Let him never despise a
warrior, a snake, or a priest. Let him never despise himself. Let him
say what is true and what is agreeable, but not disagreeable truth or
agreeable false-hood. Let him not dispute with anybody, but let him
say 'very well.' Let him not insult anybody. Remembering his former
births, and studying the Veda again and again, he gets endless
happiness. Let him avoid unbelief and censure of the Vedas, reviling
of gods, hatred, pride, anger, and cruelty. He that even threatens a
priest will go to the hell Darkness for one hundred years; if he
strikes him he will be born in twenty-one sinful rebirths (according
to another passage in the eleventh book he goes to hell for a thousand
years for the latter offence). Priests rule the world of gods. But
deceitful, hypocritical priests go to hell. Let the householder give
gifts, and he will be rewarded. One that gives a garment gets a place
in the moon; a giver of grain gets eternal happiness; a giver of the
Veda gets union with Brahm[=a] (_brahma_; these gifts, of course, are
all to priests). He that gives respectfully and he that receives
respectfully go to heaven; otherwise both go to hell. Let him, without
giving pain to any creature, slowly pile up virtue, as does an ant its
house, that he may have a companion in the next world. For after death
neither father, nor mother, nor son, nor wife, nor relations are his
companions; his virtue alone remains with him. The relations leave the
dead body, but its virtue follows the spirit: with his virtue as his
companion he will traverse the darkness that is hard to cross; and
virtue will lead him to the other world with a luminous form and
ethereal body. A priest that makes low connections is reborn as a
slave. The Father-god permits a priest to accept alms even from a bad
man. For fifteen years the Manes refuse to accept food from one that
despises a free gift. A priest that sins should be punished (that is,
mulcted, a priest may not be punished corporally), more than an
ordinary man, for the greater the wisdom the greater the offence. They
that commit the Five Great Sins live many years in hells, and
afterwards obtain vile births; the slayer of a priest becomes in turn
a dog, a pig, an ass, a camel, a cow, a goat, a sheep, etc, etc. A
priest that drinks intoxicating liquor becomes various insects, one
after another. A priest that steals becomes a spider, snake, etc, etc.
By repeating sinful acts men are reborn in pai