Chapter 7: On Government, and Public Law; or on the Military Class

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

2. 1 By a man of the military class, who has received in due form the investiture, which the Vdda prescribes, great care must be used to maintain the whole assemblage of laws.

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

4. * Forming him of eternal particles drawn from the substance of Indra, Pavana, Yama, Su'rya, of Agni and Varuna, of Chandra and Cuve'ra :

5. 4 And since a king was composed of particles drawn from those chief guardian deities, he consequently surpasses all mortals in glory.

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

7. ‘ Pie is fire and air ; he, both sun and moon ; he, the god of criminal justice ; he, the genius of wealth ; he, the regent of waters ; he, the lord of the firmament.

8. ‘ A king, even though a child, must 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 person, who carelessly goes too near it ; but the fire of a kjng« in wrath burns a whole family, with all their cattle and goods. * OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS.

10. ‘Fully considering the business before him, his own force, and the place, and the time, he assumes in succession all sorts of forms, for the sake of advancing justice.

11. ‘ He, sure, must be the perfect essence of majesty, by whose favour Abundance rises on her lotos, in whose valour dwells conquest ; in whose anger, death.

12. ‘He, who shows hatred of the king, through delusion of mind, will certainly perish ; for speedily will the king apply his heart to that man’s perdition.

13. ‘ Let the king prepare a just compensation for the good, and a just punishment for the bad : the rule of strict justice let him never transgress.

14. ‘For his use Brahma' formed in the beginning of time the genius of punishment, with a body of pure light, his own son, even abstract criminal justice, the protector of all created things :

15. ‘ Through fear of that genius all sentient beings, whether fixed or locomotive, are fitted for natural enjoyments and swerve not from duty.

16. ‘ When the king, therefore, has fully considered place and time, and his own strength, 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 public affairs ; he is the dispenser of laws ; and wise men call him the sponsor of all the four orders for the discharge of their several duties.

18. ‘ Punishment governs all mankind ; punishment alone preserves them ; punishment wakes, while their guards are asleep : the wise consider punishment as the perfection of justice.

19. ‘ When rightly and considerately inflicted, it makes all the people happy ; but, inflicted without full consideration, it wholly destroys them all.

20. ‘ If the king were not, without indolence, to punish the guilty, the stronger would roast the weaker, like fish, on a spit ; (or> according to one readings tha stronger would oppress the weaker, like fish in their clement ;) ON GOVERNMENT , AND PUBLIC LAW;

21. ‘ The crow would peck the consecrated offering of vice ; the dog would lick the clarified butter ; ownership would remain with none ; the lowest would overset the highest.

22. ‘ The whole race of men is kept in order by punishment ; for a guiltless man is hard to be found : through fear of punishment, indeed, this universe is enabled to enjoy its blessings :

23. * Deities and demons, heavenly songsters and cruel giants, birds and serpents, are made capable, by just correction, of their several enjoyments.

24. ‘ All classes would become corrupt ; all barriers would be destroyed, there would be total confusion among men, if punishment cither were not inflicted, or were inflicted unduly :

25. 4 But where punishment, with a black hue and a red eye, advances to destroy sin, there, if the judge discern well, the people are undisturbed.

26. * Holy sages consider as a fit dispenser of criminal justice, that king, who invariably speaks truth, who duly considers all cases, who understands the sacred books, who knows the distinctions of virtue, pleasure, and riches ;

27. c Such a king, if he justly inflict legal punishments, greatly increases those three means of happiness ; but punishment itself shall destroy a king, who is crafty, voluptuous, and wrathful :

28. ‘Criminal justice, the bright essence of majesty, and hard to be supported by men with unimproved minds, eradicates a king, who swerves from his duty, together with all his, race :

29. * Punishment shall overtake his castles, his territories, his peopled land with all fixed and all moveable things, that exist on it : even the gods and the sages, who lose their oblations , will be afflicted and ascend to the sky.

30. * Just punishment cannot be inflicted by an ignorant and covetous king, who has no wife and virtuous assistant, whose understanding has not been improved, and whose heart is addicted to sensuality :

31. ‘By a king, wholly pure, faithful to his promise, observant of the scriptures, with good assistants and sound understanding, may punishment be justly inflicted. OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS.

532. ‘Let him in his own domains act with justice, chastise foreign foes with rigour, behave without duplicity to his affectionate •friends, and with lenity to Brdhmens.

33. ‘ Of a king thus disposed, even though he subsist by gleaning, or, be his treasure ever so small , the fame is far spread in the world, like a drop of oil in water ;

34. ‘ But of a king with a contrary disposition, with passions unsubdued, be his riches ever so great , the fame is contracted in the world, like clarified butter in the same clement.

