. The greatness of Rishis, of rivers, of
river-banks, of high-souled men, and the cause of woman's wickedness,
cannot be ascertained. O king, he that is devoted to the worship of the
Brahmanas, he that giveth away, he that behaveth righteously towards his
relatives, and the Kshatriya that behaveth nobly, rule the earth for
ever. He that is possessed of bravery, he that is possessed of learning,
and he that knows how to protect others,--these three are always able to
gather flowers of gold from the earth. Of acts, those accomplished by
intelligence are first; those accomplished by the arms, second; those by
the thighs, and those by bearing weights upon the head, are the very
worst. Reposing the care of thy kingdom on Duryodhana, on Sakuni, on
foolish Dussasana, and on Karna, how canst thou hope for prosperity?
Possessed of every virtue, the Pandavas, O bull of the Bharata race,
depend on thee as their father. O, repose thou on them as on thy sons!'"

SECTION XXXVI

"Vidura said, 'In this connection is cited the old story of the discourse
between the son of Atri and the deities called Sadhyas is as heard by us.
In days of old, the deities known by the name of Sadhyas questioned the
highly wise and great Rishi of rigid vows (the son of Atri), while the
latter was wandering in the guise of one depending on eleemosynary
charity for livelihood. The Sadhyas said, "We are, O great Rishi, deities
known as Sadhyas. Beholding thee, we are unable to guess who thou art. It
seemeth to us, however, that thou art possessed of intelligence and
self-control in consequence of acquaintance with the scriptures. It,
therefore, behoveth thee to discourse to us in magnanimous words fraught
with learning." The mendicant Rishi answered, "Ye immortals, it hath been
heard by me that by untying all the knots in the heart by the aid of
tranquillity, and by mastery over all the passions, and observance of
true religion, one should regard both the agreeable and the disagreeable
like his own self. One should not return the slanders or reproaches of
others for the pain that is felt by him who beareth silently, consumeth
the slanderer; and he that beareth, succeedeth also in appropriating the
virtues of the slanderer. Indulge not in slanders and reproaches. Do not
humiliate and insult others. Quarrel not with friends. Abstain from
companionship with those that are vile and low. Be not arrogant and
ignoble in conduct. Avoid words that are harsh and fr