కొండ కట్టెలు, కోనేటి నీళ్ళు మోసినట్టు

konda kattelu, koneti nillu mosinattu

Translation

Like carrying wood from a hill and water from a temple pond.

Meaning

This expression is used to describe a situation where someone performs a task that is redundant, unnecessary, or involves carrying something to a place where it is already abundant. It highlights the futility or lack of common sense in doing work that provides no additional value or brings resources to their own source.

Related Phrases

Like carrying Cissus quadrangularis to the graveyard.

This expression is used to describe a redundant or futile activity. Since graveyard sites (bonda lakunta) are typically overgrown with weeds like Nalleru (veldt grape), bringing more of the same plant there is an unnecessary waste of effort. It is similar to the English idiom 'carrying coals to Newcastle'.

Like carrying three measures of grain after they have become wet

This proverb describes a situation where an already difficult task becomes significantly more burdensome due to unfavorable circumstances. Just as dry grain becomes much heavier when soaked in water, a problem or responsibility becomes harder to handle when complications are added.

Like pouring water into a leaky pot

This expression is used to describe a situation where effort or resources are being completely wasted on something that cannot be salvaged or retained. It refers to a futile action where despite continuous input, there is no result or progress because the foundation is fundamentally flawed or broken.

Like carrying firewood to a mountain and water to a pond.

This proverb is used to describe a redundant or futile action. It refers to providing something to a place that already has it in abundance, similar to the English expression 'carrying coals to Newcastle'. It highlights the pointlessness of doing something unnecessary.

Like carrying water to the ocean

This expression is used to describe a redundant or futile effort where one provides something to someone who already possesses it in abundance. It is similar to the English idiom 'carrying coals to Newcastle'.

The mountain does not move, and the water in the valley does not stay.

This expression highlights the immutable truths of nature and life. It is used to describe a situation where certain things are permanent and unchangeable (like a mountain), while others are transient and constantly in flux (like flowing valley water). It suggests accepting the inherent nature of people or situations.

Tying up water in a bundle. He draws water with a sieve.

This expression is used to describe a futile, impossible, or extremely difficult task. Just as it is impossible to pack or tie water into a bundle with a cloth, this phrase refers to situations where efforts are wasted on something that cannot be contained, managed, or achieved.

Like drinking water from under someone's elbow

This expression is used to describe a state of complete dependence or subservience to someone else. It refers to a person who has no independence and must rely on the whims or 'leftovers' of another person for their survival or progress.

Like putting a mountain under one's head and searching for stones.

This expression is used to describe a situation where someone overlooks a massive, obvious resource or solution they already possess and instead wastes time searching for something trivial or insignificant elsewhere. It highlights human nature's tendency to ignore what is readily available and hunt for minor things.

Like trying to tie water in a bundle

This expression describes an impossible task or an exercise in futility. It is used to refer to situations where someone tries to control or manage something that is inherently uncontainable, fleeting, or impossible to hold onto, much like the physical impossibility of bundling water in a cloth.