35. 1 A king was created as the protector of all those classes and orders, who, from the first to the last, discharge their several duties ;

36. ‘ And all, that must be done by him, for the protection of his people, with the assistance of good ministers, I will declare to you, as the law directs, in due order.

37. ‘ Let the king, having risen at early dawn, respectfully attend to Brdhmens , learned in the three Vedas, and in the science of ethics ; and by their decision let him abide.

38. ‘ Constantly must he show respect to Brdhmensy who have grown old, both in years and in piety , who know the scriptures, who in body and mind are pure ; for he, who honors the aged, will perpetually be honored even by cruel demons :

39. * From them, though he may have acquired modest behaviour by his own good sense and by study , let him continually learn habits afv modesty and composure; since a king, whose demeanour is humble and composed, never perishes.

40. ‘ While, through want of such humble virtue, many kings have perished with all their possessions, and, through virtue united with modesty, even hermits have obtained kingdoms.

41. ‘Through want of that virtuous humility Ve'na was utterly^ ruined, and so was the great king Nahusiia, and Sudasa, and YAVANA (or, by a different reading , and SUDASA, the son of Piyavana), and Sumac’ha, and Nimi ;

42. ‘ But, by virtues with hurhble behaviour, Prit IIU and Menu acquired sovereignty ; CuvEhfA, wealth inexhaustible ; 126 ON GOVERNMENT , AND PUBLIC LAW ; and Viswa'mitra, son of Ga'dhi, the rank of a priest, though bom in the military class. <*

43. * From those, who know the three V4das> let him learn the tripple doctrine comprised in them, together with the primeval science of criminal justice and sound policy, the system of logic and metaphysics, and sublime theological truth : from the people he must learn the theory of agriculture , commerce , and other practical arts.

44. ‘ Day and night must he strenuously exert himself to gain complete victory over his own organs ; since that king alone, whose organs are completely subdued, can keep his people firm to their duty.

45. 4 With extreme care let him shun eighteen vices, ten proceeding from love of pleasure, eight springing from wrath, and all ending in misery ;

46. ‘ Since a king, addicted to vices arising from love of pleasure, must lose both his wealth and his virtue, and, addicted to vices arising from anger, he may lose even his life from the public resentment \

47. * Hunting, gaiming, sleeping by day, censuring rivals, excess with women, intoxication, singing, instrumental music, dancing, and useless travel, are the tenfold set of vices produced by love of pleasure :

48. ‘Talebearing, violence, insidious wounding, envy, detraction, unjust seizure of property, reviling, and oven assault, are in like manner the eightfold set of vices, to which anger gives birth.

49. ‘ A selfish inclination, which all wise men know to be the root of those two sets, let him suppress with diligence : both sets of vices are constantly produced by it.

50. ‘ Drinking, dice, women, and hunting, let him consider as the four most pernicious in the set, which love of pleasure occasions:

51. ‘Battery, defamation, and injury to property, let him always consider as the three most heinous in the set, which arises from wrath ; ‘

52. 1 And in thissevenfold assemblage o£ vices, too frequently OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS. prevailing in all kingdoms, let an enlightened prince consider the first, and so forth in order, as the most abominable in each set. 53- 1 On a comparison between death and vice, the learned pronounce vice the more dreadful ; since, after death, a vicious man sinks to regions lower and lower, while a man, free from vice, reaches heaven.

54. * The king must appoint seven or eight ministers, who must be sworn by touching a sacred image and the like ; men, whose ancestors were servants of kings ; who are versed in the holy books ; who are personally brave ; who are skilled in the use of weapons ; and whose lineage is noble.

55. * Even an act easy in itself is hard sometimes to be performed by a single man, especially if he have no assistant near : how much harder )nnst it be to perform alone the business of a kingdom with great revenues !

56. ‘Let him perpetually consult with those ministers on peace and war, on his forces, on his revenues, on the protection of his people, and on the means of bestowing aptly the wealth, which he has acquired :

57. * Having ascertained the several opinions of his counsellors, first apart and then collectively, let him do what is most beneficial for him in public affairs.

58. ‘To one learned Brdhmen , distinguished among them all, let the king impart his momentous counsel, relating to six prmcipal article.?.

59. 4 To him, with full confidence, let him intrust all transactions ; and with him, having taken his final resolution, let him begin all his measures.

60. 1 He must likewise appoint other officers ; men of integrity, well informed, steady, habituated to gain wealth by honorable means, and tried by experience.

61. ‘As many officers as the due performance of his business requires, not slothful men, but activey able, and well instructed, so many, and no more, let him appoint.

62. ‘ Among those let him employ tjie brave, the skilful, the ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW; welborn, and the honest, In h Is mihes of gold or gems> and in other similar works for amassing wealth ; but the pusillanimous, in the recesses of his palace.

