వేమన 8

ఎలుకతోకదెచ్చి యేడాది యుతికిన
నలుపునలుపేగాని తెలుపుగాదు
కొయ్యబొమ్మదెచ్చి కొట్టిన పలుకదు
విశ్వదాభిరామ వినురవేమ
elukatOkadecci EdAdi yutikina
nalupu nalupEgAni telupugAdu
koyyabommadecci kottina palukadu
viswdABirAma vinurvEma

This poem is also there in another form. in that instead of toka it is said tolu.
Vemana says that change is not possible easily. He never talks of humans in the verse. To me what he means is that humans are also like the rats skin and wooden statue.
To tell the meaning straight now,
You bring the tail or skin of a rat and wash for an year.
It would remain black and necer turn white.
It is like bringing a wooden doll or statue and hitting it again and again. It would never utter a word.
What Vemana means here is that one should know to what end you are taking the trouble of doing something. Before starting a work you should know the result expected and also the possibility of such a result. If you try to achieve the unachievable, no one can be blamed for the end result or the lack of it.
Trying to change people is also like this effort of making a wooden doll speak. But here, sustained effort may give some result.
There is a lot understand in this poem.