18. The custom preserved by immemorial tradition CHAP.

in that country, among the four pure classes, and

among those which are mixed, is called approved

usage.

19.

Curueshétra, Matsya, Panchála, or Cányacubja, ' and Súraséna, or Mathurà, form the region called 'Brahmarshi, distinguished from Brahmáverta :

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20. From a Bráhmen who was born in that country, let all men on earth learn their several usages.

21. That country which lies between Himawat and Vindhya, to the east of Vinasana, and to the west ' of Prayaga, is celebrated by the title of Medhyadésa, or the central region.

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22. As far as the eastern, and as far as the west

ern oceans, between the two mountains just men'tioned, lies the tract which the wise have named Aryaverta, or inhabited by respectable men.

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23. That land, on which the black antelope natu

rally grazes, is held fit for the performance of sa'crifices; but the land of Mlech' has or those who speak barbarously, differs widely from it.

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24. Let the three first classes invariably dwell in those before-mentioned countries; but a Súdra, distressed for subsistence, may sojourn wherever he 'chuses.

25. Thus has the origin of law been succinctly

' declared

II.

CHAP. declared to you, together with the formation of this universe: now learn the laws of the several classes.

II.

26. WITH auspicious acts prescribed by the Veda, 'must ceremonies on conception, and so forth, be duly performed, which purify the bodies of the three ' classes in this life, and qualify them for the next.

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27. By oblations to fire during the mother's pregnancy, by holy rites on the birth of the child, by the tonsure of his head with a lock of hair left on it, by the ligation of the sacrificial cord, are the se'minal and uterine taints of the three classes wholly • removed:

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28. By studying the Veda, by religious observances, by oblations to fire, by the ceremony of Traividya, by offering to the Gods and Manes, by the procreation of children, by the five great sacraments, and by solemn sacrifices, this human body is rendered fit for a divine state.

cutting

29. Before the section of the navel string a ceremony is ordained on the birth of a male: he must 'be made, while sacred texts are pronounced, to taste

a little honey and clarified butter from a golden 6 spoon.

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30. Let the father perform or, if absent, cause to 'be performed, on the tenth or twelfth day after ihe birth, the ceremony of giving a name; or on some 'fortunate day of the moon, at a lucky hour, and under the influence of a star with good qualities

II.

31. The first part of a Bráhmen's compound name CHAP. ⚫ should indicate holiness; of a Cshatriya's, power; of a Vaisya's, wealth; and of a Súdra's, contempt

32. Let the second part of the priest's name imply prosperity; of the soldier's, preservation; of the merchant's, nourishment; of the servant's, humble 'attendance.

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33. The names of women should be agreeable, soft, clear, captivating the fancy, auspicious, ending in long

' vowels, resembling words of benediction.

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34. In the fourth month the child should be carried out of the house to see the sun: in the sixth

month, he should be fed with rice; or that may be done, which, by the custom of the family, is thought 'most propitious.

35. By the command of the Veda, the ceremony ' of tonsure should be legally performed by the three first classes in the first or third year after birth.

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36. In the eighth year from the conception of a • Brahmen, in the eleventh from that of a Cshatriya, and in the twelfth from that of a Vaisya, let the 'father invest the child with the mark of his class:

37. Should a Bráhmen, or his father for him, be desirous of his advancement in sacred knowledge;

a Cshatriya, of extending his power; or a Vaisya ' of engaging in mercantile business; the investiture may

E

CHAP. 6

II.

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

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 gayatrì, ' and contemned by the virtuous :

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.

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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.

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,

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

only; that of a Vaisya, of woollen thread.

45. A priest ought by law to carry a staff of Vilva or Palása; a soldier, of Vata or C'hadira; ' a merchant of Venu or Udumbara :

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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.

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

men,

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:

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.

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.

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

II.