Chapter 50

Vishnu Smriti 50

Having made a hut of leaves in the forest, he shall dwell there. // Vi_50.1 //

He shall bathe at the three junctures of the day. // Vi_50.2 //

Proclaiming his own deed, he shall beg for alms in village after village. // Vi_50.3 //

And he shall sleep on grass. // Vi_50.4 //

This is the mahāvrata (the great vow). // Vi_50.5 //

Having killed a Brāhmaṇa, he shall perform it for twelve years. // Vi_50.6 //

Or a Kṣatriya or a Vaiśya engaged in a sacrifice. // Vi_50.7 //

Or a pregnant woman or a menstruating woman. // Vi_50.8 //

Or a woman of the Atri lineage. // Vi_50.9 //

Or a friend. // Vi_50.10 //

For the killing of a king, he shall perform the mahāvrata for double the time. // Vi_50.11 //

For the killing of a Kṣatriya, three-quarters of it. // Vi_50.12 //

For the killing of a Vaiśya, half. // Vi_50.13 //

For the killing of a Śūdra, half of that. // Vi_50.14 //

In all these cases, he shall be a śavaśirodhvajī (one who has a skull as a banner). // Vi_50.15 //

For one month, having shaved his head, he shall follow the cows. // Vi_50.16 //

When they are sitting, he shall sit. // Vi_50.17 //

When they are standing, he shall stand. // Vi_50.18 //

He shall lift up one that has fallen. // Vi_50.19 //

And he shall protect them from dangers. // Vi_50.20 //

Without protecting them from cold and the like, he shall not protect himself. // Vi_50.21 //

He shall bathe with cow's urine. // Vi_50.22 //

And he shall subsist on the products of the cow. // Vi_50.23 //

This is the govrata (the cow vow); he shall perform it for killing a cow. // Vi_50.24 //

Having killed an elephant, he shall give five dark-blue bulls. // Vi_50.25 //

A horse, a garment. // Vi_50.26 //

For killing a donkey, a one-year-old bullock. // Vi_50.27 //

And for killing a ram or a goat. // Vi_50.28 //

For killing a camel, a gold kṛṣṇala. // Vi_50.29 //

Having killed a dog, he shall fast for three nights. // Vi_50.30 //

Having killed a mouse, a cat, an ichneumon, a frog, a water-snake, or a python, having fasted, he shall feed a Brāhmaṇa with a dish of rice and sesame, and give an iron rod as a gift. // Vi_50.31 //

For killing an owl, a crow, or a fish, he shall fast for three nights. // Vi_50.32 //

Having killed a swan, a heron, a crane, a grebe, a monkey, a hawk, a vulture, or a ruddy goose, he shall give a cow to a Brāhmaṇa. // Vi_50.33 //

Having killed a snake, he shall give a spade made of black iron. // Vi_50.34 //

Having killed a eunuch, a load of straw. // Vi_50.35 //

Having killed a boar, a pot of clarified butter. // Vi_50.36 //

A partridge, a droṇa of sesame seeds. // Vi_50.37 //

A parrot, a two-year-old calf. // Vi_50.38 //

A crane, a three-year-old calf. // Vi_50.39 //

For killing a carnivorous wild animal, he shall give a milch cow. // Vi_50.40 //

For killing a non-carnivorous wild animal, a heifer. // Vi_50.41 //

For killing an unmentioned wild animal, he shall subsist on milk for three nights. // Vi_50.42 //

For killing a bird, he shall eat only at night. // Vi_50.43 //

Or he shall give a silver māṣa. // Vi_50.44 //

Having killed an aquatic animal, he shall fast. // Vi_50.45 //

For the killing of a thousand creatures with bones, / And for a full cartload of those without bones, one shall perform the vow for killing a Śūdra. || Vi_50.46 ||

But for the killing of a creature with bones, one shall give something to a Brāhmaṇa; / And for the harming of those without bones, one is purified by breath-control. || Vi_50.47 ||

For the cutting of fruit-bearing trees, one shall mutter a hundred Ṛg verses; / And for shrubs, creepers, climbing plants, and flowering herbs. || Vi_50.48 ||

For creatures born from food, and for all those born from liquids, / And for those born from fruits and flowers, the drinking of clarified butter is the purification. || Vi_50.49 ||

For the useless destruction of cultivated herbs and of those growing wild in the forest, / He shall follow a cow for one day, subsisting on milk. || Vi_50.50 ||