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always brings forth living and hale calves, and that does not fly away from the owner's abode, the giver enjoys felicity in the |
next world for as many years as there are hairs on her body. Similarly, by giving unto a Brahmana a bull that is capable of |
bearing heavy burden, that is young and strong and docile, that quietly bears the yoke of the plough, and that is possessed of |
such energy as is sufficient to undergo even great labour one attains to such regions as are his who gives away ten kine. That |
person, who rescues kine and Brahmanas (from danger) in the wilderness, O Kausika, becomes himself rescued from every |
kind of calamity. Hear what his merit is.[363] The merit such a man acquires is equal to the eternal merit of a Horse-sacrifice. |
Such a person attains to whatever end he desires at the hour of death. Many a region of felicity,--in fact, whatever happiness he |
covets in his heart,--becomes attainable to him in consequence of such an act of his. Verily, such man, permitted by kine, lives |
honoured in every region of felicity. That man, who follows kine every day in the woods himself subsisting the while on grass |
and cowdung and leaves of trees, his heart freed from desire of fruit, his senses restrained from every improper object and his |
mind purified of all dross,--that man,--O thou of a hundred sacrifices, lives in joy and freed from the dominion of desire in my |
region or in any other region of happiness that he wishes, in the company of the deities!" |
SECTION LXXIV |
"Indra said, 'I wish to know, O Grandsire, what the end is that is attained by him who consciously steals a cow or who sells one |
from motives of cupidity." |
"The Grandsire said, 'Hear what the consequences are that overtake those persons that steal a cow for killing her for food or |
selling her for wealth, or making a gift of her unto a Brahmana. He, who, without being checked by the restraints of the |
scriptures, sells a cow, or kills one, or eats the flesh of a cow, or they, who, for the sake of wealth, suffer a person to kill kine,-- |
all these, viz., he that kills, he that eats, and he that permits the slaughter,--rot in hell for as many years as there are hairs on the |
body of the cow so slain.[364] O thou of great puissance, those faults and those kinds of faults that have been said to attach to |
one that obstructs a Brahmana's sacrifice, are said to attach to the sale and the theft of kine. That man, who, having stolen a |
cow makes a gift of her unto a Brahmana, enjoys felicity in heaven as the reward of the gift but suffers misery in hell for the |
sin of theft for as long a period. Gold has been said to constitute the Dakshina, O thou of great splendour, in gifts of kine. |
Indeed, gold has been said to be the best Dakshina in all sacrifices. By making a gift of kine one is said to rescue one's |
ancestors to the seventh degree as also one's descendants to the seventh degree. By giving away kine with Dakshina of gold one |
rescues one's ancestors and descendants of double the number. The gift of gold is the best of gifts. Gold is, again, the best |
Dakshina. Gold is a great cleanser, O Sakra, and is, indeed, the best of all cleansing objects. O thou of a hundred sacrifices, |
gold has been said to be the sanctifier of the entire race of him who gives it away. I have thus, O thou of great splendour, told |
thee in brief of Dakshina.' |
"Bhishma said, 'Even this was said by the Grandsire unto Indra, O chief of Bharata's race! Indra imparted it unto Dasaratha, |
and Dasaratha in his turn unto his son Rama, Rama of Raghu's race imparted it unto his dear brother Lakshmana of great fame. |
While dwelling in the woods, Lakshmana imparted it unto the Rishis. It has then come down from generation to generation, for |
the Rishis of rigid vows held it amongst themselves as also the righteous kings of the earth. My preceptor, O Yudhishthira, |
communicated it to me. That Brahmana, who recites it every day in the assemblies of Brahmanas, in sacrifices or at gifts of |
kine, or when two persons meet together, obtains hereafter many regions of inexhaustible felicity where he always resides with |
the deities as his companions. The holy Brahman, the Supreme Lord, had said so (unto Indra on the subject of kine).'" |
SECTION LXXV |
"Yudhishthira said, 'I have been greatly assured, O thou of puissance, by thee thus discoursing unto me of duties. I shall, |
however, give expression to the doubts I have. Do thou explain them to me, O grandsire! What are the fruits, declared in the |
scriptures, of the vows that men observe. Of what nature are the fruits, O thou of great splendour, of observances of other |
kinds? What, again, are the fruits, of one's studying the Vedas properly?[365] What are the fruits of gifts, and what those of |
holding the Vedas in memory? What are the fruits that attach to the teaching of the Vedas? I desire to know all this. What, O |
grandsire, are the merits attaching to the non-acceptance of gifts in this world? What fruits are seen to attach to him who mazes |
gifts of knowledge? What are the merits acquired by persons that are observant of the duties of their order, as also by heroes |
that do not flee from battle? What are the fruits that have been declared to attach to the observance of purity and to the practice |
of Brahmacharya? What are the merits that attach to the service of the father and of the mother? What also are the merits of |
serving preceptors and teachers, and what are the merits of compassion and kindness? I desire to know all these, O grandsire, |
truly and in detail, O thou that art conversant with all the scriptures! Great is the curiosity f feel.' |