63. 4 Let him likewise appoint an ambassador versed in all the Sdstrasy who understands hints, external signs, and actions, whose hand and heart are pure, whose abilities are great, and whose birth was illustrious :

64. * That royal ambassador is applauded most, who is generally beloved, pure within and without, dexterous in business, and endued with an excellent memory ; who knows countries and times, is handsome, intrepid, and eloquent.

65. ‘The forces of the realm must be immediately regulated by, the commander-in-chief ; the actual infliction of punishment, by the officers of criminal justice ; the treasury and the country, by the king himself ; peace and war, by the ambassador ;

66. 4 For it is the ambassador alone, who unities, who alone disjoins the united ; that is, he transacts the business, by which kingdoms are at variance or in amity.

67. 4 In the transaction of affairs let the ambassador comprehend the visible signs and hints, and discover the acts, of the foreign king, by the signs, hints, and acts of his confidential servants, and the measures, which that king wishes to take, by the character and conduct of his ministers.

68. ‘ Thus, having learned completely from his ambassador all the designs of the foreign prince, let the king so apply his vigilant care, that he brings no evil on himsel-f. J

69. 4 Let him fix his abode in a district containing open champaigns ; abounding with grain; inhabited chiefly by the virtuous ; not infected with maladies ; beautiful to the sight ; surrounded by submissive mountaineers , foresters , or other neighbours; a country, in which the subjects may live at ease.

70. 4 There let him reside in a capital, having, by way cof a fortress, a desert rather more than twenty miles round it , or a fortress of earth, a fortress of water, or of tress, a fortress of armed men, or a fortress of mountains. t

71. ‘With all possible* care let him secure a fortress of OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS, mountains ; for, among thdse just mentioned, a fortress of mountains ; has many transcendent properties.

72. ‘ In the three first of them live wild beasts, vermin, and aquatic animals ; in the three last, apes, men, and gods, in order as they are named :

73. 4 As enemies hurt them not in the shelter of their several abodes, thus foes hurt not a king, who has taken refuge in his durga, or place of difficult access .

74. ‘ One bowman, placed on a wall, is a match in war for a hundred enemies ; and a hundred, for ten thousand ; therefore is a fort recommended.

75. 4 Let that fort be supplied with weapons, with money, with grain, with beasts, with Brahmens , with artificers, with engines, with grass, and wit|i water.

76. 4 In the centre of it let him raise his own palace, well finished in all its parts, completely defended, habitable in every season, brilliant with white stucco , surrounded with water and trees :

77. 4 Having prepared it for his mansion, let him choose a contort of the same class with himself, endued with all the bodily marks of excellence, born of an exalted race, captivating his heart, adorned with beauty and the best qualities.

78. 4 He must appoint also a domestic priest, and retain a performer of sacrifices, who may solemnize the religious rites of his family, and those performed with three sacred fires.

79. ‘ Let the king make sacrifices, accompanied with gifts of many different kinds ; and for the full discharge of his duty, let him give the Brdkmens both legal enjoyments and moderate wealth.

80. 4 His annual revenue he may receive from his whole dominion through his collectors ; but let him in this world observe the divine ordinances ; let him act as a father to his people.

81. 4 Here and there he fnust appoint many sorts of intelligent supervisors, who may inspect all the acts of the officers engaged ill his business.

82. 4 To Brdhmens returned from the mansions of their preceptors, let him show due respect ; for that is called a precious unperishable gem, deposited by kings with the sacerdotal class ; ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW; gj. 4 It is a gem, which neither thieves or foes take away ; which never perishes : kings must, therefore, deposit with Brdhmens that indestructible jewel of respectful presents .

84. 1 An oblation in the mouth, or hand \ of a Brdhmen , is far better than offerings to holy fire : it never dries ; it is never consumed.

85. 1 A gift to one not a Brdhmen produces fruit of a middle standard ; to one, who calls himself a Brdhmeni double ; to a well read Brdhmen , a hundred thousand fold ; to one, who has read all the Vedas , infinite.

86. ‘ Of a gift, made with faith in the Sdstra , to a person highly deserving it, the giver shall indubitably gain the fruit after death, be'the present small or great.

87. 1 A KING, while he protects his people, being defied by an enemy of equal, greater, or less force, must by no means turn his face from battle, but must remember the duty of his military class :

88. 4 Never to recede from combat, to protect the people, and to honour the priests, is the highest duty of kings and insures • their felicity.

89. 4 Those rulers of the earth, who, desirous of defeating each other, exert their utmost strength in battle, without ever averting their faces, ascend after death directly to heaven.

