Words Well Worth 50: Rare Are Things That Be Fair Poem by Aniruddha Pathak

Nor is every stone jewel, nor jade,
Nor all tuskers store gem in head,
Easy are found no saints so good,
Nor is sandal found in every wood.
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Transliteration of the subhāśhita along with the meanings of Sanskrit words is given as under:

shaile shaile na māņikyam mauktikam na gaje gaje |
sādhavah na hi sarvatra chandanam na vane vane ||

shaile shaile: each and every stone
na māņikyam: (is)no diamond, jewel
mauktikam: gems, pearls
na gaje gaje: (is)not on every elephant (head) 1
sādhavah: good people, saintly people
na hi: not indeed
sarvatra: (are)everywhere
chandanam: sandalwood
na vane vane: (is)not in every forest

1. There is an old belief that some elephants have a precious stone embedded in their heads.

Topic: stone, jewel, good, wood