%
 That man who by the study of these maxims from the satras
 acquires a knowledge of the most celebrated principles
 of duty, and understands what ought and what ought not
 to be followed, and what is good and what is bad, is
 most excellent.
%
 Therefore with an eye to the public good, I shall speak
 that which, when understood, will lead to an understanding
 of things in their proper perspective.
%
 Even a pandit comes to grief by giving instruction to a
 foolish disciple, by maintaining a wicked wife, and by
 excessive familiarity with the miserable.
%
 A wicked wife, a false friend, a saucy servant and living
 in a house with a serpent in it are nothing but death.
%
 One should save his money against hard times, save his
 wife at the sacrifice of his riches, but invariably one
 should save his soul even at the sacrifice of his wife
 and riches.
%
 Save your wealth against future calamity. Do not say,
 "What fear has a rich man, of calamity?" When riches begin
 to forsake one even the accumulated stock dwindles away.
%
 Do not inhabit a country where you are not respected,
 cannot earn your livelihood, have no friends, or cannot
 acquire knowledge.
%
 Do not stay for a single day where there are not these
 five persons: a wealthy man, a brahmin well versed in
 Vedic lore, a king, a river and a physician
%
 Wise men should never go into a country where there are
 no means of earning one's livelihood, where the people
 have no dread of anybody, have no sense of shame, no
 intelligence, or a charitable disposition.
%
 Test a servant while in the discharge of his duty,
 a relative in difficulty, a friend in adversity, and a
 wife in misfortun.
%
 He is a true friend who does not forsake us in time of
 need, misfortune, famine, or war, in a king's court,
 or at the crematorium (smasana).
%
 He who gives up what is imperishable for that which
 is perishable, loses that which is imperishable; and
 doubtlessly loses that which is perishable also.
%
 A wise man should marry a virgin of a respectable family
 even if she is deformed. He should not marry one of a
 low-class family, through beauty. Marriage in a family
 of equal status is preferable.
%
 Do not put your trust in rivers, men who carry weapons,
 beasts with claws or horns, women, and members of a
 royal family
%
 Even from poison extract nectar, wash and take back gold
 if it has fallen in filth, receive the highest knowledge
 (Krsna consciousness) from a low born person; so also a
 girl possessing virtuous qualities (stri-ratna) even if
 she were born in a disreputable family.
%
 Women have hunger two-fold, shyness four-fold, daring
 six-fold, and lust eight-fold as compared to men.
%
 Untruthfulness, rashness, guile, stupidity, avarice,
 uncleanliness and cruelty are a woman's seven natural
 flaws.
%
 To have ability for eating when dishes are ready at
 hand, to be robust and virile in the company of one's
 religiously wedded wife, and to have a mind for making
 charity when one is prosperous are the fruits of no
 ordinary austerities.
%
 He whose son is obedient to him, whose wife's conduct is
 in accordance with his wishes, and who is content with
 his riches, has his heaven here on earth.
%
 They alone are sons who are devoted to their father. He
 is a father who supports his sons. He is a friend in whom
 we can confide, and she only is a wife in whose company
 the husband feels contented and peaceful.
%
 Avoid him who talks sweetly before you but tries to ruin
 you behind your back, for he is like a pitcher of poison
 with milk on top.
%
 Do not put your trust in a bad companion nor even trust
 an ordinary friend, for if he should get angry with you,
 he may bring all your secrets to light.
%
 Do not reveal what you have thought upon doing, but by
 wise counsel keep it secret, being determined to carry
 it into execution.
%
 Foolishness is indeed painful, and verily so is youth,
 but more painful by far than either is being obliged in
 another person's house.
%
 There does not exist a pearl in every mountain, nor a
 pearl in the head of every elephant; neither are the
 sadhus to be found everywhere, nor sandal trees in
 every forest.
[Note: Only elephants in royal palaces are seen decorated
with pearls (precious stones) on their heads].  
%
 Wise men should always bring up their sons in various
 moral ways, for children who have knowledge of niti-sastra
 and are well behaved become a glory to their family.
%
 Those parents who do not educate their sons are their
 enemies; for as is a crane among swans, so are ignorant
 sons in a public assembly
%
 Many a bad habit is developed through over indulgence,
 and many a good one by chastisement, therefore beat your
 son as well as your pupil; never indulge them. ("Spare
 the rod and spoil the child."
%
 Let not a single day pass without your learning a verse,
 half a verse, or a fourth of it, or even one letter of
 it; nor without attending to charity, study and other
 pious activity.
%
 Separation from the wife, disgrace from one's own people,
 an enemy saved in battle, service to a wicked king,
 poverty, and a mismanaged assembly: these six kinds of
 evils, if afflicting a person, burn him even without fire
%
 Trees on a riverbank, a woman in another man's house,
 and kings without counsellors go without doubt to swift
 destruction.
%
 A brahmin's strength is in his learning, a king's strength
 is in his army, a vaishya's strength is in his wealth
 and a shudra's strength is in his attitude of service
%
 The prostitute has to forsake a man who has no money,
 the subject a king that cannot defend him, the birds a
 tree that bears no fruit, and the guests a house after
 they have finished their meals.
%
 Brahmins quit their patrons after receiving alms from
 them, scholars leave their teachers after receiving
 education from them, and animals desert a forest that
 has been burnt down.
%
 He who befriends a man whose conduct is vicious,
 whose vision impure, and who is notoriously crooked,
 is rapidly ruined.
%
 Friendship between equals flourishes, service under a king
 is respectable, it is good to be business-minded in public
 dealings, and a handsome lady is safe in her own home.
%
 In this world, whose family is there without blemish? Who
 is free from sickness and grief? Who is forever happy?
%
 A man's descent may be discerned by his conduct, his
 country by his pronunciation of language, his friendship
 by his warmth and glow, and his capacity to eat by
 his body.
%
 Give your daughter in marriage to a good family, engage
 your son in learning, see that your enemy comes to grief,
 and engage your friends in dharma. (Krsna consciousness).
%
 Of a rascal and a serpent, the serpent is the better of
 the two, for he strikes only at the time he is destined
 to kill, while the former at every step.
%
 Therefore kings gather round themselves men of good
 families, for they never forsake them either at the
 beginning, the middle or the end.
%
 At the time of the pralaya (universal destruction) the
 oceans are to exceed their limits and seek to change,
 but a saintly man never changes.
%
 Do not keep company with a fool for as we can see he is
 a two-legged beast. Like an unseen thorn he pierces the
 heart with his sharp words.
%
 Though men be endowed with beauty and youth and born in
 noble families, yet without education they are like the
 palasa flower, which is void of sweet fragrance.
%
 The beauty of a cuckoo is in its notes, that of a woman
 in her unalloyed devotion to her husband, that of an
 ugly person in his scholarship, and that of an ascetic
 in his forgiveness.
%
 Give up a member to save a family, a family to save a
 village, a village to save a country, and the country to
 save yourself.
%
 There is no poverty for the industrious. Sin does not
 attach itself to the person practicing japa (chanting of
 the holy names of the Lord). Those who are absorbed in
 maunam (silent contemplation of the Lord) have no quarrel
 with others. They are fearless who remain always alert.
