Vol. 3 · pages 356–360

343 THE MORALS OF THE HOUSE VII. 132. Of gathered leaves, pot-herbs, grass, utencils made with leather or cane, earthen pots, and all things made of stone. VII. 132. A king, even though dying with want, must not receive any tax from a Brahman learned in the Vedas, nor suffer such a Brahmen, residing in his territories, to be afflicted with hunger. VII. 134. Of that king, in whose dominion a learned Brahmen is afflicted with hunger, the whole kingdom will in a short time be afflicted with famine. VII. 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. VII. 138. 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. VIII. 394. Neither a blind man, nor an idiot, nor a cripple, nor a man full seventy years old, nor one who confers great benefits on priests of eminent learning, shall be compelled by any king to pay taxes. X. 118. A military king, who takes even a fourth part of the crops of his realm at a time of urgent necessity, as of war or invasion, and protects his people to the utmost of his power, commits no sin: X. 119. His peculiar duty is conquest, and he must not recede from battle; so that, while he defends by his arms the merchant and husbandman, he may levy the legal tax as the price of protection. X. 120. The tax on the mercantile class, which in times of prosperity must be only a twelfth part of their crops, and a fiftieth of their personal profits, may be an eighth of their crops in a time of distress, or a sixth, which is the medium, or even a fourth in great public adversity; but a twentieth of their gains on money, and other moveables, is the highest tax; serving men, artisans, and mechanics, must assist by their labour, but at no time pay taxes. X. 187. To the nearest sapinda, male or female, after him in the third degree, the inheritance next belongs; then, on failure of sapindas and of their issue the samanodaca, or distant kinsman, shall be the heir; or the spiritual preceptor, or the pupil, or the fellow student, of the deceased. IX. 188. On failure of all those, the lawful heirs are such Brahmens, as have read the three Vedas, as are pure in body and mind, as have subdued their passions; and they must consequently offer the cake; thus the rites of obsequies cannot fail.

344 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES IX. 189. The property of a Brahmen shall never be taken as an escheat by the king; this is a fixed law; but the wealth of the other classes, on failure of all heirs, the king may take. The terms on which the different social orders should carry on their associated life has been defined by Manu in a set of rules which form a very important part of the morals of the Hindu House. Manu ordains that: X. 3. From priority of birth, from superiority of origin, from a more exact knowledge of scripture, and from a distinction in the sacrificial thread, the Brahmen is the lord of all classes. IX. 317. A Brahmen, whether learned or ignorant, is a powerful divinity; even as fire is powerful divinity, whether consecrated or popular. IX. 319. Thus, although Brahmens employ themselves in all sorts of mean occupations, they must invariably be honoured; for they are something transcendently divine. VII. 35. A king was created as the protector of all those classes and orders, who, from the first to the last, discharge their several duties. VII. 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. VII. 37. Let the king, having risen at early dawn, respectfully attend to Brahmen, learned in the three Vedas, and in the science of ethics, and by their decision let him abide. VII. 38. Constantly must he show respect to Brahmens, who have grown old, both in years and in piety, who know the scriptures, who in body and mind are pure; for he, who honours the aged, will perpetually be honoured even by cruel demons: IX. 313. Let him not, although in the greatest distress for money, provoke Brahmens to anger by taking their prosperty; for they, once enraged, could immediately by sacrifices and imprecations destroy him with his troops, elephants, horses and cars. Such was to be the relationship in the field of political life. For ordinary social intercourse between the different Varnas Manu lays down the following rules:— III. 68. A house-keeper has five places of slaughter, or where small living creatures may be slain; his kitchen-hearth, his grindstone, his broom, his pestle and mortar, his water-pot; by using which, he becomes in bondage to sin:

345 THE MORALS OF THE HOUSE III. 69. For the sake of expiating offences committed ignorantly in those places mentioned in order, the five great sacraments were appointed by eminent sages to be performed each day by such as keep house. III. 70. Teaching and studying the scripture is the sacrament of the Veda; offering cakes and water, the sacrament of the Manes, an oblation to fire, the sacrament of the Deities; giving rice or other food to living creatures, the sacrament of spirits; receiving guests with honour, the sacrament of men. III. 71. Whoever omits not those five great ceremonies, if he have ability to perform them, is untainted by the sons of the five slaughtering places, even though he constantly reside at home; III. 84. In his domestic Are for dressing the food of all the Gods, after the prescribed ceremony, let a Brahmen make an oblation each day to these following divinities. After it is offered to the deities Manu directs:— III. 92. The share of dogs, of outcasts, of dog-feeders, of sinful men, punished with elephantiasis or consumption, of crows, and of reptiles, let him drop on the ground by little and little. With regard to the rules of hospitality Manu directs the householder: III. 102. A Brahmen, staying but one night as a guest, is called an atithi, since continuing so short a time, he is not even a sojourner for a whole tithi, or day of the moon. III. 98. But an offering in the fire of a sacerdotal mouth, which richly blazes with true knowledge and piety, will release the giver from distress and even from deadly sin. III. 107. To the highest guests in the best form, to the lowest in the worst, to the equal equally, let him offer seats, resting places, couches; giving them proportionable attendance when they depart; and honour, as long as they stay. III. 110. A military man is not denominated a guest in the house of a Brahman; nor a man of the commercial or servile class; nor his familiar friend, nor his paternal kinsmen; nor his preceptor. III. 111. But if a warrior come to his house in the form of a guest, let food be prepared for him, according to his desire, after the beforementioned Brahmens have eaten. III. 112. Even to a merchant or a labourer, approaching his house in the manner of guests, let him give food, showing marks of benevolence at the same time with his domestics. On social bearing of one class towards another Manu has laid down some very interesting ordinances. He has an equation for social status:

