Pasuram 6.3.5

Tamil text and transliteration:

கைதவம் செம்மை கருமை வெளுமையும் ஆய்
மெய் பொய் இளமை முதுமை புதுமை பழமையும் ஆய்
செய்த திண் மதிள் சூழ் திருவிண்ணகர் சேர்ந்த பிரான்
பெய்த காவு கண்டீர் பெரும் தேவு உடை மூவுலகே

kaitavam cemmai karumai veḷumaiyum āy
mey poy iḷamai mutumai putumai paḻamaiyum āy
ceyta tiṇ matiḷ cūḻ tiruviṇṇakar cērnta pirāṉ
peyta kāvu kaṇṭīr perum tēvu uṭai mūvulakē

English translation of verse 6.3.5:

The triple worlds where reside the exalted Devas (Brahmā and others)
Are but the orchards raised by the benevolent Lord in Tiruviṇṇakar,
With its ramparts, robust and lovely, who directs
Truth and falsehood, the sneaky and the erect,
The young and the old, old and new, black and white.

Notes:

(i) From Brahmā down to the smallest insect, all are His wards, without distinction of high and low. Some are forthright and straightforward while there are others who are nothing but crooked and who can never be erect in word, deed or thought. Well, all these are controlled by the Supreme Lord who also combines in Himself these contrary traits. For instance, as Kṛṣṇa, the cowherd boy. He would search for His missing calf inside the butter pots while, as Śrī Rāma, He wouldn’t mind speaking out the bare truth even to a demoness like Sūrpanakhā who met Him at Pañcavaṭi and enquired about Him.

(ii) Black and white: The Lord incarnated as Balarāma, of white Complexion and as Kṛṣṇa, of black complexion. When they moved, side by side, it looked as if a black mountain followed a white mountain.

(ii) Truth and falsehood: As Śrī Rāma, the Lord was the great apostle of truth while, as Śrī Kṛṣṇa, He was a bundle of apparent contradictions, truthful unto the devout and the opposite of it to the otherwise.

(iv) The young and the old: The ageless Lord incarnated as a Babe, still retaining His stature as the Primate, the oldest of all (Purāṇa Puruṣa).

(v) Old and New: Ageless and hence old He, no doubt, is but, all the same, He retains the youthful freshness, exhilarating beyond measure.