%
What is too heavy for the strong and what place is
too distant for those who put forth effort? What country
is foreign to a man of true learning? Who can be inimical
to one who speaks pleasingly?  
%
 As a whole forest becomes fragrant by the existence of
 a single tree with sweet-smelling blossoms in it, so a
 family becomes famous by the birth of a virtuous son.
%
 As a single withered tree, if set aflame, causes a
 whole forest to burn, so does a rascal son destroy a
 whole family.
%
 As night looks delightful when the moon shines, so is a
 family gladdened by even one learned and virtuous son.
%
 What is the use of having many sons if they cause grief
 and vexation? It is better to have only one son from whom
 the whole family can derive support and peacefulness.
%
 Fondle a son until he is five years of age, and use the
 stick for another ten years, but when he has attained
 his sixteenth year treat him as a friend.
%
 He who runs away from a fearful calamity, a foreign
 invasion, a terrible famine, and the companionship of
 wicked men is safe.
%
 He who has not acquired one of the following: religious
 merit (dharma), wealth (artha), satisfaction of desires
 (kama), or liberation (moksa) is repeatedly born to die
%
 Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth, comes of Her own accord
 where fools are not respected, grain is well stored up,
 and the husband and wife do not quarrel.
%
 These five: the life span, the type of work, wealth,
 learning and the time of one's death are determined while
 one is in the womb.
%
 Offspring, friends and relatives flee from a devotee of
 the Lord: yet those who follow him bring merit to their
 families through their devotion.
%
 Fish, tortoises, and birds bring up their young by means
 of sight, attention and touch; so do saintly men afford
 protection to their associates by the same means.
%
 As long as your body is healthy and under control and
 death is distant, try to save your soul; when death is
 imminent what can you do?
%
 Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields
 in all seasons. Like a mother, it feeds you on your
 journey. Therefore learning is a hidden treasure.
%
 A single son endowed with good qualities is far better
 than a hundred devoid of them. For the moon, though one,
 dispels the darkness, which the stars, though numerous,
 cannot.
%
 A stillborn son is superior to a foolish son endowed with
 a long life. The first causes grief for but a moment while
 the latter like a blazing fire consumes his parents in
 grief for life.
%
 Residing in a small village devoid of proper living
 facilities, serving a person born of a low family,
 unwholesome food, a frowning wife, a foolish son, and a
 widowed daughter burn the body without fire.
%
 What good is a cow that neither gives milk nor
 conceives? Similarly, what is the value of the birth of
 a son if he becomes neither learned nor a pure devotee
 of the Lord?
%
 When one is consumed by the sorrows of life, three things
 give him relief: offspring, a wife, and the company of
 the Lord's devotees.
%
 Kings speak for once, men of learning once, and the
 daughter is given in marriage once. All these things
 happen once and only once.
%
 Religious austerities should be practiced alone, study by
 two, and singing by three. A journey should be undertaken
 by four, agriculture by five, and war by many together.
%
 She is a true wife who is clean (suci), expert, chaste,
 pleasing to the husband, and truthful.
%
 The house of a childless person is a void, all directions
 are void to one who has no relatives, the heart of a fool
 is also void, but to a poverty-stricken man all is void.
%
 Scriptural lessons not put into practice are poison;
 a meal is poison to him who suffers from indigestion; a
 social gathering is poison to a poverty-stricken person;
 and a young wife is poison to an aged man.
%
 That man who is without religion and mercy should be
 rejected. A guru without spiritual knowledge should be
 rejected. The wife with an offensive face should be given
 up, and so should relatives who are without affection.
%
 Constant travel brings old age upon a man; a horse becomes
 old by being constantly tied up; lack of sexual contact
 with her husband brings old age upon a woman; and garments
 become old through being left in the sun.
%
 Consider again and again the following: the right time,
 the right friends, the right place, the right means of
 income, the right ways of spending, and from whom you
 derive your power.
%
 For the twice born the fire (Agni) is a representative
 of God. The Supreme Lord resides in the heart of His
 devotees. Those of average intelligence (alpa-buddhi
 or kanista-adhikari) see God only in His sri-murti,
 but those of broad vision see the Supreme Lord everywhere.
%
 Agni is the worshipable person for the twice born; the
 brahmana for the other castes; the husband for the wife;
 and the guest who comes for food at the midday meal
 for all.
%
 As gold is tested in four ways by rubbing, cutting,
 heating and beating -- so a man should be tested by these
 four things: his renunciation, his conduct, his qualities
 and his actions.
%
 A thing may be dreaded as long as it has not overtaken
 you, but once it has come upon you, try to get rid of it
 without hesitation.
%
 Though persons be born from the same womb and under the
 same stars, they do not become alike in disposition as
 the thousand fruits of the badari tree.
%
 He whose hands are clean does not like to hold an office;
 he who desires nothing cares not for bodily decorations;
 he who is only partially educated cannot speak agreeably;
 and he who speaks out plainly cannot be a deceiver.
%
 The learned are envied by the foolish; rich men by the
 poor; chaste women by adulteresses; and beautiful ladies
 by ugly ones
%
 Indolent application ruins study; money is lost when
 entrusted to others; a farmer who sows his seed sparsely
 is ruined; and an army is lost for want of a commander.
%
 Learning is retained through putting into practice;
 family prestige is maintained through good behaviour;
 a respectable person is recognised by his excellent
 qualities; and anger is seen in the eyes.
%
 Religion is preserved by wealth; knowledge by diligent
 practice; a king by conciliatory words; and a home by a
 dutiful housewife.
%
 Those who blaspheme Vedic wisdom, who ridicule the life
 style recommended in the satras, and who deride men of
 peaceful temperament, come to grief unnecessarily.
%
 Charity puts and end to poverty; righteous conduct to
 misery; discretion to ignorance; and scrutiny to fear.
%
 There is no disease (so destructive) as lust; no enemy
 like infatuation; no fire like wrath; and no happiness
 like spiritual knowledge.
%
 A man is born alone and dies alone; and he experiences
 the good and bad consequences of his karma alone; and he
 goes alone to hell or the Supreme abode.
%
 Heaven is but a straw to him who knows spiritual life
 (Krsna consciousness); so is life to a valiant man; a
 woman to him who has subdued his senses; and the universe
 to him who is without attachment for the world.
%
 Learning is a friend on the journey; a wife in the house;
 medicine in sickness; and religious merit is the only
 friend after death.
%
 Rain which falls upon the sea is useless; so is food for
 one who is satiated; in vain is a gift for one who is
 wealthy; and a burning lamp during the daytime is useless.
%
 There is no water like rainwater; no strength like one's
 own; no light like that of the eyes; and no wealth more
 dear than food grain.
%
 The poor wish for wealth; animals for the faculty of
 speech; men wish for heaven; and godly persons for
 liberation.
%
 The earth is supported by the power of truth; it is the
 power of truth that makes the sunshine and the winds blow;
 indeed all things rest upon truth.
%
 The Goddess of wealth is unsteady (chanchala), and so
 is the life breath. The duration of life is uncertain,
 and the place of habitation is uncertain; but in all this
 inconsistent world religious merit alone is immovable.
