the middle part of the night, and thus shall he continue until he can
say all the words which former Aethra-paitis have said.

"Before the boiling water publicly prepared, O Spitama Zarathustra! let
no one make bold to deny having received from his neighbor the ox or the
garment in his possession.

"Verily I say it unto thee, O Spitama Zarathustra! the man who has a
wife is far above him who lives in continence; he who keeps a house is
far above him who has none; he who has children is far above the
childless man; he who has riches is far above him who has none. And of
two men, he who fills himself with meat receives in him Vohu Mano much
better than he who does not do so; the latter is all but dead; the
former is above him by the worth of an Asperena, by the worth of a
sheep, by the worth of an ox, by the worth of a man. This man can strive
against the onsets of Asto-vidhotu; he can strive against the
well-darted arrow; he can strive against the winter fiend, with thinnest
garment on; he can strive against the wicked tyrant and smite him on the
head; he can strive against the ungodly fasting Ashemaogha.

"On the very first time when that deed has been done, without waiting
until it is done again, down there the pain for that deed shall be as
hard as any in this world: even as if one should cut off the limbs from
his perishable body with knives of brass, or still worse; down there the
pain for that deed shall be as hard as any in this world: even as if one
should nail his perishable body with nails of brass, or still worse;
down there the pain for that deed shall be as hard as any in this world:
even as if one should by force throw his perishable body headlong down a
precipice a hundred times the height of a man, or still worse; down
there the pain for that deed shall be as hard as any in this world: even
as if one should by force impale his perishable body, or still worse;
down there the pain for this deed shall be as hard as any in this world:
to-wit, the deed of a man, who, knowingly lying, confronts the
brimstoned, golden, truth-knowing water with an appeal unto Rashnu and a
lie unto Mithra."

O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! He who, knowingly lying,
confronts the brimstoned, golden, truth-knowing water with an appeal
unto Rashnu and a lie unto Mithra, what is the penalty that he shall
pay?

Ahura Mazda answered:--

"Seven hundred stripes with the Aspahe-astra, seven hundred stripes with
the Sr