मोक्षधर्म पर्व — त्यही विषय

Vyasa said The three-fold knowledge which occurs in the Vedas and their branches should be required. That knowledge is to be got from the Richs, the Samans, and the sciences called Varna and Akshara. There are besides, the Yajushas and the Atharvans. The Divine Being lives in the six sorts of acts indicated in these.

They who are well-read in the injunctions of the Vedas, who have knowledge of the Soul, who are attached to the quality of Goodness, and who are highly blessed, succeed in understanding the origin and the end of all things.

A Brahmana should follow the duties laid down in the Vedas. He should do all his works like a good man of controlled soul. He should acquire his livelihood without injuring any creature.

Having derived knowledge from the good and wise, he should govern his passions and desires. Well-versed in the scriptures, he should follow those duties which have been laid down for him, and do all works in this world guided by the qualities of goodness. Living even like a house-holder, the Brahmana should perform the six acts already spoken of.

With his heart full of faith, he should adore the deities in the five well-known sacrifices. Possessed of patience, ever vigilant, having self-control, conversant with duties, with a purified soul, divested of joy, pride, and anger, the Brahmana should never sink in langour.

Gifts, study of the Vedas, sacrifices, penances, modesty, guilelessness and selfcontrol,-these increase one's energy and dissipate one's sins.

One gifted with intelligence should be abstemious in diet and should conquer his senses. Indeed, having subdued both lust and anger and having dissipated all his sins, he should try to attain Brahina.

He should adore the Fire and Brahmanas, and bow to the gods. He should avoid all sorts of inauspicious talk, and all acts of unrighteous talk, and all acts of unrighteous injury.

This preliminary course of conduct is first sanctioned for a Brahmana. Subsequently, when knowledge comes, he should begin work, for success lies in works.

The Brahmana who is gifted with intelligence succeeds in crossing over the river of life that is so difficult to cross and so furious a and terrible, having the five senses for its waters, cupidity for its origin, and anger for its mire.

He should never overlook the fact that Time stands behind him in threatening mien,-Time who is the great stupefier of all things, and who is armed with a very great and irresistible force issuing from the great Creator himself.

Formed by the current of Nature, the universe is being ceaselessly carried along.

The powerful river of Time, overspread with eddies formed by the years, having the months for its waves and the seasons for its current, the fortnights for its floating straw and grass, and the rise and fall of the eyelids for its froth, the days and the nights for its water, and desire and lust for its dreadful crocodiles, the Vedas and sacrifices for its rafts, and the righteousness of creatures for its islands, and Profit and Pleasure for its springs, Truthfulness of Speech and Liberation for its shores, benevolence for the trees floating along it, and the Yugas for the lakes along its course.-the powerful river of Time-which has an origin as inconceivable as that of Brahma itself, is ceaselessly carrying away all beings created by the great Ordainer towards the adobe of Yaina.

Wise and patient persons always succeed in crossing over this dreadful river by engaging the rafts of knowledge and wisdom. What, however, can insensiate fools, destitute of similar rafts, do?

It is reasonable that only he that is wise should succeed in crossing this river and not the man of little understanding. The former sees from a distance the merits and faults of everything.

The man, however, of weak and little understanding, and whose soul is full of desire and cupidity, is always stricken with doubt. Hence, the man shorn of wisdom never succeeds in crossing over that stream. He also who sits inactively, can never cross it over.

The man shorn of the raft of wisdom in consequence of his having to bear the heavy burden of great faults, sinks down. One that is seized by the crocodile of desire, even if endued with knowledge, can never make knowledge his raft.

For these reasons the wise and intelligent {}}en should try to float over the stream of Time. He indeed, succeeds in keeping himself afloat who knows Brahma.

One born in a noble family, abstaining from the three duties of teaching, officiating at other's sacrifices, and accepting gifts, and doing only the three other acts, viz., studying, Sacrificing, and giving, should, for those reasons, try to float over the river. Such a man is sure to cross it over helped by the raft of wisdom.

One who is pure in conduct, who is selfcontrolled and observant of good vows, whose soul is under restraint, and who is endued with wisdom, certainly gains success in this and the other world.

The Brahmana living like a house-holder should conquer anger and envy, practise the virtues already named, and adoring the gods in the five sacrifices, eat after having fed the gods, Pitris, and guests.

He should perform those duties which are observed by the good; he should, do all his acts like a self-controlled person and he should without injuring any creature, earn his livelihood by following a course which is not censurable.

One who is well-read in the truths of the Vedas and the other branches of knowledge, whose conduct is like that of a person of wellgoverned soul, who is gifted with a clear vision, who follows the duties of his order, who does not by his acts make an intermixture of duties, who follows the observances laid down in the scriptures, who is endued with wisdom, who is shorn of envy and malice, and who is well conversant with the differences between righteous and iniquity, succeeds in overcoming all his difficulties.

That Brahmana who is gifted with fortitude, who is always careful, who is self-controlled who is conversant with righteousness, whose soul is under restraint, and who has gone over joy, pride, and anger, has never to languish in grief,

This is the course of conduct laid down in days of yore for a Brahmana. He should try to acquire knowledge, and do all the scriptural acts. By living thus, he is sure to acquire Success.

One who is not gifted with clear vision, does wrong even when one wishes to do right. By even exercising his judgement, such a person, does such acts of virtue as are wrong.

Desiring to do what is right one does what is wrong. Likewise desiring to do what is wrong, one does what is right. Such a person is a fool. Not knowing the two kinds of acts, one has to go through repeated re-births and deaths.