only on fruit, roots, and air, by devotion alone are CHAP. ' enabled to survey the three worlds, terrestrial,

' ethereal, and celestial, peopled with animal creatures, ' locomotive and fixed.

238. Perfect health, or unfailing medicines, divine 'learning, and the various mansions of deities, are acquired by devotion alone: their efficient cause is ' devotion.

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239. Whatever is hard to be traversed, whatever is hard to be acquired, whatever is hard to be 'visited, whatever is hard to be performed, all this may be accomplished by true devotion; for the difficulty of devotion is the greatest of all.

240. Even sinners in the highest degree, and of course the other offenders, are absolved from guilt by austere devotion well practised.

241. Souls, that animate worms, and insects, serpents, moths, beasts, birds, and vegetables, attain ' heaven by the power of devotion.

242. Whatever sin has been conceived in the hearts of men, uttered in their speech, or com'mitted in their bodily acts, they speedily burn it all away by devotion, if they preserve devotion as 'their best wealth.

243. Of a priest, whom devotion has purified, the divine spirits accept the sacrifices, and grant the ' desires with ample increase.

XI.

CHAP.

XI.

244. Even BRAHMA', lord of creatures, by devo⚫tion enacted this code of laws; and the sages by ' devotion acquired a knowledge of the Védas.

245. Thus the gods themselves, observing in this universe the incomparable power of devotion, have proclaimed aloud the transcendent excellence of pious austerity.

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246. By reading each day as much as possible of the Véda, by performing the five great sacraments, and by forgiving all injuries, even sins of the high'est degree shall be soon effaced:

247. As fire consumes in an instant with his bright flame the wood, that has been placed on it, thus, with the flame of knowledge, a Bráhmen, 'who understands the Véda, consumes all sin.

248. Thus has been declared, according to law, 'the mode of atoning for open sins: now learn the ' mode of obtaining absolution for secret offences.

249. SIXTEEN suppressions of the breath, while the 'holiest of texts is repeated with the three mighty 'words, and the triliteral syllable, continued each day for a month, absolve even the slayer of a 'Bráhmen from his hidden faults.

250. Even a drinker of spirituous liquors is ab'solved by repeating each day the text apa used by the sage CAUTSA, or that beginning with preti used

by VASISHT'HA, or that called máhitra, or that, of which the first word is suddhavatyah.

251. By

251. By repeating each day for a month the text CHAP. ásyavámíya, or the hymn Sivasancalpa, the stealer

of gold from a priest becomes instantly pure.

252. He, who has violated the bed of his pre'ceptor, is cleared from secret faults by repeating 'sixteen times a day the text havishyantiya, or that beginning with na tamanhah, or by revolving in his 'mind the sixteen holy verses, called Paurusha.

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253. The man, who desires to expiate his hidden 'sins great and small, must repeat once a day for a year the text ava, or the text yatcinchida.

254. He, who has accepted an illegal present, or eaten prohibited food, may be cleansed in three days by repeating the text taratsamandiya.

255. Though he have committed many secret sins, he shall be purified by repeating for a month the text sómáraudra, or the three texts áryamna, while he bathes in a sacred stream.

256. A grievous offender must repeat the seven verses, beginning with INDRA, for half a year; and he, who has defiled water with any impurity, must sit a whole year subsisting by alms.

257. A twice-born man, who shall offer clarified butter for a year, with eight texts appropriated to eight several oblations, or with the texts na mé, 'shall efface a sin even of an extremely high de

gree.

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258. He,

XI.

CHAP.

XI.

258. He, who had committed a crime of the first degree, shall be absolved, if he attend a herd of kine for a year, mortify his organs, and continually ' repeat the texts beginning with pávamání, living solely on food given in charity.

259. Or, if he thrice repeat a Sanhità of the Védas, or a large portion of them with all the mantras and brahmenas, dwelling in a forest with 'subdued organs, and purified by three parácas, he shall be set free from all sins how heinous soever.

260. Or he shall be released from all deadly sins, if he fast three days, with his members mortified, and twice a day plunge into water, thrice repeating the text aghamarshana:

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261. As the sacrifice of a horse, the king of sa'crifices, removes all sin, thus the text aghamarshana destroys all offences.

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262. A priest, who should retain in his memory 'the whole Rigvéda, would be absolved from guilt,

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even if he had slain the inhabitants of the three worlds, and had eaten food from the foulest hands.

263. By thrice repeating the mantras and bráhmenas of the Rich, or those of the Yajush, or those ' of the Sáman, with the upanishads, he shall per

fectly be cleansed from every possible taint:

264. As a clod of earth, cast into a great lake, sinks in it, thus is every sinful act submerged in the triple Véda.

265. The

XI.

265. The divisions of the Rich, the several CHAP. 'branches of the Yajush, and the manifold strains of 'the Sáman must be considered as forming the triple

Véda: he knows the Véda, who knows them collectively.

266. The primary triliteral syllable, in which the three Védas themselves are comprised, must be kept secret, as another triple Véda: he knows the Véda, "who distinctly knows the mystick sense of that word.'

CHAP.