%
 Among men the barber is cunning; among birds the crow;
 among beasts the jackal; and among women, the malin
 (flower girl).
%
 These five are your fathers; he who gave you birth,
 girdled you with sacred thread, teaches you, provides
 you with food, and protects you from fearful situations.
%
 These five should be considered as mothers; the king's
 wife, the preceptor's wife, the friend's wife, your wife's
 mother, and your own mother.
%
 By means of hearing one understands dharma, malignity
 vanishes, knowledge is acquired, and liberation from
 material bondage is gained.
%
 Among birds the crow is vile; among beasts the dog; the
 ascetic whose sins is abominable, but he who blasphemes
 others is the worst chandala.
%
Brass is polished by ashes; copper is cleaned by
tamarind; a woman, by her menses; and a river by its
flow.  
%
 The king, the brahmana, and the ascetic yogi who go
 abroad are respected; but the woman who wanders is
 utterly ruined.
%
 He who has wealth has friends. He who is wealthy has
 relatives. The rich one alone is called a man, and the
 affluent alone are respected as pandits
%
 As is the desire of Providence, so functions one's
 intellect; one's activities are also controlled by
 Providence; and by the will of Providence one is
 surrounded by helpers.
%
 Time perfects all living beings as well as kills them;
 it alone is awake when all others are asleep. Time is
 insurmountable.
%
 Those born blind cannot see; similarly blind are those in
 the grip of lust. Proud men have no perception of evil;
 and those bent on acquiring riches see no sin in their
 actions.
%
 The spirit soul goes through his own course of karma
 and he himself suffers the good and bad results thereby
 accrued. By his own actions he entangles himself in
 samsara, and by his own efforts he extricates himself.
%
 The king is obliged to accept the sins of his subjects;
 the purohit (priest) suffers for those of the king;
 a husband suffers for those of his wife; and the guru
 suffers for those of his pupils.
%
 A father who is a chronic debtor, an adulterous mother,
 a beautiful wife, and an unlearned son are enemies (
 in one's own home).
%
 Conciliate a covetous man by means of a gift, an obstinate
 man with folded hands in salutation, a fool by humouring
 him, and a learned man by truthful words.
%
 It is better to be without a kingdom than to rule over a
 petty one; better to be without a friend than to befriend
 a rascal; better to be without a disciple than to have a
 stupid one; and better to be without a wife than to have
 a bad one.
%
 How can people be made happy in a petty kingdom? What
 peace can we expect from a rascal friend? What happiness
 can we have at home in the company of a bad wife? How
 can renown be gained by instructing an unworthy disciple?
%
 Learn one thing from a lion; one from a crane; four a
 cock; five from a crow; six from a dog; and three from
 an ass.
%
 The one excellent thing that can be learned from a lion
 is that whatever a man intends doing should be done by
 him with a whole-hearted and strenuous effort.
%
 The wise man should restrain his senses like the crane and
 accomplish his purpose with due knowledge of his place,
 time and ability.
%
 To wake at the proper time; to take a bold stand and
 fight; to make a fair division (of property) among
 relations; and to earn one's own bread by personal
 exertion are the four excellent things to be learned from
 a cock.
%
 Union in privacy (with one's wife); boldness; storing
 away useful items; watchfulness; and not easily trusting
 others; these five things are to be learned from a crow.
%
 Contentment with little or nothing to eat although one
 may have a great appetite; to awaken instantly although
 one may be in a deep slumber; unflinching devotion to
 the master; and bravery; these six qualities should be
 learned from the dog.
%
 Although an ass is tired, he continues to carry his
 burden; he is unmindful of cold and heat; and he is
 always contented; these three things should be learned
 from the ass.
%
 He who shall practice these twenty virtues shall become
 invincible in all his undertakings.
%
 A wise man should not reveal his loss of wealth, the
 vexation of his mind, the misconduct of his own wife,
 base words spoken by others, and disgrace that has
 befallen him.
%
 He who gives up shyness in monetary dealings, in acquiring
 knowledge, in eating and in business, becomes happy.
%
 The happiness and peace attained by those satisfied by
 the nectar of spiritual tranquillity is not attained by
 greedy persons restlessly moving here and there.
%
 One should feel satisfied with the following three things;
 his own wife, food given by Providence and wealth acquired
 by honest effort; but one should never feel satisfied
 with the following three; study, chanting the holy names
 of the Lord (japa) and charity.
%
 Do not pass between two brahmanas, between a brahmana
 and his sacrificial fire, between a wife and her husband,
 a master and his servant, and a plough and an ox.
%
 Do not let your foot touch fire, the spiritual master or
 a brahmana; it must never touch a cow, a virgin, an old
 person or a child.
%
 Keep one thousand cubits away from an elephant, a hundred
 from a horse, ten from a horned beast, but keep away from
 the wicked by leaving the country.
%
 An elephant is controlled by a goad (ankusha), a horse
 by a slap of the hand, a horned animal with the show of
 a stick, and a rascal with a sword.
%
 Brahmanas find satisfaction in a good meal, peacocks in
 the peal of thunder, a sadhu in seeing the prosperity of
 others, and the wicked in the misery of others.
%
 Conciliate a strong man by submission, a wicked man by
 opposition, and the one whose power is equal to yours by
 politeness or force.>
%
 The power of a king lies in his mighty arms; that of a
 brahmana in his spiritual knowledge; and that of a woman
 in her beauty youth and sweet words.
%
 Do not be very upright in your dealings for you would
 see by going to the forest that straight trees are cut
 down while crooked ones are left standing.
%
 Swans live wherever there is water, and leave the place
 where water dries up; let not a man act so -- and comes
 and goes as he pleases.
%
 Accumulated wealth is saved by spending just as incoming
 fresh water is saved by letting out stagnant water.
%
 He who has wealth has friends and relations; he alone
 survives and is respected as a man.
%
 The following four characteristics of the denizens of
 heaven may be seen in the residents of this earth planet;
 charity, sweet words, worship of the Supreme Personality
 of Godhead, and satisfying the needs of brahmanas.
%
 The following qualities of the denizens of hell may
 characterise men on earth; extreme wrath, harsh speech,
 enmity with one's relations, the company with the base,
 and service to men of low extraction.
%
 By going to the den of a lion pearls from the head of
 an elephant may be obtained; but by visiting the hole of
 a jackal nothing but the tail of a calf or a bit of the
 hide of an ass may be found.
%
 The life of an uneducated man is as useless as the tail
 of a dog, which neither covers its rear end, nor protects
 it from the bites of insects.
%
 Purity of speech, of the mind, of the senses, and a
 compassionate heart are needed by one who desires to rise
 to the divine platform.
%
 As you seek fragrance in a flower, oil in the sesamum
 seed, fire in wood, ghee (butter) in milk, and jaggery
 (guda) in sugarcane; so seek the spirit that is in the
 body by means of discrimination.>
%
 Low class men desire wealth; middle class men both wealth
 and respect; but the noble, honour only; hence honour is
 the noble man's true wealth.
%
 The lamp eats up the darkness and therefore it produces
 blackened lamp; in the same way according to the nature
 of our diet (sattva, rajas, or tamas) we produce offspring
 in similar quality.
