பகலும் இரவுமாய் மயங்கும் மாலைப்பொழுதே! என்னைப் போலவே நீயும் ஒளி இழந்த கண்ணோடு இருக்கிறாயே; உன் கணவரும் என் கணவரைப் போல் கொடியவரோ?

மயங்கும் மாலைப் பொழுதே! நீயும் எம்மைப் போல் துன்பப்படுகின்றாயே! எம் காதலர் போல் உன் துணையும் இரக்கம் அற்றதோ?

மயங்கிய மாலைப்‌பொழுதே! நீயும் எம்மைப்போல் துன்பப்படுகின்‌றாயே! உன் துணையும் எம் காதலர் போல் இரக்கம் அற்றதோ?

A long life to you, O dark evening! You are sightless Is your help-mate (also) as hard-hearted as mine

This verse from Thirukkural speaks metaphorically about the state of a lovelorn lady who addresses the evening - a time of transition between day and night. This is a common trope in Tamil classical literature, where nature is often personified and used as a medium to express human emotions. The lady, pining for her distant beloved, compares her own state to that of the evening. She notes that the evening, like her, seems to be in a state of darkness (metaphorically, a state of sorrow and longing). She uses the term 'sightless' for the evening, indicating the fading light, and aligns it with her own despair in the absence of her lover. Further, she wonders if the evening's companion, the night, is as hard-hearted as her own lover who has left her in this state of longing. The 'hard-heartedness' here refers to the lover's seeming indifference to her pain of separation. The verse poignantly portrays the depth of her longing and the extent of her sorrow, as she identifies her own state with that of the evening. It also subtly criticizes the lover for his insensitivity, by comparing him to the dark, harsh night that follows the 'sightless' evening. Finally, it can be interpreted as a comment on the universal experience of longing and waiting, and the pain of separation, which is as relentless and inevitable as the cycle of day and night.