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becomes exhausted. By making a gift of a residential house, the giver, possessed of wisdom, lives, O king, in happiness in the |
company of Sakra. Such a person receives great honours in heaven. That person in whose house a Brahmana of restrained |
sense, well-versed in the Vedas, and belonging by birth to a family of preceptors, resides in contentment, succeeds in attaining |
to and enjoying a region of high felicity.[341] After the same manner, O best of the Bharatas, by giving away a shed for the |
shelter of kine that can keep out cold and rain and that is substantial in structure, the giver rescues seven generations of his race |
(from hell). By giving away a piece of arable earth the giver attains to excellent prosperity. By giving a piece of earth |
containing mineral wealth, the giver aggrandises his family and race. One should never give away any earth that is barren or |
that is burnt (arid); nor should one give away any earth that is in close vicinity to a crematorium, or that has been owned and |
enjoyed by a sinful person before such gift. When a man performs a Sraddha in honour of the Pitris on earth belonging to |
another person, the Pitris render both the gift of that earth and the Sraddha itself futile.[342] Hence, one possessed of wisdom |
should buy even a small piece of earth and make a gift of it. The Pinda that is offered to one's ancestors on earth that has been |
duly purchased becomes inexhaustible.[343] Forests, and mountains, and rivers, and Tirthas are regarded as having no owners. |
No earth need be purchased here for performing Sraddhas. Even this has been said, O king, on the subject of the merits of |
making gifts of earth. After this, O sinless one, I shall discourse to thee on the subject of the gift of kine. Kine are regarded as |
superior to all the ascetics. And since it is so, the divine Mahadeva for that reason performed penance in their company. Kine, |
O Bharata, dwell in the region of Brahman, in the company of Soma. Constituting as it does the highest end, regenerate Rishis |
crowned with success strive to attain to that very region. Kine benefit human beings with milk, ghee, curds, dung, skin, bones, |
horns, and hair, O Bharata. Kine do not feel cold or heat. They always work. The season of rains also cannot afflict them at all. |
And since kine attain to the highest end (viz., residence in the region of Brahman), in the company of Brahmanas, therefore do |
the wise say that king and Brahmanas are equal. In days of yore, king Rantideva performed a grand sacrifice in which an |
immense number of kine were offered up and slaughtered. From the juice that was secreted by the skins of the slaughtered |
animals, a river was formed that came to be called by the name of Charmanwati. Kine no longer form animals fit for sacrifice. |
They now constitute animals that are fit for gift. That king who makes gifts of kine unto the foremost of Brahmanas, O |
monarch, is sure to get over every calamity even if he falls into it. The man who makes a gift of a thousand kine has not to go |
to hell. Such a person, O ruler of men, obtains victory everywhere. The very chief of the deities had said that the milk of kine is |
nectar. For this reason, one who makes a gift of a cow is regarded as making a gift of nectar. Persons conversant with the |
Vedas have declared that the Ghee manufactured from cows' milk is the very best of all libations poured into the sacrificial fire. |
For this reason, the man who makes a gift of a cow is regarded as making a gift of a libation for sacrifice. A bovine bull is the |
embodiment of heaven. He who makes the gift of a bovine bull unto an accomplished Brahmana, receives great honours in |
heaven. Kine, O chief of Bharata's race, are said to be the life-breath of living creatures. Hence, the man who makes the gift of |
a cow is said to make the gift of life-breath. Persons conversant with the Vedas have said that kine constitute the great refuge of |
living creatures. Hence, the man who makes the gift of a cow is regarded as making the gift of what is the high refuge for all |
creatures. The cow should never be given away for slaughter (i.e., unto one who will kill her); nor should the cow be given |
unto a tiller of the soil; nor should the cow be given unto an atheist. The cow should not also, O chief of the Bharatas, be given |
unto one whose occupation is the keeping of kine.[344] The wise have said that a person who gives away the cow unto any of |
such sinful persons has to sink into everlasting hell. One should never give unto a Brahmana a cow that is lean, or that |
produces calves that do not live, or that is barren, or that is diseased, or that is defective of limb, or that is worn out with toil. |
The man that gives away ten thousand kine attains to heaven and sports in bliss in the companionship of Indra. The man who |
makes gifts of kine by hundred thousand acquires many regions of inexhaustible felicity. Thus have I recited to thee the merits |
attaching to the gift of kine and of sesame, as also to the gift of earth. Listen now to me as I discourse to thee upon the gift of |
food, O Bharata. The gift of food, O son of Kunti, is regarded as a very superior gift. King Rantideva in days of yore ascended |
to heaven by having made gifts of food. That king, who make a gift of food unto one that is toil-worn and hungry, attains to |
that region of supreme felicity which is the Self-born's own. Men fail to attain by gifts of gold and robes and of other thing, to |
that felicity to which givers of food succeed in attaining, O thou of great puissance! Food is, indeed, the first article. Food is |
regarded as the highest prosperity. It is from food that life springs, as also energy and prowess and strength. He who always |