%
 O wise man! Give your wealth only to the worthy and never
 to others. The water of the sea received by the clouds is
 always sweet. The rainwater enlivens all living beings
 of the earth both movable (insects, animals, humans,
 etc.) and immovable (plants, trees, etc.), and then
 returns to the ocean where its value is multiplied a
 million fold.
%
 The wise who discern the essence of things have declared
 that the yavana (meat eater) is equal in baseness to a
 thousand candalas (the lowest class), and hence a yavana
 is the basest of men; indeed there is no one more base.
%
 After having rubbed oil on the body, after encountering
 the smoke from a funeral pyre, after sexual intercourse,
 and after being shaved, one remains a chandala until
 he bathes.
%
 Water is the medicine for indigestion; it is invigorating
 when the food that is eaten is well digested; it is like
 nectar when drunk in the middle of a dinner; and it is
 like poison when taken at the end of a meal.
%
 Knowledge is lost without putting it into practice; a
 man is lost due to ignorance; an army is lost without a
 commander; and a woman is lost without a husband.
%
 A man who encounters the following three is unfortunate;
 the death of his wife in his old age, the entrusting of
 money into the hands of relatives, and depending upon
 others for food.
%
 Chanting of the Vedas without making ritualistic
 sacrifices to the Supreme Lord through the medium of
 Agni, and sacrifices not followed by bountiful gifts are
 futile. Perfection can be achieved only through devotion
 (to the Supreme Lord) for devotion is the basis of all
 success.
%
 There is no austerity equal to a balanced mind, and there
 is no happiness equal to contentment; there is no disease
 like covetousness, and no virtue like mercy.
%
 Anger is a personification of Yama (the demigod of death);
 thirst is like the hellish river Vaitarani; knowledge is
 like a kamadhenu (the cow of plenty); and contentment is
 like Nandanavana (the garden of Indra).
%
 Moral excellence is an ornament for personal beauty;
 righteous conduct, for high birth; success for learning;
 and proper spending for wealth.
%
 Beauty is spoiled by an immoral nature; noble birth by
 bad conduct; learning, without being perfected; and wealth
 by not being properly utilised.
%
 Water seeping into the earth is pure; and a devoted wife
 is pure; the king who is the benefactor of his people is
 pure; and pure is the brahmana who is contented.
%
 Discontented brahmanas, contented kings, shy prostitutes,
 and immodest housewives are ruined.
%
 Of what avail is a high birth if a person is destitute of
 scholarship? A man who is of low extraction is honoured
 even by the demigods if he is learned.
%
 A learned man is honoured by the people. A learned man
 commands respect everywhere for his learning. Indeed,
 learning is honoured everywhere.
%
 Those who are endowed with beauty and youth and who
 are born of noble families are worthless if they have
 no learning. They are just like the kimshuka blossoms
 ( flowers of the palasa tree) which, though beautiful,
 have no fragrance.
%
 The earth is encumbered with the weight of the
 flesh-eaters, wine-bibblers, dolts (dull and stupid)
 and blockheads, who are beasts in the form of men.
%
 There is no enemy like a yajna (sacrifice) which consumes
 the kingdom when not attended by feeding on a large
 scale; consumes the priest when the chanting is not
 done properly; and consumes the yajaman (the responsible
 person) when the gifts are not made.
%
 My dear child, if you desire to be free from the cycle
 of birth and death, then abandon the objects of sense
 gratification as poison. Drink instead the nectar of
 forbearance, upright conduct, mercy, cleanliness and
 truth.
%
 Those base men who speak of the secret faults of
 others destroy themselves like serpents that stray onto
 anthills.
%
 Perhaps nobody has advised Lord Brahma, the creator,
 to impart perfume to gold; fruit to the sugarcane;
 flowers to the sandalwood tree; wealth to the learned;
 and long life to the king
%
 Nectar (amrita) is the best among medicines; eating good
 food is the best of all types of material happiness; the
 eye is the chief among all organs; and the head occupies
 the chief position among all parts of the body.
%
 No messenger can travel about in the sky and no
 tidings come from there. The voice of its inhabitants
 is never heard, nor can any contact be established with
 them. Therefore the brahmana who predicts the eclipse
 of the sun and moon, which occur in the sky, must be
 considered as a vidwan (man of great learning).
%
 The student, the servant, the traveller, the hungry
 person, the frightened man, the treasury guard, and
 the steward: these seven ought to be awakened if they
 fall asleep.
%
 The serpent, the king, the tiger, the stinging wasp, the
 small child, the dog owned by other people, and the fool:
 these seven ought not to be awakened from sleep.
%
 Of those who have studied the Vedas for material rewards,
 and those who accept foodstuffs offered by shudras,
 what potency have they? They are just like serpents
 without fangs.
%
 He who neither rouses fear by his anger, nor confers
 a favour when he is pleased can neither control nor
 protect. What can he do?
%
 The serpent may, without being poisonous, raise high its
 hood, but the show of terror is enough to frighten people
 -- whether he be venomous or not.
%
 Wise men spend their mornings in discussing gambling,
 the afternoon discussing the activities of women, and the
 night hearing about the activities of theft. (The first
 item above refers to the gambling of King Yudhisthira,
 the great devotee of Krsna. The second item refers
 to the glorious deeds of mother Sita, the consort of
 Lord Ramachandra. The third item hints at the adorable
 childhood pastimes of Sri Krsna who stole butter from the
 elderly cowherd ladies of Gokula. Hence Chanakya Pandita
 advises wise persons to spend the morning absorbed in
 Mahabharata, the afternoon studying Ramayana, and the
 evening devotedly hearing the Srimad-Bhagvatam.)
%
 By preparing a garland for a Deity with one's own hand;
 by grinding sandal paste for the Lord with one's own
 hand; and by writing sacred texts with one's own hand --
 one becomes blessed with opulence equal to that of Indra.
%
 Poverty is set off by fortitude; shabby garments by
 keeping them clean; bad food by warming it; and ugliness
 by good behaviour.
%
 One destitute of wealth is not destitute, he is indeed
 rich (if he is learned); but the man devoid of learning
 is destitute in every way.
%
 We should carefully scrutinise that place upon which we
 step (having it ascertained to be free from filth and
 living creatures like insects, etc.); we should drink
 water, which has been filtered (through a clean cloth);
 we should speak only those words, which have the sanction
 of the satras; and do that act which we have carefully
 considered.
%
 He who desires sense gratification must give up all
 thoughts of acquiring knowledge; and he who seeks
 knowledge must not hope for sense gratification. How can
 he who seeks sense gratification acquire knowledge, and
 he who possesses knowledge enjoy mundane sense pleasure?
%
 What is it that escapes the observation of poets? What is
 that act women are incapable of doing? What will drunken
 people not prate? What will not a crow eat?
%
 Fate makes a beggar a king and a king a beggar. He makes
 a rich man poor and a poor man rich
%
 The beggar is a miser's enemy; the wise counsellor is the
 fool's enemy; her husband is an adulterous wife's enemy;
 and the moon is the enemy of the thief.
