పనిలేని పాపరాజు ఏం చేస్తున్నాడంటే, కుందేటికొమ్ముకు రేకలు తీస్తున్నాడు అన్నట్లు.

panileni paparaju em chestunnadante, kundetikommuku rekalu tistunnadu annatlu.

Translation

When asked what idle Paparaju is doing, he is carving designs on a rabbit's horn.

Meaning

This proverb is used to describe a person who, having no useful work to do, engages in completely futile, impossible, or nonsensical tasks. Since rabbits do not have horns, 'carving designs on a rabbit's horn' signifies wasting time on something that doesn't exist or doesn't matter.

Related Phrases

When they asked what idle Pâpa Râzu was about, they were told that he was carving lines on a hare's horn.

This expression is used to describe a person who is engaged in completely useless, absurd, or impossible tasks because they have nothing productive to do. Since rabbits do not have horns, 'drawing lines on a rabbit's horn' signifies wasting time on non-existent or futile activities.

Like acquiring a rabbit's horn

This expression is used to describe a person who claims to have achieved or found something that is actually impossible or non-existent. It is used to mock someone's false claims of an impossible feat, as rabbits do not have horns.

When an ugly person was asked what they were doing, they said, 'I am mocking the beautiful ones.'

This proverb is used to describe a situation where a person who lacks talent, skill, or merit criticizes or mocks those who are superior or successful. It highlights the irony of someone with significant flaws trying to find faults in others who are far better than themselves, often out of jealousy or insecurity.

When told that seven famines are coming, he asked, 'If I die in the very first one, what will the other six do?'

This proverb is used to mock someone who displays extreme laziness, a lack of foresight, or a fatalistic attitude. Instead of preparing for a long-term challenge, the person dismisses the concern with a cynical or foolish remark, suggesting that if they don't survive the initial difficulty, the subsequent ones don't matter anyway. It highlights a lack of responsibility or an 'ignorance is bliss' mindset.

When asked 'What are you doing?', he replied, 'I am spilling it and then picking it up'.

This proverb is used to describe someone who engages in useless, counterproductive, or repetitive work that yields no results. It highlights the behavior of creating a problem just to solve it, or performing tasks that are essentially a waste of time and effort.

When asked what the school master was doing, one replied " he is correcting the mistakes he has made." A bad workman.

This proverb is used to mock someone who engages in futile, self-created work just to appear busy or productive. It describes a situation where a person creates their own problems or errors only to spend time fixing them, resulting in no actual progress or value. It is often applied to bureaucrats or professionals who indulge in unnecessary paperwork or circular logic.

Laughing, they do it; weeping, they suffer for it.

This proverb is used to warn someone that the actions or mistakes they commit lightheartedly or out of greed will eventually lead to painful consequences that they will have to endure with regret.

Said of criminals.

Like saying 'buffalo horn' when someone says 'house gable'

This expression is used to describe a situation where there is a complete lack of understanding or irrelevant communication between two people. It refers to someone giving a totally unrelated or absurd answer to a question, or a listener completely misinterpreting what was said due to lack of attention or intelligence.

When asked what the teacher is doing, they said he is correcting the mistakes he wrote himself.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone who is supposed to be an expert or a guide makes basic mistakes and spends their time fixing their own errors instead of helping others. It satirizes incompetence in positions of authority or expertise.

When one enquired what the ugly man was doing, [he was told that] he was counting all the good looking people. An ugly person finds fault with the looks of others. The kiln calls the oven burnt house. The shovel makes game of the poker. (French.)† The pan says to the pot " keep off or you'll smutch me." (Italian.)

This proverb is used to describe someone who, instead of focusing on their own shortcomings or fixing their own problems, spends all their time judging, critiquing, or obsessing over the qualities and successes of others. It highlights the irony of being preoccupied with things one lacks.

* Adonde vas, mal ? Adonde mas hay. † La pèle se moque du fourgon. ‡ La padella dice al pajuolo, Fatti in la che tu me tigni,