Skip to content
Isaimozhi
Mandhira Punnagai album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Kaali Perungaya Dappa

From Mandhira Punnagai · 1986

Lyricist
Isaignani Ilayaraja
Singer
Ilayaraja
Music director
Ilayaraja
Movie name
Mandhira Punnagai
Movie release year
1986
Lyrics added on
27 Feb 2019

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Verum kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Dhegam adhu sandhaegam
Indha kaayam adhu vengaayam
Ada vaazhkkai enbadhum
Dhegam enbadhum
Paasam enbadhum onnum illae
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Odambula ratham ippo
Odikkittae thaan irukku
Adhu ennaala odavilla
Idhayamo eppodhumae
Thudichukittae thaan irukku
Adhu ennaala thudikkavilla
Anbaala thudikkudhu ethana nenju
Aasaiyaala thavikkudhu ethana nenju
Ada adichaalum thudichaalum
Vaazhkkai enbadhu onnum illa
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Enakkoru boomi irukku
Nadakka kedakka padukka
Adhu ellaarkkum ulladhammaa
Naan oru thani maram pol
Thavichu thallaadi vizhuven
Adhu eppodhum nadakkumammaa
Pattu pogum marathil oru
Poongodiya thaan
Padara vittu azhagu paarkkum
Paavi iraivaa
Ada padarugindra poongodiyum
Pattu pogum unmai idhu
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Padikkira padippu ellaam
Vaazhkkaikku engae udhavum
Appo kalviyaala enna nanma
Kedachadhu panam mattum thaan
Unmai kalvi idhuvaa
Indha anubavam thaan unma
Doctor pattam vaangi vechen
Enna aanadhu
Doctor kum doctor thaedum
Udambu thaan idhu
Ada kootta vittu pora usura
Pudichu vekka mudiyalaiyae
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Dhegam adhu sandhaegam
Indha kaayam adhu vengaayam
Ada vaazhkkai enbadhum
Dhegam enbadhum
Paasam enbadhum onnum illae
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
Kaali perungaaya dappaa
Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
Just an empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
This body is full of uncertainty,
this mortal frame is hollow like an onion.
Oh, what we call life,
what we call the body,
and what we call affection—it is all nothing!
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
Inside this body, blood is
constantly flowing right now,
but it doesn't flow because of me.
And the heart is always
beating without a pause,
but it doesn't beat because of me.
How many hearts beat with love?
How many hearts ache with desire?
Oh, whether it beats or suffers,
this life amounts to nothing at all!
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
I have a piece of earth
to walk on, rest on, and sleep on,
but that belongs to everyone.
Like a lone tree,
I will struggle, stumble, and fall;
that is something that will always happen.
Around a dying tree,
a flowering vine
is made to climb and admired for beauty,
oh cruel God!
Yet even that spreading flowering vine
will wither away—that is the truth.
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
All the lessons that we study,
how do they help us in real life?
Then what good has come from learning?
All I earned was just money;
is this true education?
Only this life experience is the real truth!
I earned a doctor's degree,
but what good did it do?
This is just a body that searches
for a doctor to treat a doctor!
Oh, when the breath of life leaves its cage,
we cannot hold it back!
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
This body is full of uncertainty,
this mortal frame is hollow like an onion.
Oh, what we call life,
what we call the body,
and what we call affection—it is all nothing!
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
An empty box of asafoetida,
yet its strong smell still lingers on.
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This song uses philosophical imagery rooted in Siddhar philosophy to ponder the ephemeral nature of life, human relationships, and physical existence. The recurring metaphor of the 'empty asafoetida box' (Kaali perungaaya dappaa) symbolizes how human life retains the lingering residual scent of worldly ties and ego even after its core substance or vitality is gone. The lyrics stress that human effort does not control involuntary biological processes like heartbeats or blood circulation, underscoring human helplessness before nature and fate.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Metaphor (Uvamai / Uvamaanam)

“Kaali perungaaya dappaa / Adhula vaasana balamaa thaan irukku”

Comparing human life/body to an empty asafoetida box that retains smell despite being empty.

Rhyme / Assonance (Edhukai & Mouna)

“Dhegam adhu sandhaegam / Indha kaayam adhu vengaayam”

Use of internal rhyming and rhythmic pairing of Tamil words like Dhegam (body) and Sandhaegam (doubt), and Kaayam (body) and Vengaayam (onion).

Simile (Uvamai)

“Naan oru thani maram pol / Thavichu thallaadi vizhuven”

Comparing oneself to a lonely tree standing vulnerable in the open ('thani maram pol').

Did you know?

Trivia

The metaphor 'Kaali perungaaya dappaa' (an empty asafoetida container) is a classical Tamil proverb frequently used in Siddhar poetry and philosophical discourses to describe someone or something that retains prestige, memory, or arrogance long after the actual power or value has faded.

Keep listening

Songs with a similar feeling

Irul Padhi Oli Padhi Female1968
Devi – 1968 FilmTimeContemplative
Thathuvathil Naan1972
Thiru NeelakandarMortalityContemplative
Vaala Vayathagi1954
Ratha KanneerImpermanenceMortality
Panneer Pushpangale1978
Aval AppadithanLonelinessContemplative
Ingu Irukkum1990
Ethir KaatruContemplativeImpermanence
Avan Ninaithana1967
Selva MagalContemplativePoverty

From the same album

More songs from Mandhira Punnagai

View album
Naan Kadhalil1986
Mandhira PunnagaiRomantic
Manthira Punnagaiyo1986
Mandhira PunnagaiRomantic
Pavala Malligai1986
Mandhira PunnagaiRomantic

Spot an issue?

Help us improve the lyrics or English translation.