%
 Those who are destitute of learning, penance, knowledge,
 good disposition, virtue and benevolence are brutes
 wandering the earth in the form of men. They are
 burdensome to the earth.
%
 Those that are empty-minded cannot be benefited by
 instruction. Bamboo does not acquire the quality of
 sandalwood by being associated with the Malaya Mountain.
%
 What good can the scriptures do to a man who has no sense
 of his own? Of what use is as mirror to a blind man?
%
 Nothing can reform a bad man, just as the posteriors
 cannot become a superior part of the body though washed
 one hundred times.
%
 By offending a kinsman, life is lost; by offending others,
 wealth is lost; by offending the king, everything is lost;
 and by offending a brahmana (Brahmin) one's whole family
 is ruined.
%
 It is better to live under a tree in a jungle inhabited
 by tigers and elephants, to maintain oneself in such a
 place with ripe fruits and spring water, to lie down on
 grass and to wear the ragged barks of trees than to live
 amongst one's relations when reduced to poverty.
%
 The brahmana (Brahmin) is like a tree; his prayers are
 the roots, his chanting of the Vedas are the branches,
 and his religious acts are the leaves. Consequently
 effort should be made to preserve his roots for if the
 roots are destroyed there can be no branches or leaves.
%
 My mother is Kamala devi (Lakshmi), my father is Lord
 Janardana (Vishnu), my kinsmen are the Vishnu-bhaktas
 (Vaisnavas) and, my homeland is all the three worlds.
%
 (Through the night) a great many kinds of birds perch
 on a tree but in the morning they fly in all the ten
 directions. Why should we lament for that? (Similarly,
 we should not grieve when we must inevitably part company
 from our dear ones)
%
 He who possesses intelligence is strong; how can the
 man that is unintelligent be powerful? The elephant of
 the forest having lost his senses by intoxication was
 tricked into a lake by a small rabbit. (This verse refers
 to a famous story from the niti-sastra called pancatantra
 compiled by the pandit Vishnusharma  years ago).
%
 Why should I be concerned for my maintenance while
 absorbed in praising the glories of Lord Vishwambhara
 (Vishnu), the supporter of all? Without the grace of
 Lord Hari, how could milk flow from a mother's breast
 for a child's nourishment? Repeatedly thinking only in
 this way, O Lord of the Yadus, O husband of Lakshmi,
 all my time is spent in serving Your lotus feet.
%
 Generosity, pleasing address, courage and propriety of
 conduct are not acquired, but are inbred qualities.
%
 He who forsakes his own community and joins another
 perishes as the king who embraces an unrighteous path.
%
 The elephant has a huge body but is controlled by
 the ankusha (goad): yet, is the goad as large as the
 elephant? A lighted candle banishes darkness: is the
 candle as vast as the darkness. A mountain is broken even
 by a thunderbolt: is the thunderbolt therefore as big
 as the mountain? No, he whose power prevails is really
 mighty; what is there in bulk?
%
 He who is engrossed in family life will never acquire
 knowledge; there can be no mercy in the eater of flesh;
 the greedy man will not be truthful; and purity will not
 be found in a woman or a hunter.
%
 The wicked man will not attain sanctity even if he is
 instructed in different ways, and the Nim tree will not
 become sweet even if it is sprinkled from the top to the
 roots with milk and ghee.
%
 Mental dirt cannot be washed away even by one-hundred
 baths in the sacred waters, just as a wine pot cannot be
 purified even by evaporating all the wine by fire.
%
 It is not strange if a man reviles a thing of which he
 has no knowledge, just as a wild hunter's wife throws
 away the pearl that is found in the head of an elephant,
 and picks up a gunj (a type of seed which poor tribals
 wear as ornaments).
%
 He who for one year eats his meals silently (inwardly
 meditating upon the Lord's prasadam); attains to the
 heavenly planets for a thousand crore of years. ( Note:
 one crore equals ten million)
%
 The student (brahmacari) should completely renounce
 the following eight things -- his lust, anger, greed,
 desire for sweets, sense of decorating the body, excessive
 curiosity, excessive sleep, and excessive endeavour for
 bodily maintenance.
%
 He alone is a true brahmana (dvija or "twice-born")
 who is satisfied with one meal a day, who has the six
 samskaras (or acts of purification such as garbhadhana,
 etc.) performed for him, and who cohabits with his
 wife only once in a month on an auspicious day after
 her menses.
%
 The brahmana who is engrossed in worldly affairs,
 brings up cows and is engaged in trade is really called
 a vaishya.
%
 The brahmana who deals in lac-die, articles, oil, indigo,
 silken cloth, honey, clarified butter, liquor, and flesh
 is called a shudra.
%
 The brahmana who thwarts the doings of others, who is
 hypocritical, selfish, and a deceitful hater, and while
 speaking mildly cherishes cruelty in his heart, is called
 a cat.
%
 The brahmana who destroys a pond, a well, a tank, a garden
 and a temple is called a mleccha.
%
 The brahmana who steals the property of the Deities and
 the spiritual preceptor, who cohabits with another's
 wife, and who maintains himself by eating anything and
 everything s called a chandala.
%
 The meritorious should give away in charity all that they
 have in excess of their needs. By charity only Karna,
 Bali and King Vikramaditya survive even today. Just
 see the plight of the honeybees beating their legs in
 despair upon the earth. They are saying to themselves,
 "Alas! We neither enjoyed our stored-up honey nor gave
 it in charity, and now someone has taken it from us in
 an instant."
%
 He is a blessed grhasta (householder) in whose house there
 is a blissful atmosphere, whose sons are talented, whose
 wife speaks sweetly, whose wealth is enough to satisfy his
 desires, who finds pleasure in the company of his wife,
 whose servants are obedient, in whose house hospitality
 is shown, the auspicious Supreme Lord is worshiped daily,
 delicious food and drink is partaken, and who finds joy
 in the company of devotees.
%
 One who devotedly gives a little to a brahmana who is
 in distress is recompensed abundantly. Hence, O Prince,
 what is given to a good brahmana is got back not in an
 equal quantity, but in an infinitely higher degree.
%
 Those men who are happy in this world, who are generous
 towards their relatives, kind to strangers, indifferent to
 the wicked, loving to the good, shrewd in their dealings
 with the base, frank with the learned, courageous with
 enemies, humble with elders and stern with the wife.
%
 O jackal, leave aside the body of that man at once,
 whose hands have never given in charity, whose ears
 have not heard the voice of learning, whose eyes have
 not beheld a pure devotee of the Lord, whose feet have
 never traversed to holy places, whose belly is filled
 with things obtained by crooked practices, and whose
 head is held high in vanity. Do not eat it, O jackal,
 otherwise you will become polluted.
%
 "Shame upon those who have no devotion to the lotus
 feet of Sri Krsna, the son of mother Yasoda; who have no
 attachment for the descriptions of the glories of Srimati
 Radharani; whose ears are not eager to listen to the
 stories of the Lord's lila." Such is the exclamation
 of the mrdanga sound of dhik-tam dhik-tam dhigatam
 at kirtana.
