which are furnished by different
kinds of acts and measures. He should never depend upon destiny. One that
sees faults in faultless persons never succeeds in winning prosperity and
fame. When two friends engage in accomplishing one and the same act, a
wise man always applauds him among the two that takes upon himself the
heavier share of the work. Do thou practise these duties of kings that I
have told thee. Set thy heart upon the duty of protecting men. Thou mayst
then easily obtain the reward of virtue. All the regions of felicity
hereafter are dependent upon merit!"'"[361]

SECTION CXXI

"'Yudhishthira said, "O grandsire, thou hast now finished thy discourse
upon the duties of kings. From what thou hast said it seems that
Chastisement occupies a high position and is the lord of everything for
everything depends upon Chastisement. It seems, O puissant one, that
Chastisement, which is possessed of great energy and which is present
everywhere, is the foremost of all beings among either gods and Rishis
and high-souled Pitris and Yakshas and Rakshasas and Pisachas and
Sadhyas, or living beings in this world including beasts and birds. Thou
hast said that the entire universe, mobile and immobile, including gods,
Asuras, and men, may be seen to depend upon Chastisement. I now desire, O
bull of Bharata's race, to know truly who Chastisement is. Of what kind
is he? What is his form? What is his disposition? Of what is he made?
Whence is his origin? What are his features? What is his splendour? How
does he remain wakeful among living creatures so heedfully? Who is he
that remains eternally wakeful, protecting this universe? Who is he that
is known to be the foremost of all things? Who, indeed, is that high
personage called Chastisement? What is that upon which Chastisement
depends? And what is his course?"

"'Bhishma said, "Listen, O descendent of Kuru, who Chastisement is and why
he is called also Vyavahara! That upon whom all things depend is called
Chastisement. Chastisement is that by which righteousness is kept up. He
is sometimes called Vyavahara. In order that the righteousness of a king
that is heedfully awake may not suffer extinction (Chastisement has come
to be called by that name). It is for this reason that the name Vyavahara
becomes applicable to it.[362] In olden days Manu, O king, declared first
of all this truth, viz.,--'He who protects all creatures, the loved and
the odious equally, by impartially wie