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may be made in the fifth, sixth, or eighth years respectively.

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38. The ceremony of investiture hallowed by the gayatri must not be delayed, in the case of a priest, beyond the sixteenth year; nor in that of a soldier, beyond the twenty-second; nor in that of a merchant, beyond the twenty-fourth.

39. After that, all youths of these three classes, who have not been invested at the proper time, become vrátyas, or outcasts, degraded from the gáyatrì, ' and contemned by the virtuous :

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40.

With such impure men, let no Bráhmen, even in distress for subsistence, ever form a connexion in law, either by the study of the Veda, or by affinity.

41. Let students in theology wear for their mantles, the hides of black antelopes, of common deer, or of goats, with lower vests of woven sana, of cshumà, and of wool, in the direct order of their ' classes.

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42. The girdle of a priest must be made of munja, in a triple cord, smooth and soft; that of a 'warriour must be a bow string of múrvá; that of a 'merchant, a triple thread of sana.

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43. If the munja be not procurable, their zones must be formed respectively of the grasses cusa asmántaca, valvaja, in triple strings, with one, three, or five knots, according to the family custom.

44. The

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44. The sacrificial thread of a Bráhmen must be CHAP. 'made of cotton, so as to be put on over his head,

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in three strings; that of a Cshatriya, of sana thread

only; that of a Vaisya, of woollen thread.

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46. The staff of a priest must be of such a length as to reach his hair; that of a soldier, to reach his 'forehead; and that of a merchant, to reach his nose.

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47. Let all the staves be straight, without fracture, of a handsome appearance, not likely to terrify men, with their bark perfect, unhurt by fire.

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48. Having taken a legal staff to his liking, and standing opposite to the sun, let the student thrice 'walk round the fire from left to right, and perform, according to law, the ceremony of asking food:

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49. The most excellent of the three classes, being girt with the sacrificial thread, must ask food with 'the respectful word bhavati, at the beginning of the phrase; those of the second class, with that word in the middle; and those of the third, with that word at the end.

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50. Let him first beg food of his mother, or of his sister, or of his mother's whole sister; then of

some other female who will not disgrace him.

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51. Having collected as much of the desired food E 2

II.

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CHAP. as he has occasion for, and having presented it without guile to his preceptor, let him eat some

II.

' of it, being duly purified, with his face to the east:

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52. If he seek long life, he should eat with his face to the east; if exalted fame, to the south; if prosperity, to the west; if truth and its reward, to 'the north.

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53. Let the student, having performed his ablution, always eat his food without distraction of mind; and, having eaten, let him thrice wash his mouth six hollow completely, sprinkling with water the 'parts of his head, or his eyes, ears, and nostrils.

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54. Let him honour all his food, and eat it without contempt; when he sees it, let him rejoice and be calm, and pray that he may always obtain it.

55. Food, eaten constantly with respect, gives muscular force and generative power; but, eaten irreverently, destroys them both.

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56. He must beware of giving any man what he leaves; and of eating any thing between morning and evening he must also beware of eating too much, ' and of going any whither with a remnant of his food unswallowed.

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57 Excessive eating is prejudicial to health, to

fame, and to future bliss in Heaven; it is injurious to

'virtue, and odious among men he must, for these

reasons, by all means avoid it.

6 58. Let

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58. Let a Bráhmen at all times perform the ablu- CHAP. 'tion with the pure part of his hand denominated 'from the Veda, or with the part sacred to the Lord ' of creatures, or with that dedicated to the Gods; ' but never with the part named from the Pitris:

59. The pure part under the root of the thumb is 'called Brahma, that at the root of the little finger, Caya; that at the tips of the fingers, Daiva; and

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the part between the thumb and index Pitrya.

60. Let him first sip water thrice; then twice wipe his mouth; and lastly touch with water the six be'fore mentioned cavities, his breast, and his head.

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61. He who knows the law and seeks purity will ever perform his ablution with the pure part of his hand, and with water neither hot nor frothy, standing in a lonely place, and turning to the east or the • north.

62. A Bráhmen is purified by water that reaches his bosom; a Cshatriya, by water descending to his throat; a Vaisya, by water barely taken into his 'mouth; a Súdra, by water touched with the extremity of his lips.

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63. A youth of the three highest classes is named upavítí, when his right hand is extended for the cord to pass over his head and be fixed on his left shoulder; when his left hand is extended, that the thread may be placed on his right shoulder, he is

'called

CHAP.

II.

'called práchínávítí; and nivítí, when it is fastened on ' his neck.

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64. His girdle, his leathern mantle, his staff, his sacrificial cord, and his ewer, he must throw into the water, when they are worn out or broken, and receive others hallowed by mystical texts.

65. The ceremony of césánta, or cutting off the hair, is ordained for a priest in the sixteenth year from conception; for a soldier, in the twenty-second; for a merchant, two years later than that.

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66. The same ceremonies, except that of the sacrificial thread, must be duly performed for women the same age and in the same order, that the body may be made perfect; but without any text from the • Veda:

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67. The nuptial ceremony

is considered as the complete institution of women, ordained for them in the Véda, together with reverence to their husbands, dwelling first in their father's family, the business of the house, and attention to sacred fire.

68. Such is the revealed law of institution for the twice born; an institution in which their second birth clearly consists, and which causes their advancement in holiness now learn to what duties they must afterwards apply themselves.

69. THE venerable preceptor, having girt his pupil with the thread. must first instruct him in purifica

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