90. 4 Let no man, engaged in combat, smite his foe with sharp weapons concealed in wood , nor with arrow^jfdschievously barbed, nor with poisoned arrows, nor with darts blazing with fire ;

91. 4 Nor let him in a car or on horseback, strike his enemy alighted on the ground ; nor an effeminate (nan ; nor one, who sues for life with closed palms ; nor one, whose hair is loose and obstructs fight ; nor one, who sits down fatigued ; nor one, who says w I am thy captive #

92. 4 Nor one, who sleeps ; nor one, who had lost his coat of mail ; nor one, who is naked ; nor one, who is disarmed ; nor one, who is a spectator, but not a combatant ; nor one, v ho is fighting with another man : * /r on the military class. *31

93. ‘ Cafe to mind the duty of honourable men, let him never slay or who has broken his weapon ; nor one, who is afflicted with jvate sorrow ; nor one, who has been grievously wounded ; n^fne, who is terrified ; nor one, who turns his back. /

94. * T/soldier, indeed, who, fearing and turning his back, happens to j slain by his foes in an engagement, shall take upon himself all tjsin of his commander, whatever it be ;

95. * the commander shall take to himself the fruit of all the good coquet, which the soldier, who turns his back and is killed, had previojy stored up for a future life.

96. ^RS, horses, elephants, umbrellas, habiliments, except the jewels whijmay adorn them> grain, cattle, women, all sorts of liquids and metal except gold and silver, are the lawful prizes of the man who take^hem in* war ;

97. (But of those prizes the captors must lay the most valuable beforthe king ; such is the rule in the Vtda concerning them ; and the Ling should distribute among the whole army what has not beeneparately taken.

98. Thus has been declared the blameless primeval law for military nen : from this law a king must never depart, when he attacks Is foes in battle.

99. i‘ What he has not gained from his foe , let him strive to gain ; ufiat he has acquired, let him preserve with care ; what he preserv^', let him augment ; and what he has augmented, let him bestow _,cn, the deserving. iodj c This is the fourfold rule, which he must consider as the sure ‘means of attaining the great object of man, happiness; and let pim practise it fully without intermission, without indolence\

101. !f What he has not gained, let him strive to gain by miliary strength; what he has acquired, let him preserve by careful inspection ; what he has preserved, let him augment by legal modes of increase ; and what he has augmented, let him dispense with just liberality.

102. ‘ Let ^his troops be constantly exercised ; his prowess, 132 ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLlUw ■ constantly displayed ; what he ought to secure, istantly secured ; and the weakness of his foe, constantly investigat

103. ‘ By a king, whose forces are alwayeady for action, the whole world may be kept in awe ; let him en, by a force always ready, make all creatures living his own.

104. c Let him act on all occasions without ge, and never with insincerity ; but, keeping himself ever on hguard, let him discover the fraud intended by his foe.

105. ‘ Let not his enemy discern his vulneole part, but the vulnerable part of his enemy let him well discti : like a tortoise, let him draw in his members under the shell of oncealmcnt, and diligently let him repair any breach, that may be^adc in it.

106. ‘Like a heron, let him muse on gainingdvantagcs ; like a lion, let him put forth his strength ; like a wolf, \ him creep towards his prey ; like a hare, let him double to secure is retreat.

107. ‘When he thus has prepared himself for inquest, let him reduce all opposers to submission by negotiator and three other expedients, namely, presents, division , and force ofnns :

108. ‘ If they cannot be restrained by the three firs methods, then let him, firmly but gradually, bring them to sujection by military force.

109. ‘Among those four modes of obtaining success the wife prefer negotiation and war for the exaltation of kingdom. no. ‘ As a husbandman plucks up weeds and pregrves his corn, thus let a king destroy his opponents and secure >eople. in. ‘ That king, who, through weakness of * intellet, rashly oppresses his people, will, together with his family, bq deprived both of kingdom and life ;

112. ‘ As, by the loss of bodily sustenance, the lives f animated beings are destroyed, thus, by the distress of kingdoms* ire destroyed even the lives of kings. %

113. ‘ FOR the sake of protecting his dominions, let the king perpetually observe the following rules ; for, by protecting his dominions, he will increase his own happiness. e

114. 4 Let him place, as the protectors of h^s realm, a comOR .ON THE MILITARY CLASS. *33 pany of guards, commanded by an approved officer, over two, three, five, or a hundred districts, according to their extent,

115. * Let him appoint a lord of one town with its district, a lord of ten towns, a lord of twenty, a lord of a hundred, and a lord of a thousand.

