Chapter 3

Vishnu Smriti 3

Now, the duties of a king (rājadharma). // Vi_3.1 //

The protection of the people. // Vi_3.2 //

The establishment of the varṇas (social orders) and āśramas (stages of life) in their respective duties. // Vi_3.3 //

A king shall take up residence in a country that is open, abounds in cattle, and is rich in grain. // Vi_3.4 //

And one where Vaiśyas and Śūdras are numerous. // Vi_3.5 //

There he shall take refuge in a fortress, be it a bow-fortress, a man-fortress, a land-fortress, a water-fortress, a tree-fortress, or a mountain-fortress. // Vi_3.6 //

Residing there, he shall appoint chiefs for his own villages. // Vi_3.7 //

And superintendents over ten villages. // Vi_3.8 //

And superintendents over a hundred villages. // Vi_3.9 //

And superintendents over a whole district. // Vi_3.10 //

The village chief shall redress the wrongs committed in his village. // Vi_3.11 //

If unable, he shall report it to the superintendent of ten villages. // Vi_3.12 //

If he too is unable, he shall report it to the superintendent of a hundred villages. // Vi_3.13 //

If he too is unable, he shall report it to the superintendent of the district. // Vi_3.14 //

The district superintendent shall by all means eradicate the wrong. // Vi_3.15 //

He shall appoint trusted men over mines, customs-houses, ferries, and forests. // Vi_3.16 //

Men of piety for pious duties. // Vi_3.17 //

Men of skill for financial matters. // Vi_3.18 //

Brave men for military affairs. // Vi_3.19 //

Fierce men for fierce deeds. // Vi_3.20 //

Eunuchs for matters concerning women. // Vi_3.21 //

For tax, he shall take a sixth part of the grain annually from his subjects. // Vi_3.22 //

And from all other crops. // Vi_3.23 //

Two percent from cattle, gold, and clothes. // Vi_3.24 //

The king shall take a sixth part of meat, honey, clarified butter, herbs, perfumes, flowers, roots, fruits, juices, wood, leaves, skins, earthenware, and stoneware. // Vi_3.25 //

He shall not levy tax from Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.26 //

For they are the tax-payers for the king in the form of religious merit. // Vi_3.27 //

And the king receives a sixth part of the good and evil deeds of his subjects. // Vi_3.28 //

From merchandise produced in his own country, he shall take a tenth part as customs duty. // Vi_3.29 //

And a twentieth part from merchandise from a foreign country. // Vi_3.30 //

One who absconds from a customs-house shall suffer the confiscation of all his goods. // Vi_3.31 //

Artisans and laborers shall perform one day's work per month for the king. // Vi_3.32 //

The sovereign, the minister, the fortress, the treasury, the army, the territory, and the ally are the constituent elements of a state. // Vi_3.33 //

And he shall put to death those who harm them. // Vi_3.34 //

He shall be the eye of spies in his own kingdom and in foreign kingdoms. // Vi_3.35 //

He shall honor the good. // Vi_3.36 //

And he shall put to death the wicked. // Vi_3.37 //

Towards enemies, allies, neutrals, and mediators, he shall employ conciliation, dissension, bribery, and force, as appropriate and at the right time. // Vi_3.38 //

He shall also resort to peace, war, marching, halting, seeking shelter, and duplicity, at the proper time. // Vi_3.39 //

He should set out on a military expedition in the month of Caitra or Mārgaśīrṣa. // Vi_3.40 //

Or when his enemy is in distress. // Vi_3.41 //

Upon conquering a foreign land, he shall not abolish the laws of that country. // Vi_3.42 //

And when attacked by an enemy, he shall protect his own kingdom with all his might. // Vi_3.43 //

There is no duty for kings equal to giving up one's body in battle. // Vi_3.44 //

Those who are killed while protecting cows, Brāhmaṇas, the king, a friend, treasure, a wife, or their own life, attain the world of heaven. // Vi_3.45 //

And for the sake of preventing the mixture of varṇas. // Vi_3.46 //

When a king has conquered an enemy's capital, he should enthrone a prince of that same royal family there. // Vi_3.47 //

He shall not exterminate a royal family. // Vi_3.48 //

Unless it is a royal family of low birth. // Vi_3.49 //

He shall avoid excessive indulgence in hunting, gambling, women, and drinking. // Vi_3.50 //

