Behold the wealth in the hands of the churlish man: it is even as the milk that is spoiled for being kept in an unclean vessel.
CI
The Wealth That Is Not Put to Good Use
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Behold the man who hath laid by in his home treasures in abundance but enjoyeth them not: he is as good as dead, for he maketh no use of them.
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Behold the miser that thinketh that wealth is all in all and hoardeth it without giving to any: he will be a demon in his next birth.
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Behold the men that are always after hoarding but care not for fame: their existence is a burden unto the earth.
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The man who careth not to earn the attachment of his neighbours, what doth he hope to leave behind him when he is dead?37
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Behold the men that neither give unto others nor enjoy their wealth themselves: even if they possess tens of millions they really possess nothing.
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There is a man that enjoyeth not his wealth nor giveth freely to men of worth: he is a disease unto a great fortune.
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Behold the man that giveth not anything to the needy: the wealth in his hands is like a fair damsel that wasteth away her youth in loneliness.
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The fortune of the man that is not loved of men is like the fruiting of the poison tree in the midst of the village.
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The wealth that is made without any regard to love or righteousness, and by starving oneself, is hoarded only for the behoof of strangers.
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The distress of the man of wealth who hath emptied his resources by benefactions is only like the exhaustion of the rain-cloud: it will not continue for long.
CII
Sensitiveness to Shame
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The blush of the worthy is for action that become them not: it is therefore quite different to the blush of the fair.
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Food, clothing, and progeny are common unto all men: it is in the sensibility to shame that they differ from one another.
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The body is the seat of all life: but a virtuous blush is the dwelling place of worth.
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Is not the jewel of the worthy their sense of shame? And when a man hath it not, is not his swagger an affliction unto the eye to behold?
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Behold the men that blush as much for others’ disgrace as for their own: they will be called the very dwelling place of delicacy.
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The worthy refuse to acquire even kingdoms save by means for which they shall not have to blush.
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Behold the men that have a delicate sense of shame: they will renounce their lives to save themselves from a disgrace, but will not swallow their shame even in order to save their lives.
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If a man blush not for those things that call forth a blush in others, Righteousness will have cause to blush for him.
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By neglecting ceremonial observances a man loseth only his family: but every good is lost when he is lost to shame.
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The men that are dead to shame live not: they merely feign life even as wooden marionettes that are moved by strings.
CIII
Advancing the Family
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Nothing advanceth a man’s family so much as his determination never to weary in labouring with his hands.
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Manly exertion and a sound understanding: it is the fullness of these two that exalteth the family.
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When a man setteth out saying, I shall advance my house, the very Gods gird up their loins and march before him.
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Behold the men that remit not in their exertions to raise high their family: the work of their hands will prosper of itself even if they make no elaborate plans therefor.
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Behold the man that setteth his family on high without doing iniquity: the whole world will be as a kindred unto him.
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That is the supreme manhood which bringeth to a high estate the family wherein one is born.
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Even as the brunt of an action falleth on the courageous on the battlefield, even so the burden of keeping up the family lieth only on the shoulders of those that can bear the burden.
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There is no season for them that desire the advancement of their family: if they take things easy or stand upon their dignity, their house will be brought low.
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Verily, is the body of the man that would protect his family against every ill a receptacle for toils and hardships alone?38
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Behold the family that hath no good man to prop it up: calamities will gnaw into its roots and it will fall to the ground.
CIV
Husbandry
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Roam where they will, men must at last stand behind the plough for their food: in spite of every hardship, therefore, husbandry is the chiefest industry.
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Husbandmen are the linchpin of society: for they support all those that take to other work, not having the strength to plough.
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They alone live who live by tilling the ground: all others eat only the bread of dependence.
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Behold the men whose fields sleep under the shadow of the rich ears of their harvests: they will see the umbrellas of other princes bow down before the umbrella of their own sovereign.
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Behold the men that eat the bread of husbandry: they will not only not beg themselves, but they will also give alms to those that beg, without ever saying nay.
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Even they who have renounced all desire will have to suffer if the husbandman sitteth still with folded arms.
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If thou dry the soil of thy field till an ounce of mould is reduced to a quarter-ounce of dust, then not even a handful of manure will be needed, and the yield would be abundant.
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Manuring profiteth more than the ploughing: and when the land is weeded, guarding it profiteth more than irrigation.
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If the goodman visiteth not his land but sitteth at home, the land will take huff even as the goodwife.
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The fair one called Earth laugheth to
