9. That of any forest-beast, except the buffalo, the milk of a woman, and any thing naturally sweet but acidulated, must all be carefully shunned : 10. But among such acids, buttermilk may be swallowed, and every preparation of buttermilk, and all acids extracted from pure flowers, roots, or fruit not cut with iron. 11. Let every twice-born man avoid carnivorous birds, and such as live in towns, and quadrupeds with uncloven hoofs, except those allowed by the Véda, and the bird called tittibha ;* 12. The sparrow, the water-bird plava, t the phenicopteros, the chacraváca, the breed of the town-cock, the sárasa, the rajjuvála, the woodpecker, and the parrot, male and female; 13. Birds, that strike with their beaks, webfooted birds, the cóyashti, those, who wound with strong talons, and those, who dive to devour fish; let him avoid meat kept at a slaughter-house, and dried meat, 14. The heron, the raven, the c'hanjana, all amphibious fish-eaters, tame hogs, and fish of every sort, but those expressly permitted.§ *The tittibha is the Parra jacana or goensis. + The plava, is both the diver and a sort of duck, (Wilson); and Mr. Wilkins considers it the same as the plover. The chacraváca is the ruddy goose, familiarly known in India by the name of Brahmany duck or goose (Anas casarca). The sárasa is the Indian crane. The rajjuvála is not found in the dictionaries. The dátyúha which Sir William Jones has translated "woodpecker," is rendered "a gallinule" by Mr. Colebrooke in the Amera Cósha, to which Mr. Wilson adds in his Dictionary, "the chátaca, a sort of cuckoo." The chátaca is specified by Mr. Colebrooke to be the cuculus melano leucus. It is worthy of remark, that the sárica, which Sir William Jones renders female parrot, is actually a species of jay (gracula religiosa). By a similar connexion, the sáricá is fixed upon as a suitable mate for the parrot in the Bengálí "Tales of a Parrot." Are we here to suppose, for the purpose of reconciling this apparent inconsistency, that the word sáricá is familiarly applied to the female parrot, though unnoticed in such a sense by the dictionaries? The cóyashti is the lapwing. Sir William Jones has omitted to render the baláca, which should have been inserted between "the heron, the raven," and which Mr. Wilson renders "a sort of crane." The word which Sir William Jones writes c'hanjana, as it is given in 15. He, who eats the flesh of any animal, is called the eater of that animal itself; and a fish-eater is an eater of all flesh; from fish, therefore, he must diligently abstain: 16. Yet the two fish, called páť' hina* and róhita, may be eaten by the guests, when offered at a repast in honour of the gods or the manes; and so may the rájíva, the sinhatunda, and the sasalca of every species. 17. Let him not eat the flesh of any solitary animals, nor of unknown beasts or birds, though by general words declared eatable, nor of any creature with five claws; 18. The hedgehog and porcupine, the lizard gódhá, † the the comment, is spelt c'hanjaritaca in the text. Neither the one nor the other is found in the dictionaries. *The pát hina is the sheat-fish (Silurus pelorius. Buchannon Mss.). The sasalká is likewise unmentioned in the dictionaries; but CULLÚCA in his comment on the Mahásalka, Chap. III. v. 272, identifies these fish with one another: it is therefore the shrimp or prawn. + I am happy to be able to quote the words of an eminent orientalist, as explanatory of the proper import of the passage "the lizard gódhá, the gandaca.' The first of which, namely, "the gódhá, not being the lizard or iguana." "With deference I wish to correct the translation of a verse of MENU relating to this subject. In his interlineary version, Sir William Jones has translated chadga rhinoceros, which is the undoubted meaning of the word. I can assign no reason for his substituting the Sanscrit word gandaca, which is another name for the rhinoceros. In the same version, Sir William Jones translated gódhá, iguana; I am led to understand by that term the gódhica, or lacerta gangetica, named góhi and garial in the vulgar dialects of Bengal; the iguana is in Sanscrit called gaud'héra, gaud'hara, gaud' heya, and gód'hicátmaja, which literally signifies offspring of the lacerta gangetica. May I add, that this species of alligator has been ill-described by European naturalists; and through a strange mistake, has been called the open-bellied crocodile." A Digest of Hindu Law, translated by H. T. Colebrooke, Esq. Vol. III. p. 345, note. The interlineary version alluded to by Mr. Colebrooke, was made by Sir William Jones in his own copy of the original text. The reason why Sir William Jones substituted gandaca for the original word chadga, arose, probably, from that word being adopted by CULLÚCA in his comment upon the text: a practice repeatedly followed by Sir William Jones; as the commentator has generally given those terms which are most sanctioned by familiar usage. It must be likewise borne in mind, that at the period when the translation was made, many of the commonest objects of natural history had