२४ धर्मः

Without causing pain to any beings, he shall, for the purpose of obtaining a companion in the other world, accumulate spiritual merit, slowly; just as the white ants accumulate the ant-hill.—(238)

महति दाने महति च तपसि महति च यज्ञे ज्योतिष्टोमादौ यद्य् असमर्थस् तदा नोदासीनेन भवितव्यम् । किं तर्हि, शनैः शनैः स्वल्पेन दानेन स्वल्पेन तपसा यथाशक्ति परोपकरेण जपहोमाभ्यां स्मार्ताभ्यां धर्मः संचेतव्यः । यथा मृत्संघातं पुत्तिकाः पिपीलिकाः संचिन्वन्ति । परलोकसहायार्थम् इति धर्मफलानुवादः । सर्वभूतान्य् अपीडयन् । याच्ञया धर्मार्थया भूतानां पीडा न कर्तव्या ॥ ४.२३८ ॥

If one is unable to bestow a large gift, or perform a difficult austerity, or offer an elaborate sacrifice—like the Jyotiṣṭoma and the rest,—he should not he despondent on that account; on the contrary, he should ‘slowly’ and gently ‘accumulate spiritual merit,’ by means of small gifts, small austerities, by helping others, to the best of his ability, and by muttering prayers and offering oblations prescribed in the Smṛtis; just in the same manner in which white ants accumulate the ant-hill.

‘For the purpose of obtaining a companion in the other world.’—This describes the fruits of spiritual merit.

‘Without causing pain to any beings;’ i.e., even for the sake of spiritual merit, he shall not go about begging and thereby causing pain to others.—(238)

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 232), which reads ‘vaprikāḥ’ for ‘puttikāḥ’, and explains it as ‘a particular kind of art’;—and in Vīramitrodaya (Paribhāṣā, p. 64), which explains ‘puttikā’ as ‘a kind of art’; and explains that this and the following verses are meant to eulogise Dharma.

**(verses 4.234-239)
**

See Comparative notes for [Verse 4.234].

238 Giving no pain to any creature, let him slowly accumulate spiritual merit, for the sake (of acquiring) a companion to the next world, just as the white ant (gradually raises its) hill.

There, neither father, nor mother, nor wife, nor sons, nor relations stay as companions; spiritual merit alone remains.—(239)

भूतानुवादो ऽयम् । अमुत्र जन्मान्तरे सहायार्थं नरकादिदुःखाद् उद्धरणार्थं न कस्यचित् सुहृद्बान्धवादेः शक्तिर् अस्ति । केवल एव जीवता यो धर्मः कृतः स तम् उद्धरति ॥ ४.२३९ ॥

This only describes the real state of things.

‘There,’—i.e., during next birth—‘as companion,’—i.e., for saving him from the pangs of hell, etc; friends and relations have no power; the only thing that saves him is the spiritual merit that he has acquired during life.—(239)

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 232);—and in Vīramitrodaya (Paribhāṣā, p. 64).

**(verses 4.234-239)
**

See Comparative notes for [Verse 4.234].

239 For in the next world neither father, nor mother, nor wife, nor sons, nor relations stay to be his companions; spiritual merit alone remains (with him).

Alone is a creature born, and alone does it cease to be; alone it enjoys its good deeds and also its evil deeds.—(239)

यथा जन्तुः प्राणी, एक एव जायते न सुहृद्बान्धवादिना सह, एक¹ एव प्रलीयते, न सुहृदो बान्धवाः सहमरणम् अनुभवन्ति । यदि नाम भार्यान्यो वा भक्तो जनस् तन्मरणकाल आत्मानं हन्यात् तथापि पृथग् एवासौ मरणक्रिया । अनया न गर्भैक्यम् अत्रिवद् अनुभवन्ति । एवं सुकृतदुष्कृते अपि पृथग् एवानुभवन्ति ।

• ननु च “न पुत्रदारम्” (म्ध् ४.२३९) इत्य् उक्तम् । यावता पुत्रः श्राद्धादिक्रियया पितुर् उपकरोत्य् एव मृतस्य, एवं भार्यापि ।

• सत्यम् । धार्मिकस्यैव तादृशः पुत्रो भवतीति तत्परम् एतत् । यथा जीवतः कस्यचिद् धस्तग्राहिकया कश्चित् सहायो भवति, एवं मृतस्य पुत्रो धर्मद्वारेणैवोपकरोति ॥ ४.२४० ॥

‘Each creature’—living being—‘is born alone,’—and not along with his friends and relations; and ‘alone does it cease to be;’ friends and relations do not die with him. Even when one’s wife, or some other devoted person, kills herself at the time of one’s death, this act of dying is different from that of the man’s own dying; and, by this act, the wife does not become born in the same womb with the husband, in the way in which Atri was born.

Similarly, his good and evil deeds also the man enjoys himself.

“It has been said that neither one’s wife nor one’s sons help him; hut, as a matter of fact, the son does help the father, by performing the śrāddha and other rites; and so the wife also.”

True; but all that this mentis is that such a dutiful son is horn only to a person who has acquired merit; and, just as during life, one is helped by another person who supports him by the hand, so also, when the man dies, his son helps him by means of religious acts.—(240)

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 232);—and in Vīramitrodaya (Paribhāṣā, p. 64).

