeply in love, yearning for her beloved. She refers to her eyes as "fish-like painted," an imagery often used in classical Tamil poetry to denote the beauty and expressiveness of the eyes. The woman's desire is so intense that she cannot afford to let her eyes close in sleep because she fears missing a moment with her beloved. However, she also notes a paradox here. If she were to allow her eyes to close and sleep, she could then meet her beloved in her dreams. In these dreams, she would be able to express her feelings, her suffering caused by their separation, and reaffirm her enduring love and existence to him. This is a subtle way of expressing the depth of her longing and the pain of their separation. This verse is reflective of the intense romantic love that is often depicted in Thiru Kural and other classical Tamil literature. It emphasizes the extent to which love can consume a person, to the point where even sleep is seen as both a barrier to, and a medium for, expressing that love. The moral of this verse may be seen as a commentary on the all-consuming nature of deep emotional connections and the yearning that comes with separation from a beloved.