SECTION CCXCIV
"Parasara said, 'The lowest order, it is proper, should derive their
sustenance from the three other orders. Such service, rendered with
affection and reverence, makes them righteous.[1522] If the ancestors of
any Sudra were not engaged in service, he should not still engage himself
in any other occupation (than service). Truly, he should apply himself to
service as his occupation. In my opinion, it is proper for them to
associate, under all circumstances, with good men devoted to
righteousness, but never with those that are wicked. As in the Eastern
hills, jewels and metals blaze with greater splendour in consequence of
their adjacence to the Sun, even so the lowest order blazes with
splendour in consequence of their association with the good. A piece of
white cloth assumes that hue with which it is dyed. Even such is the case
with Sudras.[1523] Hence also, one should attach oneself to all good
qualities but never to qualities that are evil. The life of human beings
in this world is fleeting and transitory. That wise man who, in happiness
as also in misery, achieves only what is good, is regarded as a true
observer of the scriptures. That man who is endued with intelligence
would never do an act which is dissociated from virtue, however high may
the advantages be of that act. Indeed, such an act is not regarded as
truly beneficial. That lawless king who, snatching thousands of kine from
their lawful owners, gives them away (unto deserving persons), acquires
no fruit (from that act of giving) beyond an empty sound (expressive of
the act he does). On the other hand, he incurs the sin of theft. The
Self-born at first created the Being called Dhatri held in universal
respect. Dhatri created a son who was engaged in upholding all the
worlds.[1524] Worshipping that deity, the Vaisya employs himself, for the
means of his support, in agriculture and the rearing of cattle. The
Kshatriyas should employ themselves in the task of protecting all the
other classes. The Brahmanas should only enjoy. As regards the Sudras,
they should engage themselves in the task of humbly and honestly
collecting together the articles that are to be offered in sacrifices,
and in cleaning altars and other places where sacrifices are to be
performed. If each order acts in this way, righteousness would not suffer
any diminution. If righteousness is preserved in its entirety, all
creatures inhabiting the earth would be happy. Beholding the happiness of
all creatures on earth, the deities in heaven become filled with
gladness. Hence, that king who, agreeably to the duties laid down for his
order, protects the other classes, becomes worthy of respect. Similarly,
the Brahmana that is employed in studying the scriptures, the Vaisya that
is engaged in earning wealth, and the Sudra that is always engaged in
serving the three other classes with concentrated attention, become
objects of respect. By conducting themselves in the other ways, O chief
of men, each order is said to fall away from virtue. Keeping aside gifts
by thousands, even twenty cowries that one may give painfully, having
earned them righteously, will be productive of the great benefit. Those
persons, O king, who make gifts unto Brahmanas after reverencing them
duly, reap excellent fruits commensurate with those gifts. That gift is
highly prized which the donor makes after seeking out the donee and
honouring him properly. That gift is middling which the donor makes upon
solicitation. That gift, however, which is made contemptuously and
without any reverence, is said to be very inferior (in point of merit).
Even this is what those utterers of the truth, viz., the sages, say.
While sinking in this ocean of life, man should always seek to cross that
ocean by various means. Indeed, he should so exert himself that he might
be freed from the bonds of this world. The Brahmana shines by self
restraint; the Kshatriya by victory; the Vaisya by wealth; while the
Sudra always shines in glory through cleverness in serving (the three
other orders).'"