Mahābhārata (Anuśāsana, 173.11).—‘O king, man is born alone, and alone he dies, alone by himself does he pass through difficulties, and by himself alone does he fall into misfortune.’

240 Single is each being born; single it dies; single it enjoys (the reward of its) virtue; single (it suffers the punishment of its) sin.

Leaving the dead body on the ground, like a log of wood or a clod of earth, the relations depart with averted faces; spiritual merit alone follows him.—(241)

सह गच्छति । इदं प्रत्यक्षसिद्धं² प्रसंख्यानार्थम् उच्यते । मृतस्य शरीरं क्षिताव् उत्सृज्य काष्ठम् इव निष्प्रयोजनं विमुखा बान्धवाः प्रतिगच्छन्ति । धर्मस् तु केवलं पुरुषम् अनुगच्छति ॥ ४.२४१ ॥

‘Follows’—accompanies.

This verse describes what is actually seen to happen. Relations throw away the body of the dead man on the ground, just as if it were a log of wood, or a clod of earth, and go away, with their faces turned away; but Spiritual Merit alone follows the man.—(241)

This; verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 232);—and in Vīramitrodaya (Paribhāṣā, p. 64).

**(verses 4.241-242)
**

Mahābhārata (Anuśāsana, 173.13).—‘People leave the dead body like a log of wood or a clod of earth; having used it for a while, they turn their backs upon it and go away. Therefore, O king, it is Righteousness alone that one should serve for the purpose of obtaining a real helper. By being equipped with Righteousness one reaches the highest celestial state; similarly equipped with unrighteousness, he fails into hell.’

241 Leaving the dead body on the ground like a log of wood, or a clod of earth, the relatives depart with averted faces; but spiritual merit follows the (soul).

He shall, therefore, slowly accumulate Spiritual Merit, for the purpose of securing a companion; for, with Merit as his companion, the man crosses over unfordable darkness.—(242)

उपसंहारो ऽयम् । दुस्तरं तमः कृच्छ्रेण यत् तीर्यते । तमो दुःखम् । तद् अपि धर्मेण सहायेन सुतरं भवति । न हि तादृशे तमसि मज्जतीत्य् अर्थः ॥ ४.२४२ ॥

This is a recapitulation.

‘Unfordable darkness’—i.e., that which is crossed over with difficulty.

‘Darkness’ stands for suffering. Even such ‘unfordable darkness’ becomes easily fordable with the aid of Merit as a companion; i.e., the man does not become submerged in the darkness.—(242)

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 232);—in Hemādri (Vrata, p. 14);—in Vīramitrodaya (Paribhāṣā, p. 64), which explains ‘tamas’ as ‘sin’;—and in Nṛsiṃhaprasāda (Saṃskāra, pp. 17a and b).

**(verses 4.241-242)
**

See Comparative notes for [Verse 4.241].

242 Let him therefore always slowly accumulate spiritual merit, in order (that it may be his) companion (after death); for with merit as his companion he will traverse a gloom difficult to traverse.

It speedily carries the man, who is devoted to duty and has his sins destroyed by austerities, clothed in his own (spiritual) body, to the brighter regions above.—(243)

धर्मः प्रधानं यस्यासौ धर्मप्रधानः धर्मपरायणः यथाविहितकर्मानुष्ठायी । तपसा हतकिल्बिषम् । कथंचित् प्रमादकृतव्यतिक्रमे तपसा प्रायश्चित्तेन हतकल्मषं शात्रव्यतिक्रमे जातो ऽसौ दोषस् तस्मिंस् तत्प्रायश्चित्तेन नष्टे परलोकं नयति भास्वन्तं परलोकं देवस्थानं स्वर्गादि नयति प्रापयति । कः, प्रकृतत्वाद् धर्म एव । शरीरिणं पुरुषम् । खेन³ शरीरेण खशरीरी । न यथान्येषां पुरुषाणां पाञ्चभौतिकं शरीरम् एवं तस्य । किं तर्हि, खम्⁴ एव शरीरं ब्रह्म । विभुत्वम् अनेनोच्यते ॥ ४.२४३ ॥

‘Dharmapradhānam’—means ‘he for whom Duly is the main consideration’; i.e., he who is devoted to duty, and perforins all acts exactly as they are enjoined.

‘Who has his sins destroyed by austerities.’—If he happens to commit any transgressions, through carelessness, his sin is destroyed by the expiatory austerities he performs. The evil having arisen out of his transgression of the law, it is effaced by the proper expiatory rites.

‘It carries him to the brighter regions above,’—i.e., the effulgent regions of the gods, in the shape of Heaven, etc.

Who carries him?

Dharma, or Spiritual Merit. That this is so, is clear from the context.

‘Clothed in his own body.’—The Soul being in its own body, and not in the body made up of material substances, as ordinary souls are, his body is his own spiritual one; which means that he is us all-pervading us Brahman, the Supreme Spirit.—(243)

243 (That companion) speedily conducts the man who is devoted to duty and effaces his sins by austerities, to the next world, radiant and clothed with an ethereal body.