"Bhishma said, 'Eternal regions of felicity become his, who, having properly commenced a Vrata (vow) completes its |
observance according to the scriptures, without a break. The fruits of Niyamas, O king, are visible even in this world. These |
rewards that thou hast won are those of Niyamas and sacrifices. The fruits that attach to the study of the Vedas are seen both |
here and hereafter. The person, who is devoted to the study of the Vedas is seen to sport in felicity both in this world and in the |
region of Brahma. Listen now to me, O king, as I tell thee in detail what the fruits are of self-restraint. They that are self- |
restrained are happy everywhere. They that are self-restrained are always in the enjoyment of that felicity which attaches to the |
absence or subjugation of desire. They that are self-restrained are competent to go everywhere at will. They that are self- |
restrained are capable of destroying every foe. Without doubt, they that are self-restrained succeed in obtaining everything they |
seek. They that are self-restrained, O son of Pandu, obtain the fruition of every wish. The happiness that men enjoy in heaven |
through penances and prowess (in arms) through gift, and through diverse sacrifices, becomes theirs that are self-restrained and |
forgiving. Self-restraint is more meritorious than gift. A giver, after making a gift unto the Brahmanas, may yield to the |
Influence of wrath. A self-restrained man, however, never yields to wrath. Hence, self-restraint is superior (in point of merit) to |
gift. That man, who makes gifts without yielding to wrath, succeeds in attaining to eternal regions of felicity. Wrath destroys |
the merit of a gift. Hence, self-restraint is superior to gift. There are various invisible places, O monarch, numbering by ten |
thousands, in heaven. Existing in all the regions of heaven, these places belong to the Rishis. Persons, leaving this world, attain |
to them and become transformed into deities. O king, the great Rishis repair thither, aided only by their self-restraint, and as the |
end of their efforts to attain to a region of superior happiness. Hence, self-restraint is superior (in efficacy) to gift. The person, |
who becomes a preceptor (for teaching the Vedas), and who duly worships the fire, taking leave of all his afflictions in this |
world, enjoys inexhaustible felicity, O king, in the region of Brahma. That man, who, having himself studied the Vedas, |
imparts a knowledge thereof unto righteous disciples, and who praises the acts of his own preceptor, attain to great honours in |
heaven. That Kshatriya, who takes to the study of the Vedas, to the performance of sacrifices, to the making of gifts, and who |
rescues the lives of others in battle, similarly attains to great, honours in heaven. The Vaisya, who, observant of the duties of |
his order, makes gifts, reaps as the fruit of those gifts, a crowning reward. The Sudra, who duly observes the duties of his order |
(which consist of services rendered to the three other orders) wins heaven as the reward of such services. Diverse kinds of |
heroes have been spoken of (in the scriptures). Listen to me as I expound to thee what the rewards are that they attain to. The |
rewards are fixed of a hero belonging to a heroic race. There are heroes of sacrifice, heroes of self-restraint, heroes of truth, and |
others equally entitled to the name of hero. There are heroes of battle, and heroes of gift of liberality among men. There are |
many persons, who may be called the heroes of the Sankhya faith as, indeed, there are many others that are called heroes of |
Yoga. There are others that are regarded as heroes in the matter of forest-life, of householding or domesticity, and of |
renunciation (or Sannyasa). Similarly, there are others that are called heroes of the intellect, and also heroes of forgiveness. |
There are other men, who live in tranquillity and who are regarded as heroes of righteousness. There are diverse other kinds of |
heroes that practise diverse other kinds of vows and observances. There are heroes devoted to the study of the Vedas and |
heroes devoted to the teaching of the same. There are, again, men that come to be regarded as heroes for the devotion with |
which they wait upon and serve their preceptors, as indeed, heroes in respect of the reverence they show to their sires. There |
are heroes in respect of obedience to mothers, and heroes in the matter of the life of mendicancy they lead. There are heroes in |
the matter of hospitality to guests, whether living as householders. All these heroes attain to very superior, regions of felicity |
which are, of course, acquired by them as the rewards of their own acts. Holding all the Vedas in memory, or ablutions |
performed in all the sacred waters, may or may not be equal to telling the Truth every day in one's life. A thousand horse |
sacrifices and Truth were once weighed in the balance. It was seen that Truth weighed heavier than a thousand horse-sacrifices. |
It is by Truth that the sun is imparting heat, it is by Truth that fire blazes up, it is by Truth that the winds blow; verily, |
everything rests upon Truth. It is Truth that gratifies the deities, the Pitris and the Brahmanas. Truth has been said to be the |
highest duty. Therefore, no one should ever transgress Truth. The Munis are all devoted to Truth. Their prowess depends upon |
Truth. They also swear by Truth. Hence, Truth is pre-eminent. All truthful men, O chief of Bharata's race, succeed by their |
truthfulness in attaining to heaven and sporting there in felicity. Self-restraint is the attainment of the reward that attaches to |
Truth. I have discoursed on it with my whole heart. The man of humble heart who is possessed of self-restraint, without doubt, |
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