* Importance of non-violence and other duties of king.
Importance of non-violence and other duties of king.
Shri Narayan Muni said:-
A king should not eat meat; he should never be prone to violence. He should dissuade others who are meat-eaters, from violence. 1.
Non-violence is the supreme dharma for all. Therefore, one should abandon violence even in mind, be it physical or verbal violence. 2.
As a quadruped animal cannot move when it loses one leg and dies shortly as a result of the absence of movements, , non- violence dies if it is not protected carefully in the mind. 3 - 4.
Firstly, violence should be expelled from the mind. Then, it should be expelled from speech and action. A man who does not eat meat is spiritually emancipated. 5.
The king is the father of all subjects; all creatures are (like) his sons. Therefore, he should protect them from the fear of the violent. 6.
A tempted king who eats meat even while knowing that it is like his son’s flesh and is attached to its taste is called a monster. 7.
Many pious men and kings protected others flesh by giving up their own flesh. They lost their lives in the process but attained heaven. 8.
All the great sages like the seven Rishis, Valakhilyas, and Marichipas said the same thing; they greatly praise non- consumption of meat. 9.
Even victimising a goat in a sacrifice is not recommended by the Vedas; it is to keep away non-Sattvik people from engaging in violence (other than a sacrificial one). 10.
A pious king, having ruled his kingdom in this way as per law, should hand over its charge to his eldest son during the third part of his life-span. 11.
He should, on his own, go to a forest and live in the company of saints. If he is firm in his devotion to Sri Hari, he will attain the highest place. 12.
If a religious king dies while ruling his kingdom or is killed while fighting, he attains heaven and enjoys various pleasures there. 13.
After that, as a result of his residual merit, he gets a human body in course of time and by remaining in the company of saints and by practising Bhakti (devotion) to Vishnu, he gets final emancipation. 14.
If on the other hand, mad with pride resulting from power, a king transgresses this limit and acts like a libertine, he becomes disreputable and infamous. 15.
After death, he is found guilty even for the sins of his subjects; as a punishment for these evil sinful acts, he suffers forever in the abode of Yama. 16.
After spending considerable time there (abode of Yama), he is born in the species of insects and beasts. It is for this reason that a king should be firm in dharma and protect his subjects by practising moderation. 17.
God Brahma created Niti-shastra (science of polity) in hoary times with one lakh chapters; it was to instruct kings in dharma and for the happiness of the people. 18.
In view of man’s short life-span, Shiva abridged it (Nitishastra) to ten thousand chapters and called it by the title ‘Vaisalaksha’. 19.
Indra thereafter, further abridged it to five thousand chapters under the title ‘Bahudantaka’. 20.
Furthermore, Brihaspati abridged it to three thousand chapters and it was titled ‘Barhaspatya’. 21.
Shukracharya (Kavya) further abridged it to one thousand chapters; the sages have propagated this version of the Shastra all over the world. 22.
But again, in the view of the limited intelligence and the short life-span of people, Bharadvaj and other sages further abridged it. 23.
Exhortation to follow dharma. Here, I have given only a gist of it. To elaborate its details, one has to study other texts. But the firm fact is that a king should protect his subjects as per the tenets of dharma. 24.
O great Brahmin! I have explained to you in this way the duties and obligations of a king. By adhering to these rules, a king enjoys happiness comparable to that of Indra. 25.
The duties and obligation (already explained) of a householder; if performed along with devotion to Vishnu ensures a place in Vishnuloka (the abode of Vishnu), for that person. 26.
Even one devoid of devotion (as mentioned above), attains heaven if he performs these duties with faith in them. 27.
After having enjoyed heavenly pleasures in plenty, which he acquires by his own merit, he gets another birth on this earth in a house of the meritorious and performs virtuous actions more than before. 28.
Thus ends the twenty ninth chapter entitled, ‘narration of perennial righteous code of non violence etc. in state craft’ in the fifth Prakaran of Satsangi jivan, the life story of Lord Narayan, also titled as Dharmashastra (the rules of the code of conduct). 29