at his eafe, while the household affairs àre • conducted by his fon.

96. When he thus has relinquished all forms, is intent on his own occupation, and free from every other defire, when, by devoting himself to GOD, he has effaced fin, he then attains the fu'preme path of glory.

97. THIS fourfold regulation for the facerdotal clafs, has thus been made known to you; a juft regulation, producing endlefs fruit after death next, learn the duty of kings, or the military class.'

CHAPTER THE SEVENTH.

On Government, and Publick Law; or on the Military Clafs.

1. I WILL fully declare the duty of kings; • and show how a ruler of men fhould conduct • himself, in what manner he was framed, and • how his ultimate reward may be attained by him.

2. By a man of the military clafs, who has • received in due form the inveftiture which the Véda prescribes, great care must be used to maintain this whole affemblage of laws.

3. Since, if the world had no king, it would quake on all fides through fear, the ruler of this universe, therefore, created a king, for the • maintenance of this fyftem, both religious and • civil,

4. Forming him of eternal particles drawn from the fubftance of INDRA, PAVANA, YAMA, SURYA, of AGNI and VARUNA, of CHANDRA and CUVERA:

5. And fince a king was compofed of parti<cles drawn from thofe chief guardian deities, he confequently furpaffes all mortals in glory.

6. Like the fun, he burns eyes and hearts; * nor can any human creature on earth even gaze 4 on him.

7. He is fire and air; he, both fun and moon; he, the god of criminal juftice; he, the genius of wealth; he, the regent of waters; he, the lord of the firmament.

8. A king, even though a child, muft not be treated lightly, from an idea that he is a mere mortal: no; he is a powerful divinity, who appears in a human shape.

9. • Fire burns only one perfon, who carelessly goes too near it; but the fire of a king in wrath burns a whole family, with all their cattle and goods.

10. Fully confidering the bufinefs before him, his own force, and the place, and the time, •he affumes in fucceffion all forts of forms, for the fake of advancing juftice.

II. He, fure, muft be the perfect effence of majefty, by whofe favour Abundance rifes on her lotos, in whofe valour dwells conqueft; in • whofe anger, death.

12. He, who fhews hatred of the king, through delufion of mind, will certainly perifh; for fpeedily will the king apply his heart to that 'man's perdition.

13. LET the king prepare a juft compenfa tion for the good, and a juft punishment for the bad: the rule of ftrict juftice let him never tranfgrefs.

14. For his ufe BRAHMA' formed, in the be ginning of time, the genius of punishment, with a body of pure light, his own fon, even abftract criminal juftice, the protector of all created things:

15. Through fear of that genius, all fentient beings, whether fixed or locomotive, are fitted for natural enjoyments and fwerve not from duty. 16. When

16. When the king, therefore, has fully confidered place and time, and his own ftrength, and the divine ordinance, let him justly inflict punishment on all those who act unjustly.

17. Punishment is an active ruler; he is the 'true manager of publick affairs; he is the difpenfer of laws; and wife men call him the fponfor of all the four orders for the discharge of their several duties.

18. Punishment governs all mankind; punish• ́ment alone preserves them; punishment wakes, while their guards are asleep; the wife confider punishment as the perfection of juftice.

19. • When rightly and confiderately inflicted, it makes all the people happy; but, inflicted without full confideration, it wholly deftroy's ' them all.

20. If the king were not, without indolence, to punish the guilty, the ftronger would roaft the weaker, like fifh, on a fpit; (or according to one reading, the ftronger would opprefs the weaker, like fish in their element ;)

21. The crow would peck the confecrated offering of rice; the dog would lick the clari'fied butter; ownership would remain with none; the lowest would overfet the higheft.

22. The whole race of men is kept in order by punishment; for a guiltlefs man is hard to be found; through fear of punishment, indeed, this univerfe is enabled to enjoy its bleffings;

23. Deities and demons, heavenly fungsters ⚫ and cruel giants, birds and ferpents, are made capable, by juft correction, of their feveral enjoyments.

24. All claffes would become corrupt; all • barriers

M

barriers would be deftroyed, there would be total confufion among men, if punishment either were not inflicted, or were inflicted unduly:

25. But where punishment, with a black hue and a red eye, advances to deftroy fin, there, if the judge difcern well, the people are undif • turbed.

26. Holy fages confider as a fit difpenfer of. criminal juftice, that king, who invariably speaks truth, who duly confiders all cafes, who underftands the facred books, who knows the diftinctions of virtue, pleasure, and riches;

27. Such a king, if he justly inflict legal punishments, greatly increases thofe three means of happiness; but punishment itself shall deftroy a king, who is crafty, voluptuous, and wrathful: 28. Criminal juftice, the bright effence of. majefty, and hard to be fupported by men with unimproved minds, eradicates a king, who fwerves from his duty, together with all his

· race:

29.

Punishment fhall overtake his caftles, his territories, his peopled land with all fixed and moveable things that exift on it: even the gods and the fages, who lose their oblations, will be afflicted and afcend to the sky.

30. Just punishment cannot be inflicted by C an ignorant and covetous king, who has no wife. and virtuous affiftant, whofe understanding has. ⚫ not been improved, and whofe heart is addicted to fenfuality:

31. By a king wholly pure, faithful to his promife, obfervant of the fcriptures, with good affiftants and found understanding may punishment be justly inflicted.

32.

• Let