116. ‘ Let the lord of one town certify of his own accord to the lord of ten towns any robberies , tumults , or other evils, which arise in his district, and which he cannot suppress ; and the lord of ten, to the lord of twenty :

117. ‘ Then let the lord of twenty towns notify them to the lord of a hundred ; and let the lord of a hundred transmit the information himself to the lord of a thousand townships. •*

118. 4 Such food, drink, wood, and other articles, as by law should be given each day to the king by the inhabitants of the township, let the lord of one town receive as his perquisite :

119. 4 Let the lord of ten towns enjoy the produce of two ploughlands, or as much ground as can be tilled with two ploughs , each drawn by six bulls ; the lord of twenty, that of five ploughlands ; the lord of a hundred, that of a village or small town ; the lord of a thousand, that of a large town.

120. 4 The affairs of those townships , either jointly or separately transacted, let another minister of the king inspect ; who should be well affected, and by no means remiss.

121. ‘ In every large town or city, let him appoint one superintendent of all affairs, elevated in rank, formidable in power, distinguished as a planet amongs stars :

122. ‘ Let that governor from time to time survey all the rest in person, and, by means of his emissaries, let him perfectly know their conduct in their several districts.

123. * Since the servants of the king, whom he has appointed guardians of districts, are generally knaves, who seize what belongs to other men, from such knaves let him defend his people :

124. 1 Of such evilminded servants, as wring wealth from subjects. attending them on business, let the king confiscate all the possessions, and banish them from his realm, >34 ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW;

125. ‘ For women, employed in the service of the king , and for his whole set of menial servants, let him daily provide a maintenance, in proportion to their station and to their work :

126. ‘ One pana of copper must be given each day as wages to the lowest servant, with two cloths for apparel every half year, and a drdna of grain every month ; to the highest must be given wages in the ratio of six to one .

127. * Having ascertained the rates of purchase and sale, the length of the way, the expences of food and of condiments, the charges of securing the goods carried, and the net profits of trade, let the king oblige traders to pay taxes on their saleable commodities : 12SI * After full consideration, let a king so levy those taxes continually in his dominions, that both he and the merchant may receive a just compensation for their several acts.

129. ‘As the leech, the suckling calf, and the bee, take their natural food by little and little, thus must a king draw from his dominions an annual revenue.

130. ‘ Of cattle, of gems, of gold and silver, added each year to the capital stock , a fiftieth part may be taken by the king ; of grain, an eighth part, a sixth, or a twelfth, accordbig to the difference of the soil , and the labour necessary to cultivate it.

131. ‘ He may also take a sixth part of the clear annual increase of trees, fleshmeat, honey, clarified butter, perfumes, medical substances, liquids, flowers, roots, and fruit,

132. ‘ Of gathered leaves, potherbs, graasj—utensils made with leather or cane, earthen pots, and all things made of stone.

133. ‘A king, even though dying with want , must not receive any tax from a Brdhmen learned in the Vedas , nor suffer such a Brdhmeny residing in his territories, to be afflicted with hunger :

134. ‘ Of that king, in whose dominion a learned Brdhmen is afflicted with hunger, the whole kingdom will in a short time be afflicted with famine.

135. * The king, having ascertained his knowledge of scripture and good morals, must allot chim a suitable maintenance, and protect him on all sides, *as a father protects his own son : OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS. i35

136. * By that religious duty, which such a Brdhnten performs each day, under the full protection of the sovereign, the life, wealth and dominions of his protector shall be greatly increased.

137. ‘ Let the king order a mere trifle to be paid, in the name of the annual tax, by the meaner inhabitants of his realm, who subsist by petty traffic :

138. 4 By low handicraftsmen, artificers, and servile men, who support themselves by labour, the king may cause work to be done for a day in each month.

139. 4 Let him not cut up his own root by taking no revenue , nor the root of other men by excess of covetousness ; for, by cutting up his own root and theirs , he makes both himself and them wretched.

140. 4 Let him, considering the diversity of cases, be occasionally sharp and occasionally mild, since a king duly sharp and mild, becomes universally approved.

141. 4 When tired of overlooking the affairs of men, let him assign the station of such an inspector to a principal minister, who well knows his duty, who is eminently learned, whose passions are subdued, and whose birth is exalted.

142. ‘Thus must he protect his people, discharging, with great exertion and without languor, all those duties, which the law requires him to perform.

143. * That monarch, whose subjects are carried from his kingdom by ruffians, while they call aloud for protection, and he barely looks on them with his ministers, is a dead, and not a living, king.

144. ‘ The highest duty of a military man is the defence of his people, and the king, who receives the consideration just mentioned, is bound to discharge that duty.

45. 1 HAVING risen in the last watch of the night, his body being pure, and his mind attentive, having made oblations to fire, and shown due respect to the priests, let him enter his hall decently splendid :

146. 4 Standing there, let him gratify his subjects, before he 136 ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW; dismiss them, with kind looks and words ; and, having dismissed them all, let him take secret council with his principal ministers :

147. ‘ Ascending up the back of a mountain, or going privately to a terrace, a bower, a forest, or a lonely place, without listeners, let him consult with them unobserved.