346 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES II. 135. The student must consider a Brahmen, though but ten years old, and a Kshatriya, though aged a hundred years, as father and son; as between those two, the young Brahmen is to be respected as the father. II. 136. Wealth, kindred, age, moral conduct, and, fifthly divine knowledge, entitle men to respect; but that which is last mentioned in order, is the most respectable. II. 137. Whatever man of the three highest classes possesses the most of those five, both in number and degree that man is entitled to most respect; even a Sudra, if he have entered the tenth decade of his age. II. 138. Way must be made for a man in a wheeled carriage, or above ninety years old, or afflicted with disease, or carrying a burthen; for a woman; for a priest just returned from the mansion of his preceptor; for a prince, and for a bridegroom. II. 139. Among all those, if they be met at one time, the priest just returned home and the prince are most to be honoured; and of those two, the priest just returned, should be treated with more respect than the prince. As illustrating the rules of social bearing a reference may be made to rules regarding salutation: II. 121. A youth who habitually greets and constantly reverses the aged, obtains an increase of four things; life, knowledge, fame, strength. II. 122. After the word of salutation, a Brahman must address an elder; saying, “I am such an one,” pronouncing his own name. II. 123. If any persons, through ignorance of the Sanskrit language, understand not the import of his name, to them should a learned man say, “ It is I”; and in that manner he should address all classes of women. II. 124. In the salutation he should pronounce, after his own name, the vocative particle ‘bhoh’; for the particle ‘bhoh’ is held by the wise to have the same property with names fully expressed. II. 125. A Brahmen should thus be saluted in return; “ May’st thou live long, excellent man ”, and at the end of his name, the vowel and preceding consonant should be lengthened, with an acute accent, to three syllabic moments or short vowels. II. 126. That Brahmen, who knows not the form of returning a salutation, must not be saluted by a man of learning; as a Shudra, even so is he. II. 127. Let a learned man ask a priest, when he meets him, if his devotion prospers, a warrior, if he is unhurt; a merchant, if his wealth

347 THE MORALS OF THE HOUSE is secure; and one of the servile classes, if he enjoys good health; using respectively the words, cusalam, anamayam, ksheman and anarogyam. The provisions laid down by Manu in relation to Religion and Religious Sacraments and Sacrifice are worthy of note. The ordinances of Manu relating to Sacraments and sacrifices are as follows: III. 68. A house-keeper has five places of slaughter, or where small living creatures may be slain; his kitchen-hearth, his grindstone, his broom, his pastle and mortar, his water-pot; by using which, he become in bondage to sin. III. 69. For the sake of expiating offences committed ignorantly in those places mentioned in order, the five great sacraments were appointed by eminent sages to be performed each day by such as keep house. III. 70. Teaching and studying the scriptures is the sacrament of the Veda; offering cakes and water, the sacrament of the Manes, an oblation to fire, the sacrament of the Deities; giving rice or other food to living creatures, the sacraments of spirits; receiving guests with honour, the sacrament of men. III. 71. Whoever omits not those five great ceremonies, if he have ability to perform them, is untainted by the sons of the five slaughtering places, even though he constantly reside at home. Manu then proceeds to lay down that all are not entitled to the benefit of the sacraments and all have not the same right to perform the sacrifices. He defines the position of women and Shudras in the matter of Sacraments and sacrifices. As to women Manu says :— II. 66. The same ceremonies, except that of the sacrificial thread, must be duly performed for women at the same age and in the same order, that the body may be made perfect; but without any text from the Veda.” As to Shudras, Manu says :— X. 127. Even Shudras, who were anxious to perform their entire duty, and, knowing what they should perform initate the practice of , good men in the household sacraments, but without any holy text, except those containing praise and salutation, are so far from sinning, that they acquire just applause. The investiture of a person with the sacred thread is a very important sacrament. II. 36. In the eighth year from the conception of a Brahman, in the eleventh from that of a Kshatriya, and in the twelfth from that of a Vaisya, let the father invest the child with the mark of his class.