Aram Seiya Virumbu
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The Yaazhi is no ordinary figure. Born from imagination and skill, it has prowled across centuries of Tamil art. Carved into stone pillars, etched into bronze, painted into scrolls, the Yaazhi is half lion yet fully human in meaning. It does not belong to the forest or the battlefield. It belongs to thresholds, guarding spaces, watching silently, and reminding those who pass that strength carries responsibility.
Unlike the lion which devours or the tiger which hunts, the Yaazhi is fierce but never wild. Its open jaws and powerful body speak of courage, yet its eyes and posture reveal restraint. It is strength held in balance, power shaped by discipline and purpose. That is why it endures not just as decoration but as a symbol of guardianship.
Beside this timeless figure stand the words of Auvaiyar, the revered Tamil poetess whose wisdom has guided generations:
“Aram Seiya Virumbu” — Choose to be kind.
At first they seem to speak in different voices, one a roar of strength and the other a whisper of gentleness. But listen more closely and they carry the same truth. Courage is not measured by the force we can unleash but by the goodness we choose to act upon.
The Yaazhi teaches us that strength without direction is empty. Auvaiyar teaches us that kindness is not weakness but the highest form of power. Together they create a vision of courage that protects rather than destroys, uplifts rather than oppresses, and endures rather than fades.
In today’s world, where speed often drowns out reflection and noise outshouts empathy, this message feels urgent. The world mirrors what we give it. If we choose suspicion we receive division. If we choose aggression we inherit conflict. But if we choose kindness we create trust, connection, and resilience.
Picture a Yaazhi carved on a stone pillar, standing silently through centuries of rain and sun. It has no need to prove its strength. Its presence itself is assurance. Auvaiyar’s words are much the same, quiet, simple, yet unshakable. Both remind us that the greatest victories are not won over others but over the impulses within ourselves, the impulse to harm when we could help, to dominate when we could share, to lash out when we could listen.
When the Yaazhi stands beside Auvaiyar’s words, the design becomes more than art. It becomes a mirror of our culture’s deepest truth, that true strength is not in force but in compassion, not in fear but in goodness.
To choose kindness is to choose courage. To choose kindness is to choose strength.