148. * That prince, of whose weighty secrets all assemblies of men are ignorant, shall attain dominion over the whole earth, though at first he possess no treasure.

149. ‘ At the time of consultation, let him remove the stupid, the dumb, the blind, and the deaf, talking birds, decrepit old men, women, and infidels, the diseased and the maimed ;

150. 4 Since those, who are disgraced in this life by reason of sins formerly committed , are apt to betray secret council ; so are talking birds ; and so above all are women : them he must, for that reason, diligently remove.

151. 4 At noon or at midnight, when his fatigues have ceased, and his cares are dispersed, let him deliberate, with those ministers or alone, on virtue, lawful pleasure, and wealth ;

152. ‘On the means of reconciling the acquisition of them, when they oppose each other ; on bestowing his daughters in marriage, and on preserving his sons from evil by the best education ;

153. ‘On sending ambassadors and messengers; on the probable events of his measures ; on the behaviour of his women in the private apartment ; and on the acts even of his own emissaries.

154. ‘ On the whole eightfold business-of kings, relating to the revenue , to their expences, to the good or bad conduct of their ministers , to legislation in dubious cases , to civil and criminal justice , and to expiations for crimes , let him reflect with the greatest attention ; on his five sorts of spies, or active and artful youths , degraded anchorets , distressed husbandmen , decayed merchants , and fictitious penitent s% whom he must pay and see privately ; on the good will or enmity of his neighbours , and on the state of the circumjacent countries.

155. ‘ On the conduct of that foreign prince, who has moderate strength equal to one ordinary foe , but no match for two ; on the designs of him, who is willjng: and able to be a conqueror ;on the OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS. 137 condition of him, who is pacific, but a match even for the former unallied; and on that of his natural enemy, let him sedulously meditate ;

156. 1 Those four powers, who, in one word, are the root or principal strength of the countries round him, added to eight others, who are called the branches, and are as many degrees of allies and opponents variously distinguished \ are declared to be twelve chief objects of the royal \ consideration ;

157. ‘And five other heads, namely, their ministers, their territories, their strong holds, their treasuries, and their armies, being applied to each of those twelve , there are in all, together with them, seventy two foreign objects to be carefully investigated .

158. ‘Let the king consider as hostile to him the power immediately beyond him, and favourer of that power ; as amicable, the power next beyond his natural foe ; and as neutral, the powers beyond that circle ;

159. ‘All those powers let him render subservient to his interest by mild measures and the other three expedients before mentioned, either separate or united, but principally by valour and policy in arms and negotiation.

160. ‘Let him constantly deliberate on the fix measures of a military prince, namely , waging war, and making peace or alliance, marching to battle, and sitting encamped, distributing his forces, and seeking the protection of a more powerful monarch :

161. ‘ Having considered the posture of affairs, let him occasionally apply to it the measure of sitting inactive, or of marching to action, of peace, or of war, of dividing his force, or of seeking protection.

162. ‘A king must know, that there are two sorts of alliance and war ; two, of remaining encamped, and of marching ; two, likewise^of dividing his army, and of obtaining protection from anther power.

163. c The two sorts of alliance, attended with present and' future advantages, are held to be tftose, when he acts in conjunction with his ally, and when he acts apart frotri him, ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW; «

164. ‘War is declared to be of two sorts; when it is Waged for an injury to himself, and when it is waged for an injury to his ally, with a view to harass the enemy both in season and out of season.

165. * Marching is of two sorts, when destructive acts are done at his own pleasure by himself apart, or when his ally attends him.

166. ‘The two sorts of sitting encamped are, first, when he has been gradually weakened by the divine power, or by the operation of past sins, and, secondly , when to favour his ally, he remains in his camp.

167. ‘ A detachment commanded by the king in person, and a detachment commanded by a general officer, for the purpose of carrying some important point, are declared by those, who well know the fix measures, to be the two modes of dividing his army.

168. ‘ The two modes of seeking protection, that his powerful support may be proclaimed in all countries, are, first, when he wishes to be secure from apprehended injury, and, next , when his enemies actually assail him.

169. ‘ When the king knows with certainty, that at some future time his forces will be greatly augmented, and when, at the time present, he sustains little injury, let him then have recourse to peaceful measures ;

170. ‘ But, when he sees all his subjects considerably firm in strength, and feels himself highly exalted in power, let him protect his dominions by war.

171. ‘When he perfectly knows his own troops to be cheerful and well supplied, and those of his enemy quite the reverse, let him eagerly march against his foes ;

172. ‘But, when he finds himself weak' in beasts of burden and in troops, let him then sit quiet in camp, using great attention, and pacifying his enemy by degrees. *.