And harshness of speech and severity of punishment. // Vi_3.51 //

He shall not cause the ruin of property. // Vi_3.52 //

He shall not close the sources of revenue. // Vi_3.53 //

He shall not bestow gifts on unworthy persons. // Vi_3.54 //

He shall take everything from the mines. // Vi_3.55 //

Having found a treasure, he shall give half of it to Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.56 //

The other half he shall deposit in his treasury. // Vi_3.57 //

A Brāhmaṇa who finds a treasure shall take the whole of it. // Vi_3.58 //

A Kṣatriya shall give a fourth part to the king, a fourth part to Brāhmaṇas, and take half for himself. // Vi_3.59 //

A Vaiśya shall give a fourth part to the king, half to Brāhmaṇas, and take a fourth part for himself. // Vi_3.60 //

A Śūdra, having found a treasure, shall divide it into twelve parts, give five parts to the king, five parts to Brāhmaṇas, and take two parts for himself. // Vi_3.61 //

If it is discovered that he did not report it, the king shall confiscate the whole of it. // Vi_3.62 //

From their own hidden treasure, all except Brāhmaṇas shall give a twelfth part to the king. // Vi_3.63 //

One who claims another's hidden treasure as his own shall incur a fine equal to its value. // Vi_3.64 //

The king shall protect the property of children, the helpless, and women. // Vi_3.65 //

Having recovered stolen property, he shall give all of it back to people of all varṇas. // Vi_3.66 //

And if he cannot recover it, he shall give it from his own treasury. // Vi_3.67 //

He shall quell calamities sent by fate through rites of peace and propitiation. // Vi_3.68 //

And calamities from enemy armies through constant readiness with arms. // Vi_3.69 //

He shall appoint as his priest a man who is learned in the Vedas, history, and the science of dharma, of noble family, free from physical defects, and an ascetic. // Vi_3.70 //

And as his assistants in all affairs, men who are pure, not greedy, attentive, and endowed with energy. // Vi_3.71 //

He himself shall examine legal disputes, together with learned Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.72 //

Or he may appoint a Brāhmaṇa to examine legal disputes. // Vi_3.73 //

The king's assessors in court must be men of good birth, deeds, and vows, who are impartial towards friend and foe, and who cannot be swayed from their duty by lust, anger, fear, or greed. // Vi_3.74 //

And in all his affairs, the king shall be dependent on his astrologer. // Vi_3.75 //

He shall constantly honor gods and Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.76 //

He shall be a servant to the aged. // Vi_3.77 //

And he shall perform sacrifices. // Vi_3.78 //

And in his kingdom, no Brāhmaṇa shall suffer from hunger. // Vi_3.79 //

Nor any other person engaged in good works. // Vi_3.80 //

And he should grant land to Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.81 //

And to those to whom he grants it, he shall give a document, written on cloth or a copper plate, describing his own lineage, the dimensions of the land, and the details of the grant, marked with his own seal, for the information of future kings. // Vi_3.82 //

And he shall not confiscate land granted by another. // Vi_3.83 //

He shall bestow all kinds of gifts upon Brāhmaṇas. // Vi_3.84 //

But above all, he shall protect himself. // Vi_3.85 //

He shall be of pleasant appearance. // Vi_3.86 //

And he shall keep antidotes and spells against poison. // Vi_3.87 //

He shall not use anything that has not been tested. // Vi_3.88 //

He shall be one who speaks with a smile first. // Vi_3.89 //

Even towards those condemned to death, he shall not knit his brow. // Vi_3.90 //

And he shall inflict punishment on the punishable in proportion to their offense. // Vi_3.91 //

He shall administer punishment justly. // Vi_3.92 //

He should not forgive a second offense from anyone. // Vi_3.93 //

For kings, there is no one who is not punishable if he does not follow his own dharma. // Vi_3.94 //

Where the dark, red-eyed rod of justice (daṇḍa) moves without fear, There the subjects prosper, if the leader judges well. || Vi_3.95 ||

He should be just in punishment in his own kingdom, but very severe with his enemies, Straightforward with his friends, and forgiving towards Brāhmaṇas. || Vi_3.96 ||

Of a king who behaves thus, even if he lives by gleaning grain, His fame spreads in the world like a drop of oil on water. || Vi_3.97 ||

The king who is happy in his subjects' happiness, and who is unhappy in their sorrow, He, endowed with fame in this world, is glorified in heaven after death. || Vi_3.98 ||