%
 What fault of spring that the bamboo shoot has no
 leaves? What fault of the sun if the owl cannot see
 during the daytime? Is it the fault of the clouds if no
 raindrops fall into the mouth of the chatak bird? Who can
 erase what Lord Brahma has inscribed upon our foreheads
 at the time of birth?
%
 A wicked man may develop saintly qualities in the company
 of a devotee, but a devotee does not become impious in
 the company of a wicked person. The earth is scented
 by a flower that falls upon it, but the flower does not
 contact the odour of the earth.
%
 One indeed becomes blessed by having darshan of a devotee;
 for the devotee has the ability to purify immediately,
 whereas the sacred tirtha gives purity only after
 prolonged contact.
%
 A stranger asked a brahmana, "Tell me, who is great in
 this city?" The brahmana replied, "The cluster of palmyra
 trees is great." Then the traveller asked, "Who is the
 most charitable person?" The brahmana answered, "The
 washer man who takes the clothes in the morning and gives
 them back in the evening is the most charitable." He then
 asked, "Who is the ablest man?" The brahmana answered,
 "Everyone is expert in robbing others of their wives and
 wealth." The man then asked the brahmana, "How do you
 manage to live in such a city?" The brahmana replied,
 "As a worm survives while even in a filthy place so do
 I survive here!"
%
 The house in which the lotus feet of brahmanas are not
 washed, in which Vedic mantras are not loudly recited, and
 in which the holy rites of svaha (sacrificial offerings to
 the Supreme Lord) and swadha (offerings to the ancestors)
 are not performed, is like a crematorium.
%
 (It is said that a sadhu, when asked about his family,
 replied thusly): truth is my mother, and my father is
 spiritual knowledge; righteous conduct is my brother,
 and mercy is my friend, inner peace is my wife, and
 forgiveness is my son: these six are my kinsmen.
%
 Our bodies are perishable, wealth is not at all permanent
 and death is always nearby. Therefore we must immediately
 engage in acts of merit.
%
 Arjuna says to Krsna. "Brahmanas find joy in going
 to feasts, cows find joy in eating their tender grass,
 wives find joy in the company of their husbands, and know,
 O Krsna, that in the same way I rejoice in battle.
%
 He who regards another's wife as his mother, the wealth
 that does not belong to him as a lump of mud, and the
 pleasure and pain of all other living beings as his own --
 truly sees things in the right perspective, and he is a
 true pandit.
%
 O Raghava, the love of virtue, pleasing speech, and an
 ardent desire for performing acts of charity, guileless
 dealings with friends, humility in the guru's presence,
 deep tranquillity of mind, pure conduct, discernment
 of virtues, realised knowledge of the sastras, beauty
 of form and devotion to God are all found in you." (The
 great sage Vasistha Muni, the spiritual preceptor of the
 dynasty of the sun, said this to Lord Ramachandra at the
 time of His proposed coronation)
%
 Kalpataru (the wish fulfilling tree) is but wood; the
 golden Mount Meru is motionless; the wish-fulfilling
 gem chintamani is just a stone; the sun is scorching;
 the moon is prone to wane; the boundless ocean is saline;
 the demigod of lust lost his body (due to Shiva's wrath);
 Bali Maharaja, the son of Diti, was born into a clan
 of demons; and Kamadhenu (the cow of heaven) is a mere
 beast. O Lord of the Raghu dynasty! I cannot compare you
 to any one of these (taking their merits into account).
%
 Realised learning (vidya) is our friend while travelling,
 the wife is a friend at home, medicine is the friend of a
 sick man, and meritorious deeds are the friends at death.
%
 Courtesy should be learned from princes, the art of
 conversation from pandits, lying should be learned from
 gamblers and deceitful ways should be learned from women.
%
 The unthinking spender, the homeless urchin, the quarrel
 monger, the man who neglects his wife and is heedless in
 his actions -- all these will soon come to ruination.
%
 The wise man should not be anxious about his food; he
 should be anxious to be engaged only in dharma (Krsna
 consciousness). The food of each man is created for him
 at his birth.
%
 He who is not shy in the acquisition of wealth, grain
 and knowledge, and in taking his meals, will be happy
%
 As centesimal droppings will fill a pot so also are
 knowledge, virtue and wealth gradually obtained.
%
 The man who remains a fool even in advanced age is really
 a fool, just as the Indra-Varuna fruit does not become
 sweet no matter how ripe it might become.
%
 A man may live but for a moment, but that moment should
 be spent in doing auspicious deeds. It is useless living
 even for a kalpa (4,32,000 *1000 years) and bringing only 
 distress upon the two worlds (this world and the next).
%
 We should not fret for what is past, nor should we be
 anxious about the future; men of discernment deal only
 with the present moment.
%
 It certainly is nature of the demigods, men of good
 character, and parents to be easily pleased. Near and
 distant relatives are pleased when they are hospitably
 received with bathing, food, and drink; and pandits
 are pleased with an opportunity for giving spiritual
 discourse.
%
 Even as the unborn babe is in the womb of his mother,
 these five are fixed as his life destiny: his life span,
 his activities, his acquisition of wealth and knowledge,
 and his time of death.
%
 Oh, see what a wonder it is! The doings of the great
 are strange: they treat wealth as light as a straw, yet,
 when they obtain it, they bend under its weight
%
 He who is overly attached to his family members
 experiences fear and sorrow, for the root of all grief
 is attachment. Thus one should discard attachment to
 be happy.
%
 He who is prepared for the future and he who deals
 cleverly with any situation that may arise are both
 happy; but the fatalistic man who wholly depends on luck
 is ruined.
%
 If the king is virtuous, then the subjects are also
 virtuous. If the king is sinful, then the subjects also
 become sinful. If he is mediocre, then the subjects are
 mediocre. The subjects follow the example of the king. In
 short, as is the king so are the subjects.
%
 I consider him who does not act religiously as dead though
 living, but he who dies acting religiously unquestionably
 lives long though he is dead.
%
 He who has acquired neither virtue, wealth, satisfaction
 of desires nor salvation (dharma, artha, kama, moksa),
 lives an utterly useless life, like the "nipples" hanging
 from the neck of a goat.
%
 The hearts of base men burn before the fire of other's
 fame, and they slander them being themselves unable to
 rise to such a high position.
%
 Excessive attachment to sense pleasures leads to bondage,
 and detachment from sense pleasures leads to liberation;
 therefore it is the mind alone that is responsible for
 bondage or liberation
%
 He who sheds bodily identification by means of knowledge
 of the indwelling Supreme Self (Paramatma), will always
 be absorbed in meditative trance (samadhi) wherever his
 mind leads him.
%
 Who realises all the happiness he desires? Everything
 is in the hands of God. Therefore one should learn
 contentment.
%
 As a calf follows its mother among a thousand cows, so the
 (good or bad) deeds of a man follow him.
%
 He whose actions are disorganised has no happiness either
 in the midst of men or in a jungle -- in the midst of men
 his heart burns by social contacts, and his helplessness
 burns him in the forest.
%
 As the man who digs obtains underground water by use of
 a shovel, so the student attains the knowledge possessed
 by his preceptor through his service
%
 Men reap the fruits of their deeds, and intellects bear
 the mark of deeds performed in previous lives; even so
 the wise act after due circumspection.
