He who eats himself without satisfying the gods, manes, spirits and guests feeds upon his own iniquity and there is no salvation for such a person. The Brāhmans are men of other castes who neglect their respective duties or take up a degraded profession are said to be naked. To live in a place where there is an intermixture of four castes is detrimental to the character of the righteous. Those who converse with him who eats without offering a portion to the gods, the sages, the manes, spirits and guests, are doomed to hell. A wise man should not therefore talk with or come in contact with these heretics who are rendered impure for renouncing the three Vedas. A Srāddha ceremony, although performed with great care and devotion, if looked upon by these heretics does not please the gods or progenitors.
As described, there was in the days of yore a king named Satadhanu whose wife Saivya was a woman of great piety. She was faithful to her husband, kind, sincere, pure, and gifted with every female accomplishment, humility and discretion. The king, with his wife, worshipped with great devotion Janārddana the lord of gods. He daily worshipped Him with whole-mindedness, oblations to fire, prayers, gifts and fasting. One day when they had fasted on the full moon of Kārtika and had bathed in the Bhagirathi, they saw as they came up from the river a heretic to approach them who was the friend of the king's military preceptor. The king, out of his respect for the preceptor, entered into conversation with him but his devoted wife Saivya did not utter a single word. And thinking that she was fasting she turned from him and looked towards the sun. Having arrived at home, the husband and wife as usual performed the worship of Vishnu. After a time the king, who had defeated all his enemies, died and the queen ascended the funeral pile of her husband.
On account of the sin committed by Satadhanu for speaking to a heretic while fasting he was born again as a dog. His wife was born as the daughter of the king of Kāsi having a knowledge of her former birth, versed in every science and gifted with every virtue. Her father was anxious to marry with a good husband, but she always opposed and the king was prevented from celebrating the nuptials. The daughter of the king of Kāsi, by the knowledge of her pristine birth, saw that her husband was born as a dog in the city of Visidhā. And having gone there she saw her husband in that plight. And knowing that animal to be her husband she placed upon his neck the bridal garland going through the marriage rites and prayers. And being pleased with the excellent food offered, the animal expressed his joy after the manner of his species. He thus sporting as a dog, she was greatly ashamed and bowing unto her husband, born as a dog, she said "O king, remember the civilities shown by you (towards your preceptor's friend) for which thou hast been born as a dog and art fawning upon me. Dost thou not remember, O My lord, that by conversing with a heretic after bathing in a sacred river, thou hast been born as a dog?"
Parāçara said:—Being thus reminded the king called to his memory his former condition and was wrapt in meditation and felt humiliation. With a broken heart he went away from the city and falling dead in a desert he was again born as a jackal. In the following year the princess, again by knowledge, perceived that he was born as a jackal and went to the mount Kotahala to find him out. Finding him there the beautiful daughter of the king thus spoke to her lord as a jackal—"O king, dost thou not remember thy conversation with the heretic which I called to thy memory, when thou wast a dog?" Thus accosted the king perceived what the princess had said was true. Thereupon he abstained from eating and died. He was then born as a wolf but his wife repairing to a lonely forest again called back to the recollection of her husband his former state. "O noble lord, thou art not a wolf but the king Satadhanu. Thou wast born as a dog, then as a jackal and thou hast been born as a wolf".
Parāçara said:—Upon thus recollecting his former state the king renounced his life and was born again as a vulture. His loving queen again found him in that state called back to his memory his former condition. "O king" she cried out, "remember thy true self—do thou renounce this ugly form to which thou hast been condemned by the sin consequent upon thy conversing with a heretic". The king was next born as a crow and the princess making him out by virtue of her knowledge of the pristine birth thus spoke to her lord "O lord, thou art now being born as a crow eating the tributary grain, to whom, in a previous birth, all other kings paid tribute".
Parāçara said:—Being thus reminded of his former birth the king renounced the body and was born again as a peacock. Thereupon the beautiful princess began to pet him and feed him with such food as is agreeable to the peacocks. Thereupon the king, Janaka, undertook the celebration of a mighty horse sacrifice. In the ablutions with which it ended the princess caused his peacock to be bathed, bathing also herself. She then reminded Shatadhanu how he had been successively born as various animals. One recollecting this he renounced his life. He was then born as the son of the high-souled king Janaka.
Then the princess, having a slender person, expressed her desire to her father to be wedded. Her father too announced for a Swayambara. When all had assembled at that meeting that chaste damsel found out her (former) lord and again elected him as her husband. The prince lived happily with her and on the death of her father ruled over the country of Videha. He celebrated many sacrifices and distributed many gifts and begot sons and defeated many enemies in war. Having ruled duly and cherished the earth that king renounced his life in battle as became the warrior caste. The princess again followed him in death and in agreement with sacred precepts once more mounted cheerfully his funeral pyre. Thereupon the king, with the princess, attained to the regions beyond the region of Indra, where all desires are for ever satisfied, obtaining eternal and unequalled bliss in heaven, the consummate happiness that is the reward of conjugal fidelity which is hardly attained.
I have thus described to you, O Maitreya, the sin consequent upon conversing with a heretic and effects of bathing after the solemn sacrifice of a horse. A man should therefore carefully avoid the conversation or coming in contact with a heretic especially at seasons of devotion and when engaged in the performance of the religious rites before a sacrifice. The prudent should look at the sun after seeing a person in whose house domestic ceremonies have been neglected for a month. And there is the greatest need of expiation if they meet persons who live upon other's rice and who have wholly abandoned the Vedas and who dispute the doctrines of sacred writings. A man should not even talk with heretics, those who do forbidden acts, pretended saints, scoundrels, sceptics and hypocrites; communication with such sinful wretches ever at a distance, all association with schismatics pollutes a man; a man should therefore carefully avoid them.
These are the persons, O Maitreya, called naked, the meaning of which term you wanted me to explain. If they witness a Srāddha ceremony that becomes fruitless—communication with whom spoils the piety of one day. These are the heretics with whom the wise should not converse—and speaking to whom destroys the virtue he might have obtained that day. Men fall into hell if they converse with them who uselessly assume the twisted hair and shaven head, who eat without offering food to gods, spirits and guest and those who do not offer cakes and libation of water to their manes.
THE END OF PART III.