Two different poems with the same message

To have succeeded
To laugh often and love much;
To win the respect of intelligent people
And the affection of children;
To earn the approbation of honest critics
And endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;
To give one’s self;
To leave the world a little better,
Whether by a healthy child,
A garden patch,
Or a redeemed social condition;
To have played and laughed with enthusiasm
And sung with exultation;
To know even one life has breathed easier
Because you have lived....
This is to have succeeded.
-Ralph waldo Emerson


Varam kaettal
Kalaiyaatha kalviyum kuraiyaatha vayathum
Or kabadu vaaaraatha natpum,
Kanraantha valamaiyum kundraatha ilamaiyum
Kazhupini ilaatha udalum,
Saliyaatha manamum anbu agalaatha manaiviyum
Thavaraatha sandhaanamum
Thaalaatha keerthiyum maaraatha vaarthayum
Thadaigal vaaraatha kodaiyum
Tholaiyaatha nithiyamum konnaatha kollum
Oru thunbam illaatha vaazhvum
Thuyya nin paathathil anbum udhavi
Periya thondarodu kootukandaai
Alaiyaazhi arithuyilum Maayanathu thangaiyae
Aadhikadavurin vaazhvae
Amutheesar oru paagam aghalaatha sughapaani
Arulvaami Abhiraamiyae!
-Abhirami Pattar

Both the poems are about a successful life but the views are totally different. The influence of culture and practices on the respective authors is evident. And, these poems have the distinct flavor of their cultures and represent all that relates to the West and the East. They have the same underlying principle but have opposite ways of expressing it. Two people, in different countries, different cultures and different time periods have had the same thought process and have defined success in life in their own terms. And, we are lucky enough to enjoy both and wonder at such similarities and differences. Interesting, right?