%
 Even the man who has taught the spiritual significance
 of just one letter ought to be worshiped. He who does not
 give reverence to such a guru is born as a dog a hundred
 times, and at last takes birth as a chandala (dog-eater).
%
 At the end of the yuga, Mount Meru may be shaken; at
 the end of the kalpa, the waters of the seven oceans
 may be disturbed; but a sadhu will never swerve from the
 spiritual path.
%
 There are three gems upon this earth; food, water, and
 pleasing words -- fools (mudhas) consider pieces of rocks
 as gems.
%
 Poverty, disease, sorrow, imprisonment and other evils
 are the fruits borne by the tree of one's own sins.
%
 Wealth, a friend, a wife, and a kingdom may be regained;
 but this body when lost may never be acquired again.
%
 The enemy can be overcome by the union of large numbers,
 just as grass through its collectiveness wards off erosion
 caused by heavy rainfall.
%
 Oil on water, a secret communicated to a base man, a gift
 given to a worthy receiver, and scriptural instruction
 given to an intelligent man spread out by virtue of
 their nature.
%
 If men should always retain the state of mind they
 experience when hearing religious instruction, when
 present at a crematorium ground, and when in sickness --
 then who could not attain liberation.
%
 If a man should feel before, as he feels after, repentance
 -- then who would not attain perfection?
%
 We should not feel pride in our charity, austerity,
 valour, scriptural knowledge, modesty and morality for
 the world is full of the rarest gems.
%
 He who lives in our mind is near though he may actually
 be far away; but he who is not in our heart is far though
 he may really be nearby.
%
 We should always speak what would please the man of whom
 we expect a favour, like the hunter who sings sweetly
 when he desires to shoot a deer.
%
 It is ruinous to be familiar with the king, fire,
 the religious preceptor, and a woman. To be altogether
 indifferent to them is to be deprived of the opportunity
 to benefit ourselves, hence our association with them
 must be from a safe distance.
%
 We should always deal cautiously with fire, water, women,
 foolish people, serpents, and members of a royal family;
 for they may, when the occasion presents itself, at once
 bring about our death.
%
 He should be considered to be living who is virtuous and
 pious, but the life of a man who is destitute of religion
 and virtues is void of any blessing.
%
 If you wish to gain control of the world by the
 performance of a single deed, then keep the following
 fifteen, which are prone to wander here and there, from
 getting the upper hand of you: the five sense objects
 (objects of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch); the
 five sense organs (ears, eyes, nose, tongue and skin)
 and organs of activity (hands, legs, mouth, genitals
 and anus).
%
 He is a pandit (man of knowledge) who speaks what is
 suitable to the occasion, who renders loving service
 according to his ability, and who knows the limits of
 his anger.
%
 One single object (a woman) appears in three different
 ways: to the man who practices austerity it appears as
 a corpse, to the sensual it appears as a woman, and to
 the dogs as a lump of flesh.
%
 A wise man should not divulge the formula of a medicine
 which he has well prepared; an act of charity which he
 has performed; domestic conflicts; private affairs with
 his wife; poorly prepared food he may have been offered;
 or slang he may have heard.
%
 The cuckoos remain silent for a long time (for several
 seasons) until they are able to sing sweetly (in the
 Spring) so as to give joy to all.
%
 We should secure and keep the following: the blessings
 of meritorious deeds, wealth, grain, the words of the
 spiritual master, and rare medicines. Otherwise life
 becomes impossible.
%
 Eschew wicked company and associate with saintly
 persons. Acquire virtue day and night, and always
 meditate on that which is eternal forgetting that which
 is temporary.
%
 For one whose heart melts with compassion for all
 creatures; what is the necessity of knowledge, liberation,
 matted hair on the head, and smearing the body with ashes?
%
 There is no treasure on earth the gift of which will
 cancel the debt a disciple owes his guru for having
 taught him even a single letter (that leads to Krsna
 consciousness).
%
 There are two ways to get rid of thorns and wicked
 persons; using footwear in the first place and in the
 second shaming them so that they cannot raise their faces
 again thus keeping them at a distance.
%
 He who wears unclean garments, has dirty teeth, is a
 glutton, speaks unkindly and sleeps after sunrise --
 although he may be the greatest personality -- will lose
 the favour of Lakshmi.
%
 He who loses his money is forsaken by his friends,
 his wife, his servants and his relations; yet when he
 regains his riches those who have forsaken him come back
 to him. Hence wealth is certainly the best of relations.
%
 Sinfully acquired wealth may remain for ten years; in the
 eleventh year it disappears with even the original stock.
%
 A bad action committed by a great man is not censured
 (as there is none that can reproach him), and a good
 action performed by a low-class man comes to be condemned
 (because none respects him). Just see: the drinking
 of nectar is excellent, but it became the cause of
 Rahu's demise; and the drinking of poison is harmful,
 but when Lord Shiva (who is exalted) drank it, it became
 an ornament to his neck (nila-kantha).
%
 A true meal is that which consists of the remnants left
 after a brahmana's meal. Love, which is shown to others,
 is true love, not that which is cherished for one's own
 self. To abstain from sin is true wisdom. That is an act
 of charity, which is performed without ostentation.
%
 For want of discernment the most precious jewels lie in
 the dust at the feet of men while bits of glass are worn
 on their heads. But we should not imagine that the gems
 have sunk in value, and the bits of glass have risen in
 importance. When a person of critical judgement shall
 appear, each will be given its right position.
%
 Sastric (scriptural) knowledge is unlimited, and the arts
 to be learned are many; the time we have is short, and our
 opportunities to learn are beset with obstacles. Therefore
 select for learning that which is most important, just
 as the swan drinks only the milk in water.
%
 He is a chandala who eats his dinner without entertaining
 the stranger who has come to his house quite accidentally,
 having travelled from a long distance and is wearied.
%
 One may know the four Vedas and the Dharma-sastras,
 yet if he has no realisation of his own spiritual self,
 he can be said to be like the ladle (spoon) which stirs
 all kinds of foods but knows not the taste of any.
%
 Those blessed souls are certainly elevated who, while
 crossing the ocean of life, take shelter of a genuine
 brahmana, who is likened unto a boat. They are unlike
 passengers aboard an ordinary ship that runs the risk
 of sinking.
%
 The moon, who is the abode of nectar and the presiding
 deity of all medicines, although immortal like amrta and
 resplendent in form, loses the brilliance of his rays when
 he repairs to the abode of the sun (day time). Therefore,
 will not an ordinary man be made to feel inferior by
 going to live at the house of another?
%
 This humble bee, which always resides among the soft
 petals of the lotus and drinks abundantly its sweet
 nectar, is now feasting on the flower of the ordinary
 kutaja. Being in a strange country where the lotuses do
 not exist, he is considering the pollen of the kutaja to
 be nice.
%
 (Lord Visnu asked His spouse Lakshmi why She did not
 care to live in the house of a brahmana.She replied:)"
 O Lord a rishi named Agastya drank up My father (the
 ocean) in anger; Brighu Muni kicked You; brahmanas pride
 themselves on their learning having sought the favour
 of My competitor Sarasvati; and lastly they pluck each
 day the lotus which is My abode, and therewith worship
 Lord Shiva. Therefore, O Lord, I fear to dwell with
 a brahmana".