173. ‘ When a king sees his foes stronger in all respects than himself, let him detach a part of his army, to keep the enemy amused, and secure his own safety in an ikaccessible place ;

174. ‘But, when he is in all places assailable by the hostile OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS. ,39 troops, let him speedily seek the protection of a just and powerful monarch. 175 ‘ Him, who can keep in subjection both his own subjects and his foes, let him constantly sooth by all sorts of attentive respect, as he would honour his father, natural or spiritual. l7^ But if, even in that situation, he find such protection a cause of evil, let him alone, though weak, wage vigorous war without fear. 1 77* ‘ By all these expedients let a politic prince act with such wisdom, that neither allies, neutral powers, nor foes, may gain over him any great advantage.

178. 1 Perfectly let him consider the state of his kingdom both actually present and probably future, with the good and bad parts of all his actions : •

179. ‘That king shall never be overcome by his enemies, who foresees the good and evil to ensue from his measures ; who, on present occasions, takes his resolution with prudent speed, and who weighs the various events of his past conduct.

180. 1 Let him so arrange all his affairs, that no ally, neutral prince, or enemy, may obtain any advantage over him : this, in few words, is the sum of political wisdom.

181. ‘ WHEN the king begins his march against the domains of his foe, let him gradually advance, in the following manner, against the hostile metropolis.

182. * Let him set out on his expedition in the fine month of Margasirska , or about the month of Phalguna and Chaitra , according to the number of his forces, that he may find autumnal or vernal crops in the country invaded by him :

183. ‘ Even in other seasons, when he has a clear prospect of victory, and when any disaster has befallen his foe, let him advance with*the greater part of his army.

184. ‘ Having made a due arrangement of affairs in his own dominions, and a disposition fit for his enterprise, having provided all things necessary for his continuance in the foreign realm, and having seen all his spies dispatched with propriety, ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW ;

185. ' Having secured the "three* sort of ways, over water , on plains y and through forestst and placed his sixfold army, elephants , cavalry , cars, infantry , officerst and attendants , in complete military form, let him proceed by fit journies toward the metropolis of his enemy.

186. ‘Let him be much on his guard against every secret friend in the service of the hostile prince, and against emissaries, who go and return ; for in such friends he may find very dangerous foes.

187. ‘ On his march let him form his troops, either like a staff, or in an even column ; like a wain, or in a wedge with the apex foremost ; like a boar, or in a rhomb with the van and rear narrow and the qentre broad ; like a Macara or sea monster, that is , in a double triangle with apices joined ; like a needle ; or in a long line ; or like the bird of Vishnu, that is , in a rhomboid with the wings far extended :

188. * From whatever side he apprehends danger, to that side let him extend his troops, and let him always conceal himself in the midst of a squadron formed like a lotos flower.

189. 1 Let him cause his generals and the chief commander under himself to act in all quarters ; and from whatever side he perceives a design of attacking him, to that side let him turn his front.

190. 4 On all sides let him station troops of soldiers, in whom he considers, distinguished by known colours and other marks ; who are excellent both in sustaining a charge, and in charging, who are fearless and incapable of desertion.

191. ‘ Let him at his pleasure order a few men to engage in a close phalanx, or a large number of warriors in loose ranks ; and, having formed them in a long line like a needle, or in three divisions like a thunderbolt, let him give orders for battle.

192. ‘On a plain, let him with his armed cars and hi rses ; on watery places, with manned boats and elephants ; on ground full of trees and shrubs, with bows ; on cleared ground, with swords and targets, and other weapons, *

193. ‘ Men born in Curucshttra , near Indraprest'ha> in Matsya , OR ON THE MILITARY CLASS. ,4, or Virdta, m Panchdla <5r Cdnyacubja, and in StirasAia, in the district oiMat'kurd, let him cause to engage in the van ; and men, born m other countries , who are tall and light. I94« ‘Let him, when he has formed his troops in array, encourage them with short animated speeches ; and then, let him try them completely : let him know likewise, how his men severally exert themselves, while they charge the foe.

195. * If he block up his enemy, let him sit encamped, and lay waste the hostile country ; let him continually spoil the grass, water, and wood of the adverse prince.

196. ‘ Pools, wells, and trenches let him destroy : let him harass the fpe by day, and alarm him by night.

