Chapter 78

“Yudhishthira said, ‘It has been said that in seasons of distress aBrahmana may support himself by the practice of Kshatriya duties. Can he,however, at any time, support himself by the practice of the duties laiddown for the Vaisyas?’

“Bhishma said, ‘When a Brahmana loses his means of support and falls intodistress, he may certainly betake himself to the practices of a Vaisyaand derive his support by agriculture and keeping cattle, if, of course,he is incompetent for Kshatriya duties.’

“Yudhishthira said, ‘If a Brahmana, O bull of Bharata’s race, betakeshimself to the duties of a Vaisya, what articles may he sell withoutlosing his prospect of heaven?’

“Bhishma said, ‘Wines, salt, sesamum seeds, animals having manes, bulls,honey, meat, and cooked food, O Yudhishthira, under all circumstances, aBrahmana should avoid. A Brahmana, by selling these, would sink intohell. A Brahmana, by selling a goat, incurs the sin of selling the god offire; by selling a sheep, the sin of selling the god of water; by sellinga horse, the sin of selling the god of the sun; by selling cooked food,the sin of selling land; and by selling a cow, the sin of sellingsacrifice and the Soma juice. These, therefore, should not be sold (by aBrahmana). They that are good do not applaud the purchase of uncookedfood by giving cooked food in exchange. Uncooked food, however, may begiven for procuring cooked food, O Bharata![234] ‘We will eat this cookedfood of thine. Thou mayst cook these raw things (that we give inexchange).’–In a compact of this kind there is no sin. Listen, OYudhishthira, I shall speak to thee of the eternal practice, existingfrom days of old, of persons conducting themselves according to approvedusages. ‘I give thee this. Give me this other thing in return.’ Exchangeby such agreement is righteous. To take things by force, however, issinful. Even such is the course of the usage followed by the Rishis andothers. Without doubt, this is righteous.’

“Yudhishthira said, ‘When, O sire, all the orders, giving up theirrespective duties, take up arms against the king, then, of course, thepower of the king decreases.–By what means should the king then becomethe protector and refuge of the people? Resolve this doubt of mine, Oking, by speaking to me in detail.’

“Bhishma said, ‘By gifts, by penances, by sacrifices, by peacefulness,and by self-restraint, all the orders headed by the Brahmanas should, onsuch occasions, seek their own good. Those amongst them that are enduedwith Vedic strength, should rise up on every side and like the godsstrengthening Indra contribute (by Vedic rites) to enhancing the strengthof the king. Brahmanas are said to be the refuge of the king while hispower suffers decay. A wise king seeks the enhancement of his power bymeans of the power of the Brahmanas. When the king, crowned with victory,seeks the re-establishment of peace, all the orders then betakethemselves to their respective duties. When robbers, breaking through allrestraints, spread devastation around, all the orders may take up arms.By so doing they incur no sin, O Yudhishthira!’

“Yudhishthira said, ‘If all the Kshatriyas become hostile towards theBrahmanas, who then will protect the Brahmanas and their Vedas? What thenshould be the duty of the Brahmanas and who will be their refuge?’

“Bhishma said, ‘By penances, by Brahmacharya, by weapons, and by(physical) might, applied with or without the aid of deceit, theKshatriyas should be subjugated. If the Kshatriya misconducts himself,especially towards Brahmanas, the Vedas themselves will subjugate them.The Kshatriyas have sprung from the Brahmanas. Fire has sprung fromwater; the Kshatriya from the Brahmana; and iron from stone. The energyof fire, the Kshatriya, and iron, are irresistible. But when these comeinto contact with the sources of their origin, their force becomesneutralised. When iron strikes stone, or fire battles with water, or theKshatriya becomes hostile to the Brahmana, then the strength of each ofthose three becomes destroyed. Thus, O Yudhishthira, the energy andmight, howsoever great and irresistible, of Kshatriyas become quelled assoon as they are directed against the Brahmanas. When the energy of theBrahmanas becomes mild, when Kshatriya energy becomes weak, when all menmisbehave themselves towards the Brahmanas, they that engage in battlethen, casting off all fear of death, for protecting the Brahmanas,morality, and their own selves,–those persons, moved by righteousindignation and possessed of great strength of mind, succeed in winninghigh regions of bliss hereafter. All persons should take up arms for thesake of Brahmanas. Those brave persons that fight for Brahmanas attain tothose felicitous region in heaven that are reserved for persons that havealways studied the Vedas with attention, that have performed theausterest of penances, and that have, after fasting, cast off theirbodies into blazing fires. The Brahmana, by taking up arms for the threeorders, does not incur sin. People say that there is no higher duty thancasting off life under such circumstances. I bow to them and blessed bethey that thus lay down their lives in seeking to chastise the enemies ofBrahmanas. Let us attain to that region which is intended for them. Manuhimself has said that those heroes repair to the region of Brahman. Aspersons become cleansed of all their sins by undergoing the final bath ona horse-sacrifice even so they that die at the edge of weapons whilefighting wicked people, become cleansed of their sins. Righteousnessbecomes unrighteousness, and unrighteousness becomes righteousness,according to place and time. Such is the power of place and time (indetermining the character of human acts). The friends of humanity, bydoing even acts of cruelty, have attained to high heaven. RighteousKshatriyas, by doing even sinful acts, have attained to blessedends.[235] The Brahmana, by taking up arms on these three occasions, doesnot incur sin, viz., for protecting himself, for compelling the otherorders to betake themselves to their duties, and for chastising robbers.’

“Yudhishthira said, ‘If when robbers raise their heads and aninter-mixture of the orders begins to take place in consequence ofconfusion, and Kshatriyas become incompetent, some powerful person otherthan a Kshatriya seeks to subdue those robbers for the sake of protectingthe people,[236] indeed, O best of kings, if that powerful person happensto be a Brahmana or a Vaisya or a Sudra, and if he succeeds in protectingthe people by righteously wielding the rod of chastisement is hejustified in doing what he does or is he restrained by the ordinancesfrom accomplishing that duty? It seems that others, when the Kshatriyasprove so wretched, should take up weapons.’

“Bhishma said, ‘Be he a Sudra or be he the member of any other orders, hethat becomes a raft on a raftless current, or a means of crossing wheremeans there are none, certainly deserves respect in every way. Thatperson, O king, relying upon whom helpless men, oppressed and mademiserable by robbers, live happily, deserve to be lovingly worshipped byall as if he were a near kinsman. The person, O thou of Kuru’s race, thatdispels the fears of others, always deserves respect. What use is thereof bulls that would not bear burthens, or of kine that would not yieldmilk, or of a wife that is barren? Similarly, what need is there for aking that is not competent to grant protection? As an elephant made ofwood, or a deer made of leather, as a person without wealth, or one thatis a eunuch, or a field that is sterile, even so is a Brahmana that isvoid of Vedic lore and a king incapable of granting protection? Both ofthem are like a cloud that does not pour rain. That person who alwaysprotects the good and restrains the wicked deserves to become a king andto govern the world.'”