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Paadha Kaanikkai album cover
Lyrics & meaning

Veedu Varai Uravu

From Paadha Kaanikkai · 1962

Lyricist
Lyricist Not Known
Singer
T. M. Soundararajan
Music director
Vishwanathan-Ramamoorthy
Movie name
Paadha Kaanikkai
Movie release year
1962
Lyrics added on
2 May 2017

Lyrics & meaning

♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Aadiya aatam
Enna pesiya vaarthai
Enna thediya selvam
Enna
Thirandathor
Sutramenna kooduvitu
Aavi ponaal koodavae varuvadhenna
{ Veedu varai uravu
Veedhi varai manaivi
Kaadu varai pillai
Kadaisi varai yaro } (2)
{ Aadum varai aatam
Aayirathil naatam } (2)
Koodivarum kootam
Kollivarai varuma
Veedu varai uravu
Veedhi varai manaivi
Kaadu varai pillai
{ Kadaisi varai yaro } (2)
……………………
{ Thottiluku annai
Kattiluku kanni } (2)
Pattiniku theeni
Ketta pinbu gnyaani
Veedu varai uravu
Veedhi varai manaivi
Kaadu varai pillai
{ Kadaisi varai yaro } (2)
{ Sendravanai ketaal
Vandhuvidu enban
Vandhavanai ketaal
Sendruvidu enban } (2)
Sendruvidu enban
Veedu varai uravu
Veedhi varai manaivi
Kaadu varai pillai
{ Kadaisi varai yaro } (2)
Vituvidum aavi
Pattuvidum meni
Suttuvidum nerupu
{ Sooniyathil nilaipu } (2)
Veedu varai uravu
Veedhi varai manaivi
Kaadu varai pillai
{ Kadaisi varai yaro } (2)
What of the dance you danced?
What of the words you spoke?
What of the wealth you gathered?
What was it all for?
What of the gathering of
all your kin? Once leaving this bodily cage
the soul departs, what will come along with you?
{ Kinship lasts only till the doorstep,
the wife comes till the end of the street,
the son goes till the cremation ground,
but who is there until the very end? } (2)
{ The dance lasts only as long as life does,
with desires chasing after a thousand things. } (2)
Will the crowd that gathers around you
come all the way to the funeral pyre?
Kinship lasts only till the doorstep,
the wife comes till the end of the street,
the son goes till the cremation ground,
{ but who is there until the very end? } (2)
...
{ A mother for the cradle,
a maiden for the bed, } (2)
food to satisfy hunger,
and wisdom only after everything is lost!
Kinship lasts only till the doorstep,
the wife comes till the end of the street,
the son goes till the cremation ground,
{ but who is there until the very end? } (2)
{ If you ask the one who has departed,
he will say, "Come along,"
if you ask the one who has just arrived,
he will say, "Leave this world." } (2)
He will say, "Leave this world."
Kinship lasts only till the doorstep,
the wife comes till the end of the street,
the son goes till the cremation ground,
{ but who is there until the very end? } (2)
The breath of life will depart,
the body will wither away,
the fire will burn it down,
{ ending in pure nothingness. } (2)
Kinship lasts only till the doorstep,
the wife comes till the end of the street,
the son goes till the cremation ground,
{ but who is there until the very end? } (2)
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Female
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male
Male

Beyond the translation

Overall song meaning

This iconic philosophical song from the 1962 movie Paadha Kaanikkai ponders the ultimate reality of mortality and human existence. It illustrates how worldly affection, wealth, prestige, and family relationships are strictly temporary. Relatives stand by only up to the doorstep, a spouse accompanies the body to the street, and children go as far as the cremation grounds; beyond that, the soul journeys entirely alone into nothingness.

Writing craft

Poetic devices

Anaphora / Repetition (Edhugai / Monorhyme)

“Veedu varai uravu / Veedhi varai manaivi / Kaadu varai pillai”

The repetitive use of 'varai' (up to) in 'Veedu varai', 'Veedhi varai', 'Kaadu varai', and 'Kadaisi varai' creates a stark rhythmic progression emphasizing physical and emotional boundaries.

Antithesis / Parallelism

“Sendravanai ketaal vandhuvidu enban / Vandhavanai ketaal sendruvidu enban”

Contrasting 'Sendravan' (the one who left) and 'Vandhavan' (the one who came) underlines the cyclic nature of birth and death.

Iyaibu (Rhyming Endings)

“Vituvidum aavi / Pattuvidum meni / Suttuvidum nerupu”

Matching rhyming suffixes like 'aavi', 'meni', and 'nerupu' / 'nilaipu' build poetic momentum leading to spiritual realization.

Did you know?

Trivia

Written by the poet Kaviarasu Kannadasan, set to music by the legendary duo Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy, and sung by T. M. Soundararajan, 'Veedu Varai Uravu' is widely regarded as one of the greatest philosophical songs in Tamil cinema history, celebrated for its profound truth about life and death.

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