మాధుకరి వాని ఇంటికి ఉపాదానం వాడు పోయినట్టు

madhukari vani intiki upadanam vadu poyinattu

Translation

Like the raw rice beggar going to the house of the boiled rice beggar. Some beggars will only receive raw rice which they cook for themselves, others receive boiled rice.

Meaning

This proverb describes a redundant or futile action where a person seeks help or resources from someone who is in the same poor condition as themselves. It is used to mock the irony of asking for a favor from someone who is equally needy or incapable of providing it.

Related Phrases

As a public benefaction, I will buy a cloth for my wife; give me a pice from each house.

This proverb is used to describe a person who wants to fulfill their personal responsibilities or selfish desires using others' resources, while pretending that they are doing a great service to society. It mocks those who seek public funds for private gains under the guise of altruism.

When you are ruined, you may go to your friend's house, but not to your sister's. Friends are better in adversity than relations who envied you in prosperity. Friends are the nearest relations. Relationship gives rise to envy. (Latin.)

This proverb reflects a traditional social sentiment regarding self-respect and family dynamics. It suggests that when a person loses their wealth or status (ruined), they might find refuge with a friend who views them as an equal, whereas going to a sister's (or relative's) house might lead to humiliation, a sense of burdening them, or being looked down upon by the in-laws.

Close (your mouth) and sit

This is a blunt and often rude expression used to tell someone to shut up or stay quiet. It is commonly used when someone is talking unnecessarily, annoying others, or meddling in affairs that do not concern them. It literally instructs the person to 'shut it' and remain still.

Every house has an earthen fire-place, my house is still worse off. Acknowledging one's failings.

This proverb is used to convey that everyone has their own set of problems or flaws, and one's own situation is no exception—or perhaps even slightly more complicated. It highlights the universality of human struggles and domestic issues, suggesting that no household is perfectly free from trouble.

For conversation at our house, for a meal at your house.

This proverb is used to describe someone who is very friendly and talkative but avoids being hospitable or sharing food. It refers to a person who is happy to host a conversation but expects others to provide the meal or resources. It highlights a one-sided relationship or stinginess disguised as friendliness.

When I come to your house what will you give me? and when you come to my house what will you bring?

This expression describes an extremely selfish person who only thinks about their own gain in every situation. It is used to mock someone who expects to receive benefits from others without ever offering anything in return, highlighting a one-sided and greedy nature.

Like a person who collects raw offerings (upadanam) going to the house of a person who survives on cooked alms (madhukaram).

This expression is used to describe a situation where someone seeks help or resources from someone who is in an even more desperate or needy position than themselves. It highlights the irony and futility of asking for assistance from those who lack the means to support even their own needs.

If children are born to a Jangam they are only an annoyance to the village. Because they will add to the number of beggars. The Jangams are the Vira Saivas or followers of the Hindu reformer Basava. Beggars breed, and rich men feed.

This proverb is used in a sarcastic or cynical sense to describe a situation where someone's personal burden or expansion becomes a collective responsibility or a source of nuisance for others. Since Jangamas traditionally lived on alms, more children meant more people asking the villagers for food and support, ironically framed here as 'employment' or 'work' for the providers.

What! Offering the house-rice to a spoilt field ?

This proverb describes a situation where one wastes valuable resources on a hopeless or unproductive cause. Just as sowing good seeds in a barren or bad field results in a loss of both the seeds and the effort, this expression is used when someone invests time, money, or energy into something that yields no results.

Pongali is a preparation of rice offered to the fields after the harvest. In this case the crop had failed and the offering had to be made from the old store. It was therefore a needless ceremony.

Like a person who went to fetch medicine returning in time for the monthly funeral rites.

This proverb is used to describe someone who is extremely slow or procrastinates to a ridiculous extent. It depicts a situation where a person sent to get life-saving medicine for a patient returns so late that the patient has already died and it is time for the 'Masikam' (a ritual performed one month after death).