Chapter 113

“Yudhishthira said, ‘Abstention from injury, the observance of the Vedicritual, meditation, subjugation of the senses, penances, and obedientservices rendered to the preceptors,–which amongst these is fraught withthe greatest merit with respect to a person?’

“Vrihaspati said, All these six are fraught with merit. They aredifferent doors of piety. I shall discourse upon them presently. Do thoulisten to them, O chief of the Bharatas! I shall tell thee whatconstitutes the highest good of a human being. That man who practises thereligion of universal compassion achieves his highest good. That man whokeeps under control the three faults, viz., lust, wrath, and cupidity, bythrowing them upon all creatures (and practises the virtue ofcompassion), attains to success[519]. He who, from motives of his ownhappiness, slays other harmless creatures with the rod of chastisement,never attains to happiness, in the next world. That man who regards allcreatures as his own self, and behaves towards them as towards his ownself, laying aside the rod of chastisement and completely subjugating hiswrath, succeeds in attaining to happiness. The very deities, who aredesirous of a fixed abode, become stupefied in ascertaining the track ofthat person who constitutes himself the soul of all creatures and looksupon them all as his own self, for such a person leaves no trackbehind.[520] One should never do that to another which one regards asinjurious to one’s own self. This, in brief, is the rule ofRighteousness. One by acting in a different way by yielding to desire,becomes guilty of unrighteousness. In refusals and gifts, in happinessand misery, in the agreeable, and the disagreeable, one should judge oftheir effects by a reference to one’s own self.[521] When One injuresanother, the injured turns round and injures the injurer. Similarly, whenone cherishes another, that other cherishes the cherisher. One shouldframe one’s rule of conduct according to this. I have told thee whatRighteousness is even by this subtile way.’

“Vaisampayana continued, ‘The preceptor of the deities, possessed ofgreat intelligence, having said this unto king Yudhishthira the just,ascended upwards for proceeding to Heaven, before our eyes.'”