Whatever else thou rein not in, rein in thy tongue: for an unbridled tongue leadeth unto grief.
If even one word of thine causeth pain to another, all thy virtue is lost.
The burn caused by fire healeth in its time: but the wound burned in by the tongue remaineth green forever.
Behold the man who hath learned wisdom and whose mind is tranquil and under perfect control: Righteousness pilgrimageth to his home in order to have a look at him.
XIV
Purity of Conduct
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The man whose conduct is pure is honoured by all: purity of conduct is therefore to be prized even above life.
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Watch anxiously over thy conduct: for wheresoever thou mayest search thou canst not find a firmer ally than right conduct.
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Good conduct bespeaketh an honourable family: but low conduct placeth a man amongst the ignoble.
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Even the Vedas if forgotten can be learned again: but once fallen from virtuous conduct the Brahman is fallen from his place forever.
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Prosperity is not for the envious: even so dignity is not for men of ill conduct.
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The firm-minded swerve not from virtuous conduct: for they know the evils brought on by such swerving.
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The man of right conduct is honoured among men: but ignominy alone is the portion of those who fall therefrom.
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Good conduct soweth the seed of prosperity: but an evil course is the mother of endless ills.
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Foul words can never fall from the lips of the well-bred even when off their guard.
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Fools may be as instructed as thou pleasest: but they never learn to conform to the ways of the Righteous.
XV
Non-Desiring of Another Man’s Wife
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Behold the men whose eyes are turned towards righteousness and towards wealth: they commit not the folly of desiring another man’s wife.
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Among those that have fallen from virtue there is no greater fool than he that standeth at his neighbour’s threshold.
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Verily they are in the jaws of death who invade the home of an unsuspecting friend.
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Let a man be ever so great: what availeth it all if he committeth adultery without thinking ever so little of the shame that floweth therefrom?
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Behold the man who hangeth on to his neighbour’s wife because she is accessible: his name is sullied forever.
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The adulterer knoweth no respite from four things, hatred, sin, fear, and shame.
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He is the righteous householder who careth not for the charms of his neighbour’s wife.
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Behold the high-souled man that looketh not on another’s wife: he is more than righteous: he is saintly.
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Who on earth deserve all the good things of the world? It is they who clasp not the arms of her who belongeth to another.
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Though thou shouldst transgress and yield to every other sin, it were well for thee if thou desire not thy neighbour’s wife.
XVI
Forgiveness
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The earth supporteth even those that dig into her: even so bear thou with those that traduce thee; for that is greatness.
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Forgive thou always the injuries that others may do thee: but if thou forget them, it were even better.
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The most shameful poverty is the refusal of hospitality: and the greatest strength is to bear with the dullness of fools.
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If thou want to be grand always, be forgiving unto all.
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The wise respect not the men who retaliate an injury: but they are prized as gold who forgive their enemy.
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The joy of revenge lasteth but a day: but the glory of him who forgiveth endureth forever.
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Be the wrong suffered ever so great: the better part is not to take it to heart and to abstain from revenge.
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Conquer by thy nobility those that in their pride have injured thee.
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More saintly than even those that have renounced are they that bear with the bitter tongue of their detractors.
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Those that do penance by fasting are great: but they only come after those that forgive their calumniators.
XVII
Non-Envying
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Guard thyself from envious thoughts: for freedom from envy is a part of virtuous conduct.
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No blessing is so great as a nature that is free from all envy.
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It is he that careth not for virtue or for wealth that envieth his neighbour’s prosperity.
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The wise injure not others through envy: for they know the evils that result therefrom.
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Envy itself is scourge enough for the envious man: for, even if his enemies spare him, his own envy will work his ruin.
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Behold the man that beareth not to see gifts made to another: his family will beg for very food and clothing and perish.
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Lakshmi13 cannot bear with the envious: she will abandon them to the care of her elder sister14 and quit their side.
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Caitiff Envy bringeth on indigence and leadeth up to the gates of hell.
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The affluence of the envious and the misery of the generous-minded are alike matter for wonder.
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Never hath envy led to prosperity: nor a liberal heart to a fall therefrom.
XVIII
Non-Coveting
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Behold the man who leaveth the right way and coveteth another man’s wealth: his wickednesses will increase and his family will decline.
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Behold the men that turn away from evil: they covet not, neither do they yield to ignoble deeds.
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Behold the men that care for other joys: they are not greedy after little delights, nor do they yield unto iniquity.
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Behold the men that have mastered their senses and enlarged their vision: they covet not saying, Lo, we are in want.
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Of what avail is a mind that is subtle and comprehending, if it yieldeth unto greed and consenteth unto insensate deeds?
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Even he who hungereth after grace and walketh in the path shall perish if he hankereth after wealth and plotteth evil.
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Covet not the wealth that greed gathereth: for its fruit is bitter in the day of enjoyment.
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If thou desire that thy substance should not grow less, covet not the riches in thy neighbour’s hands.
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Behold the wise man that understandeth justice and coveteth not: Lakshmi knoweth his worth and seeketh him in his home.
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The greed that looketh not beyond engendereth destruction: but the greatness that sayeth, I desire not, triumpheth over