makes gifts of food, with attention, unto the righteous, never falls into any distress.. Even this has been said by Parasara. |
Having worshipped the deities duly, food should be first dedicated to them. It has been said, O king, that the kind of food that |
is taken by particular men is taken also by the deities those men worship.[345] That man who makes a gift of food in the bright |
fortnight of the month of Kartika, succeeds in crossing every difficulty here add attains to inexhaustible felicity hereafter. That |
man who makes a gift of food unto a hungry guest arrived at his abode, attains to all those regions, O chief of Bharata's race, |
that are reserved for persons acquainted with Brahma. The man who makes gifts of food is sure to cross every difficulty and |
distress. Such a person comes over every sin and cleanses himself of every evil act. I have thus discoursed to thee upon the |
merits of making gifts of food, of sesame, of earth, and of kine.'" |
SECTION LXVII |
"Yudhishthira said, 'I have heard, O sire, of the merits of the different kinds of gift upon which thou hast discoursed to me. I |
understand, O Bharata, that the gift of food is especially laudable and superior. What however, are the great merits of making |
gifts of drink. I desire to hear of this in detail, O grandsire!' |
"Bhishma said, 'I shall, O chief of Bharata's race, discourse to thee upon this subject. Listen to me, O thou of unbaffled |
prowess, as I speak to thee. I shall, O sinless one, discourse unto thee of gifts beginning with that of drink. The merit that a man |
acquires by making gifts of food and drink is such that the like of it, I think, is incapable of being acquired through any other |
gift. There is no gift, therefore, that is superior to that of either food or drink. It is no food that all living creatures are able to |
exist. For this reason, food is regarded as a very superior object in all the worlds. From food the strength and energy of living |
creatures constantly increases. Hence, the lord of all creatures has himself said that the gift of food is a very superior gift. Thou |
hast heard, O son of Kunti, what the auspicious words are of Savitri herself (on the subject of the gift of food). Thou knowest |
for what reason those words were said, what those words were, and how they were said in course of the sacred Mantras, O thou |
of great intelligence. A man, by making a gift of food, really makes a gift of life itself. There is no gift in this world that is |
superior to the gift of life. Thou art not unacquainted with this saying of Lomasa, O thou of mighty arms! The end that was |
attained in former days by king Sivi in consequence of his having granted life to the pigeon is acquired by him, O monarch, |
who makes a gift of food unto a Brahmana. Hence, it has been heard by us that they that give life attain to very superior regions |
of felicity in after life. Food, O best of the Kurus, may or may not be superior to drink. Nothing can exist without the aid of |
what springs from water. The very lord of all the planets, viz., the illustrious Soma, has sprung from water. Amrita and Sudha |
and Swadha and milk as also every kind of food, the deciduous herbs, O monarch, and creepers (medicinal and of other |
virtues), spring from water. From these, O king, the life-breath of all living creatures flows. The deities have nectar for their |
food. The Nagas have Sudha. The Pitris have Swadha for theirs. The animals have herbs and plants for their food. The wise |
have said that rice, etc., constitute the food of human beings. All these, O chief of men, spring from water. Hence, there is |
nothing superior to the gift of water or drink. If a person wishes to secure prosperity for himself, he should always make gifts |
of drink. The gift of water is regarded as very praiseworthy. It leads to great fame and bestows long life on the giver. The giver |
of water, O son of Kunti, always stays over the heads of his enemies. Such a person obtains the fruition of all his wishes and |
earns everlasting fame. The giver, O chief of men, becomes cleansed of every sin and obtains unending felicity hereafter as he |
proceeds to heaven, O thou of great splendour. Mann himself has said that such a person earns regions of inexhaustible bliss in |
the other world.'" |
SECTION LXVIII |
"Yudhishthira said, 'Do thou discourse to me once again, O grandsire, upon the merits attaching to gifts of sesame and of lamps |
for lighting darkness, as also of food and robes.' |
"Bhishma said, 'In this connection, O Yudhishthira, is recited the narrative of the discourse that took place in ancient times |
between a Brahmana and Yama. In the country lying between the rivers Ganga and Yamuna, at the foot of the hills called |
Yamuna, there was a large town inhabited by Brahmanas. The town was celebrated under the name of Parnasala and was very |
delightful in appearance, O king. A large number of learned Brahmanas lived in it. One day, Yama, the ruler of the dead, |
commanded a messenger of his, who was clad in black, endued with blood-red eyes and hair standing erect, and possessed of |
feet, eyes, and nose all of which resembled those of a crow, saying, 'Go thou to the town inhabited by Brahmanas and bring |
hither the person known by the name of Sarmin and belonging by birth to the race of Agastya. He is intent on mental |
tranquillity and possessed of learning. He is a preceptor engaged in teaching the Vedas and his practices are well-known. Do |
not bring me another person belonging to the same race and living in the same neighbourhood. This other man is equal unto |
him I want, in virtues, study, and birth. With respect to children and conduct, this other resembles the intelligent Sarmin. Do |
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