197. 4 Let him secretly bring over to his party all such leaders as he can safely bring over ; let him be informed of all, that his enemies are doing ; and when a fortunate moment is offered by heaven, let him give battle, pushing on to conquest and abandoning fear :

198. ‘Yet he should be more sedulous to reduce his enemy by negotiation, by well applied gifts, and by creating divisions, using either all or some of those methods, than by hazarding at any time a decisive action,

199. ‘Since victory or defeat are not surely foreseen on either side, when two armies engage in the field ; let the king then, if other expedients prevail , avoid a pitched battle ;

200. 4 But, should there be no means of applying the three before-mentioned expedients, let him, after due preparation, fight so valiantly, that his enemy may be totally routed.

201. ‘Having conquered a country, let him respect the deities adored in it, and their virtuous priests ; let him also distribute largesses to the people , and cause a full exemption from terror to bp loudly proclaimed.

202. ‘ When he has perfectly ascertained the conduct and intentions of all the vanquished, let him fix in that country a prince of the royal race, and give^iim precise instructions.

203. ‘ Let him establish the laws.of the conquered nation as ON GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC LAW; declared in their books ; and let him gratify the new prince with gems and other precious gifts .

204. ‘The seizure of desirable property, though it cause hatred, and the donation of it, though it cause love, maybe laudable or blameable on different occasions :

205. ‘ All this conduct of human affairs is considered as dependent on acts ascribed to the deity, and on acts ascribed to men ; now the operations of the deity cannot be known by any intenseness of thought, but those of men may be clearly discovered.

206. ‘ Or the victor, considering an ally, territory, and wealth as the triple fruit of conquest, may form an alliance with the vanquished prince, and proceed in union with him, using deligent circumspection.

207. ‘He should pay due attention to the prince, who supported his cause, and to any other prince in the circumjacent region, who checked that supporter, so that, both from a wellwisher and from an opponent, he may secure the fruit of his expedition.

208. ‘ By gaining wealth and territory a king acquires not so great an increase of strength, as by obtaining a firm ally, who, though weak, may hereafter be powerful.

209. ‘ That ally, though feeble, is highly estimable, who knows the whole extent of his duties, who gratefully remembers benefits, whose people are satisfied, or> who has a gentle nature , who loves his friend, and perseveres in his good resolutions.

210. ‘Him have the sages declared an enemy hard to be subdued, who is eminently learned, of a noble race, personally brave, dexterous in management, liberal, grateful, and firm.

211. ‘ Goodnature, knowledge of mankind, valour, benignity of heart, and incessant liberality, are the assemblage of virtues, which adorn a neutral prince, whose amity must be courted. *

212. ‘Even a salubrious and fertile country, where cattle continually increase, let a king abandon without hesitation for the sake of preserving himself : «

213. ‘ Against misfortune, let him preserve his wealth ; at the OR .ON THE MILITARY CLASS. I43 expence of his wealth, let him preserve his wife ; but let him at all events preserve himself even at the hazard of his wife and riches.

214. 1 A wise prince, who finds every sort of calamity rushing violently upon him, should have recourse to all just expedients, united or separate : J

215. * Let him consider the business to be expedited, the expedients collectively, and himself who must apply them ; and, taking refuge completely in those three, let him strenuously labour for his own prosperity.

216. ‘Having consulted with his ministers, in the manner before prescribed, on all this mass of public affairs ; having used exercise becoming a warrior, and having bathed after it, let the king enter at noon his private apartments for the purpose of taking food. 217* There let him eat lawful aliment, prepared by servants attached to his person, who know the difference of times and are incapable of perfidy, after it has been proved innocent by certain experiments, and hallowed by texts of the Vtda repulsive of poison.

218. ‘ Together with all his food let him swallow such medical subtances as resist venom ; and let him constantly wear with attention such gems, as are known to repel it.

219. * Let his females, well tried and attentive, their dress and ornaments having been examined, lest some weapon should be concealed in them, do him humble service with fans, water, and perfumes :

220. ‘ Thus let him take diligent care, when he goes out in a carriage or on horseback, when he lies down to rest, when he sits, when he takes food, when he bathes, anoints his body with odorous essences, and puts on hll his habiliments.

221. ‘After eating, let him divert himself with his women in the recesses of his palace ; and, having idled a reasonable time, let him again think of public affairs :

222. ‘When he has dressed himself completely, let him once more review his armed men, with aH their elephants, horses, and cars, their accoutrements, and weapons. ON GOVERNMENT , AND PUBLIC LAW;

223. * At sunset, having performed his religious duty, let him privately, but well armed, in his interior apartment, hear what has been done by his reporters and emissaries :

224. ‘ Then, having dismissed those informers, and returning to another secret chamber, let him go, attended by women, to the inmost recess of his mansion for the sake of the evening meal ;

225. 1 There, having a second time eaten a little, and having been recreated with musical strains, let him take rest early, and rise refreshed from his labour.

226. * This perfect system of rules let a king, free from illness, observe ; but, when really afflicted with disease, he may intrust all these affairs to his officers.’