Institutes of Vishnu — XXXVII.

XXXVII. | Internet Sacred Text ArchiveSacred Texts Hinduism Index Previous Next

# XXXVII.

1. 1.Setting one's self up by false statements (as by saying, 'I have done this,' or the like).

1. 1.Making statements, which will reach the ears of the king, regarding a (minor) offence committed by some one;

1. 1.Unjustly upbraiding a Guru (as by saying 'You have neglected such a household duty');

1. 1.Reviling the Veda;

1. 1.Forgetting the Veda texts, which one has studied;

1. 1.(Abandoning) one's holy fire, or one's father, mother, son, or wife;

[XXXVII. 1-34. M. XI, 56, 57, 60-67; Y. III, 228-230, 234-242; Âpast. I, 7, 21, 12-17; Gaut. XXI, 11.--35. M. XI, 118; Y. III, 265.

1. 1.'But if a man who does not know all the four Vedas says, in order to procure a valuable present or some other advantage, 'I know the four Vedas,' or if he says of another, his superior in caste or sacred knowledge, in order too prevent his receiving a valuable present, 'This man is no Brâhmana,' or 'He does not know anything,' in all such cases his crime is equal to the killing of a Brâhmana.' (Nand.)

1. 1.'But giving information of a heavy crime constitutes a crime equal to the killing of a Brâhmana.' (Nand.)

1. 1.Guru means 'father' here. Heavy reproaches, as e. g. if a son says to his father, 'You have made unequal shares in dividing the patrimony,' are equal to killing a Brâhmana. (Nand.)

1. 1.'But atheistical detracting from the authority of the Veda constitutes a crime equal to the drinking of spirituous liquor.' (Nand.)

1. 1.The use of the particle ka indicates that distant relatives are also intended here, as Yâgñavalkya, III, 239, states.' (Nand.)]

1. 1.Eating the food of those whose food may not be eaten, or forbidden food;

1. 1.Appropriating to one's self (grain, copper, or other) goods of another man (but not his gold);

1. 1.Sexual intercourse with another man's wife;

1. 1.Sacrificing for persons for whom it is forbidden to sacrifice (such as Sûdras, persons for whom the initiation has not been performed, and the like);

1. 1.To live by a forbidden occupation (as, if a Brâhmana lives by the occupation of a Kshatriya, or of a Vaisya).

1. 1.Receiving unlawful presents;

1. 1.Killing a Kshatriya, or a Vaisya, or a Sûdra, or a cow;

1. 1.Selling articles that ought not to be sold (such as salt, lac, or others);

1. 1.For an elder brother to suffer his younger brother to marry before him;

1. 1.For a younger brother to marry, though his elder brother is not yet married;

1. 1.To give a girl in marriage to either of those two (categories of offenders);

1. 1.Or to perform the nuptial ceremony for them;

1. 1.To allow the proper time for the ceremony of initiation to pass without being initiated;

[10. 'But sacrificing for an outcast is a high crime.' (Nand.)

1. 1.This rule refers to receiving presents from an outcast or other person, whose gifts must not be accepted, to receiving improper gifts, such as a ram, or a black antelope, and to receiving presents at an improper place, such as Kurukshetra, or at an improper time, such as during an eclipse of the sun. The particle ka further refers to giving instruction to those who are not entitled to receive it, as Yama mentions. (Nand.)]

1. 1.To teach the Veda for a reward (unless it be in an emergency);

1. 1.To be taught by one who teaches the Veda for a reward (unless it be in an emergency);

1. 1.To be employed (by the king's order) in the working of mines of any sort (whether gold mines, or silver mines, or others, or manufactories);

1. 1.To make large (sharp) instruments (such as instruments for piercing an elephant's car);

1. 1.Cutting trees, shrubs, creepers, long climbing plants (such as vines), or herbs;

1. 1.Living by (prostituting) one's own wife;

1. 1.Trying to overcome another by incantations (tending to kill him), or by forcible means;

1. 1.Performing the act (of cooking) for one's own sole benefit;

1. 1.Not to have kindled one's own sacred fire;

1. 1.Omitting to pay one's debts to the gods, Rishis, and manes (or sacrificing, study of the Veda, and propagation of one's race);

1. 1.Studying irreligious books;

1. 1.Atheism;

1. 1.Subsisting by a reprehensible art (such as dancing);

1. 1.Intercourse with women who drink spirits;

1. 1.Thus have the crimes in the fourth degree been enumerated.

[20. it is true that the above definition of an Upâdhyâya (XXIX, 2) implies that teaching the Veda for a fee is no reprehensible act; but that permission has reference to cases of distress only. (Nand.)

1. 1.Nand. asserts that the particle ka is used here in order to include the performance of an Ahîna sacrifice and of the other sinful acts mentioned by Manu, XI, 198.

1. 1.Atheism (nâstikatâ) consists in denying the existence of another life. (Nand.)]

1. 1.Such criminals in the fourth degree shall perform the Kândrâyana or Parâka penances, or shall sacrifice a cow (as the case may require).

Next: XXXVIII.