దివిటీ కింద దీపం
diviti kinda dipam
A lamp under a torch. One insignificant before the other.
This expression is used to describe a situation where a smaller or less significant thing is overshadowed or ignored in the presence of something much larger or brighter. It can also refer to someone who provides light or guidance to others but remains in darkness or unrecognized themselves, similar to the English idiom 'The cobbler's children go barefoot.'
Related Phrases
సానకింద దీపం వలె
sanakinda dipam vale
Like a lamp under a whetstone.
This expression is used to describe a situation where there is darkness or ignorance right at the base of a source of light or knowledge. It refers to someone who is very close to a person of greatness or wisdom, yet remains uninfluenced or unaware of that excellence, similar to how the area directly beneath a lamp remains in shadow.
దీపం ఉండగానే ఇల్లు చక్కబెట్టుకోవాలి
dipam undagane illu chakkabettukovali
A torch lighted from a lamp. Said of a great man sprung from a humble family.
This is a popular Telugu proverb (sameta) equivalent to 'Make hay while the sun shines'. It advises people to make use of opportunities while they are available and to complete tasks while the favorable conditions last.
దీపం కింద చీకటి
dipam kinda chikati
It is always dark underneath a lamp. Rogucy hides under the judgment seat.
This proverb refers to a situation where someone who provides light, knowledge, or help to the world fails to apply the same to their own immediate surroundings or family. It is used to describe an influential or talented person whose own home or private life remains in neglect or ignorance.
దీపంతో వెలిగించిన దివిటీ పెద్దదైనట్లు
dipanto veliginchina diviti peddadainatlu
Like a torch lit from a small lamp becoming greater than the lamp itself.
This expression is used to describe a situation where a student, protégé, or child surpasses their teacher, mentor, or parent in fame, skill, or status. Even though the source (the lamp) was small, the outcome (the torch) is much more powerful and bright.
దివిటీ ముందు దీపం పెట్టినట్లు.
diviti mundu dipam pettinatlu.
Like placing a small oil lamp before a flaming torch.
This expression is used to describe a situation where something small, insignificant, or inferior is compared to or placed in front of something vastly superior and brilliant. It highlights how the smaller object's light is completely overshadowed and made redundant by the larger one's brilliance.
తలగడ కింద పాము
talagada kinda pamu
A snake under the pillow.
This expression refers to a hidden or imminent danger that is very close to a person, often without them realizing it. It is used to describe a precarious situation where a threat exists in one's immediate or most trusted environment.
ఇంటికి దీపం ఇల్లాలే
intiki dipam illale
The woman of the house is the lamp of the home.
This expression highlights the importance of a woman (wife/mother) in maintaining the harmony, prosperity, and happiness of a family. Just as a lamp dispels darkness, a virtuous woman is seen as the light that guides and sustains the household.
దివిటీ క్రింద దీపం
diviti krinda dipam
A lamp under a torch
This expression is used to describe a situation where a smaller, less significant thing or person is overshadowed or made redundant by something much larger or superior. It can also refer to something being unnoticeable or unnecessary in the presence of a much greater light or talent.
దీపావళికి దీపమంత చలి!
dipavaliki dipamanta chali!
By Diwali, the cold is as small as a lamp's flame.
This expression describes the seasonal transition in the Telugu states. It signifies that by the time of the Diwali festival, the winter season is just beginning to set in, and the cold is mild or minimal, metaphorically compared to the small heat or size of a lamp's flicker.
రేగుచెట్టు కింద చెవిటి గుడ్డివాని వలె
reguchettu kinda cheviti guddivani vale
Like the deaf blind man under the Rêgu tree. The story runs as follows :—A deaf blind man insisted on being taken to a comedy, and begged his friends to nudge him when anything very amusing was acted so that he might laugh. They pretended to agree to this, but left him half way under a Rêgu tree, telling him that the per- formance was going on there. He sat there all night laughing whenever the slender branches of the tree, moved by the wind, touched him.
This expression describes a situation where a person is completely unaware of the opportunities or resources available right in front of them. When berries fall from the jujube tree, a blind person cannot see them and a deaf person cannot hear them fall, thus they miss out on the fruit despite being right under the tree. It is used to mock someone who lacks the awareness or senses to benefit from their immediate environment.