%
 There are many ways of binding by which one can be
 dominated and controlled in this world, but the bond of
 affection is the strongest. For example, take the case
 of the humble bee, which, although expert at piercing
 hardened wood, becomes caught in the embrace of its
 beloved flowers (as the petals close at dusk).
%
 Although sandalwood is cut, it does not forsake its
 natural quality of fragrance; so also the elephant does
 not give up sportiveness though he should grow old. The
 sugarcane does not cease to be sweet though squeezed in
 a mill; so the man of noble extraction does not lose his
 lofty qualities, no matter how pinched he is by poverty.
%
 The heart of a woman is not united; it is divided. While
 she is talking with one man, she looks lustfully at
 another and thinks fondly of a third in her heart.
%
 The fool (mudha) who fancies that a charming young
 lady loves him, becomes her slave and he dances like a
 shakuntal bird tied to a string.
%
 Who is there who, having become rich, has not become
 proud? What licentious man has put an end to his
 calamities? What man in this world has not been overcome
 by a woman? Who is always loved by the king? Who is there
 who has not been overcome by the ravages of time? What
 beggar has attained glory? Who has become happy by
 contracting the vices of the wicked?
%
 A man attains greatness by his merits, not simply by
 occupying an exalted seat. Can we call a crow an eagle
 (garuda) simply because he sits on the top of a tall
 building.
%
 The man who is praised by others as great is regarded as
 worthy though he may be really void of all merit. But
 the man who sings his own praises lowers himself in
 the estimation of others though he should be Indra (the
 possessor of all excellences).
%
 If good qualities should characterise a man of
 discrimination, the brilliance of his qualities will be
 recognised just as a gem, which is essentially bright,
 really shines when fixed in an ornament of gold.
%
 Even one who by his qualities appears to be all knowing
 suffers without patronage; the gem, though precious,
 requires a gold setting.
%
 I do not deserve that wealth which is to be attained by
 enduring much suffering, or by transgressing the rules
 of virtue, or by flattering an enemy.
%
 Those who were not satiated with the enjoyment of wealth,
 food and women have all passed away; there are others
 now passing away who have likewise remained unsatiated;
 and in the future still others will pass away feeling
 themselves unsatiated.
%
 All charities and sacrifices (performed for fruitive gain)
 bring only temporary results, but gifts made to deserving
 persons and protection offered to all creatures shall
 never perish
%
 A blade of grass is light, cotton is lighter, and the
 beggar is infinitely lighter still. Why then does not
 the wind carry him away? Because it fears that he may
 ask alms of him.
%
 It is better to die than to preserve this life by
 incurring disgrace. The loss of life causes but a moment's
 grief, but disgrace brings grief every day of one's life.
%
 All the creatures are pleased by loving words; and
 therefore we should address words that are pleasing to
 all, for there is no lack of sweet words.
%
 There are two nectarine fruits hanging from the tree of
 this world: one is the hearing of sweet words (such as
 Krsna-katha) and the other, the society of saintly men.
%
 The good habits of charity, learning and austerity
 practised during many past lives continue to be cultivated
 in this birth by virtue of the link (yoga) of this present
 life to the previous ones.
%
 One whose knowledge is confined to books and whose
 wealth is in the possession of others, can use neither
 his knowledge nor wealth when the need for them arises.
%
 The scholar who has acquired knowledge by studying
 innumerable books without the blessings of a bonafide
 spiritual master does not shine in an assembly of truly
 learned men just as an illegitimate child is not honoured
 in society.
%
 We should repay the favours of others by acts of kindness;
 so also should we return evil for evil in which there is
 no sin, for it is necessary to pay a wicked man in his
 own coin.
%
 That thing which is distant, that thing which appears
 impossible, and that which is far beyond our reach, can
 be easily attained through tapasya (religious austerity),
 for nothing can surpass austerity.
%
 What vice could be worse than covetousness? What is more
 sinful than slander? For one who is truthful, what need is
 there for austerity? For one who has a clean heart, what
 is the need for pilgrimage? If one has a good disposition,
 what other virtue is needed? If a man has fame, what is
 the value of other ornamentation? What need is there for
 wealth for the man of practical knowledge? And if a man
 is dishonoured, what could there be worse than death?
%
 Though the sea, which is the reservoir of all jewels, is
 the father of the conch shell, and the Goddess of fortune
 Lakshmi is conch's sister, still the conch must go from
 door to door for alms (in the hands of a beggar). It is
 true, therefore, that one gains nothing without having
 given in the past.
%
 When a man has no strength left in him he becomes a sadhu,
 one without wealth acts like a brahmacari, a sick man
 behaves like a devotee of the Lord, and when a woman
 grows old she becomes devoted to her husband.
%
 There is poison in the fang of the serpent, in the mouth
 of the fly and in the sting of a scorpion; but the wicked
 man is saturated with it.
%
 The woman who fasts and observes religious vows without
 the permission of her husband shortens his life, and goes
 to hell.
%
 A woman does not become holy by offering charity, by
 observing hundreds of fasts, or by sipping sacred water,
 as by sipping the water used to wash her husbands feet.
%
 The hand is not so well adorned by ornaments as by
 charitable offerings; one does not become clean by
 smearing sandalwood paste upon the body as by taking a
 bath; one does not become so much satisfied by dinner
 as by having respect shown to him; and salvation is not
 attained by self-adornment as by cultivation of spiritual
 knowledge.
%
 The eating of tundi fruit deprives a man of his sense,
 while the vacha root administered revives his reasoning
 immediately. A woman at once robs a man of his vigour
 while milk at once restores it.
%
 He who nurtures benevolence for all creatures within his
 heart overcomes all difficulties and will be the recipient
 of all types of riches at every step.
%
 What is there to be enjoyed in the world of Lord Indra
 for one whose wife is loving and virtuous, who possesses
 wealth, who has a well-behaved son endowed with good
 qualities, and who has grandchildren born of his children?
%
 Men have eating, sleeping, fearing and mating in common
 with the lower animals. That in which men excel the beasts
 is discretionary knowledge; hence, indiscreet men who
 are without knowledge should be regarded as beasts.
%
 If the bees that seek the liquid oozing from the head
 of a lust-intoxicated elephant are driven away by the
 flapping of his ears, then the elephant has lost only
 the ornament of his head. The bees are quite happy in
 the lotus filled lake.
%
 A king, a prostitute, Lord Yamaraja, fire, a thief, a
 young boy, and a beggar cannot understand the suffering of
 others. The eighth of this category is the tax collector.
%
 O lady, why are you gazing downward? Has something of
 yours fallen on the ground? (She replies) O fool, can
 you not understand the pearl of my youth has slipped away?
%
 O ketki flower! Serpents live in your midst, you bear
 no edible fruits, your leaves are covered with thorns,
 you are crooked in growth, you thrive in mud, and you
 are not easily accessible. Still for your exceptional
 fragrance you are as dear as kinsmen to others. Hence,
 a single excellence overcomes a multitude of blemishes.