not been identified with their Sanscrit designations. The "rabbit and hare:" see note on Chap. III. v. 270. gandaca, the tortoise, and the rabbit or hare, wise legislators declare lawful food among five-toed animals; and all quadrupeds, camels excepted, which have but one teeth. row of 19. The twice-born man, who has intentionally eaten a mushroom, the flesh of a tame hog, or a town-cock, a leek, or an onion, or garlick, is degraded immediately; 20. But having undesignedly tasted either of those six things, he must perform the penance sántapana,* or the chándrayana, which anchorets practise; for other things he must fast a whole day. 21. One of those harsh penances, called prájápatya,† the twice-born man must perform annually, to purify him from the unknown taint of illicit food; but he must do particular penance for such food intentionally eaten. 22. BEASTS and birds of excellent sorts may be slain by Bráhmens for sacrifice, or for the sustenance of those, whom they are bound to support; since AGASTYA did this of old. 23. No doubt, in the primeval sacrifices by holy men, and in oblations by those of the priestly and military tribes, the flesh of such beasts and birds, as may be legally eaten, was presented to the deities. 24. That, which may be eaten or drunk, when fresh, without blame, may be swallowed, if touched with oil, though it has been kept a whole night; and so may the remains of clarified butter: 25. And every mess prepared with barley or wheat, or with dressed milk, may be eaten by the twice-born, although not sprinkled with oil.‡ 26. Thus has the food, allowed or forbidden to a twiceborn man, been comprehensively mentioned: I will now propound the special rules for eating and for avoiding flesh-meat. 27. He should taste meat, which has been hallowed for a *The nature of the penance sántapana may be seen in v. 213, Chap. XI. An explanation of the chandrayana penance will be found in v. 217 and 218, Chap. XI. The penance prájápatya is given in v. 212 of the eleventh chapter. The term chirastit ham "stale," which qualifies every article enumerated, has not been rendered by the translator. sacrifice with appropriated texts, and, once only, when a priest shall desire him, and when he is performing a legal act, or in danger of losing life. 28. For the sustenance of the vital spirit, BRAHMA' created all this animal and vegetable system; and all, that is moveable or immoveable, that spirit devours. 29. Things fixed are eaten by creatures with locomotion ; toothless animals, by animals with teeth; those without hands, by those to whom hands were given; and the timid, by the bold. 30. He, who eats according to law, commits no sin, even though every day he tastes the flesh of such animals, as may be lawfully tasted; since both animals, who may be eaten, and those who eat them, were equally created by BRAHMA'. 31. It is delivered as a rule of the gods, that meat must be swallowed only for the purpose of sacrifice; but it is a rule of gigantick demons, that it may be swallowed for any other purpose. 32. No sin is committed by him, who, having honoured the deities and the manes, eats flesh-meat, which he has bought, or which he has himself acquired, or which has been given him by another: 33. Let no twice-born man, who knows the law, and is not in urgent distress, eat flesh without observing this rule; for he, unable to save himself, will be devoured in the next world by those animals, whose flesh he has thus illegally swallowed. 34. The sin of him, who kills deer for gain, is not so heinous, with respect to the punishment in another life, as that of him, who eats flesh-meat in vain, or not previously offered as a sacrifice: 35. But the man, who, engaged in holy rites according to law, refuses to eat it, shall sink in another'world, for twentyone births, to the state of a beast. 36. Never let a priest eat the flesh of cattle unhallowed with mantras, but let him eat it, observing the primeval rule, when it has been hallowed with those texts of the Véda. 37. Should he have an earnest desire to taste flesh-meat, he may gratify his fancy by forming the image of some beast. with clarified butter thickened, or he may form it with dough; but never let him indulge a wish to kill any beast in vain : 38. As many hairs as grow on the beast, so many similar deaths shall the slayer of it, for his own satisfaction in this world, endure in the next from birth to birth. 39. By the self-existing in person were beasts created for sacrifice; and the sacrifice was ordained for the increase of this universe: the slaughterer, therefore, of beasts for sacrifice is in truth no slaughterer. 40. Gramineous plants, cattle, timber-trees, amphibious animals, and birds, which have been destroyed for the purpose of sacrifice, attain in the next world exalted births. 41. On a solemn offering to a guest, at a sacrifice, and in holy rites to the manes or to the gods, but on those occasions only, may cattle be slain: this law MENU enacted. 42. The twice-born man, who, knowing the meaning and principles of the Véda, slays cattle on the occasions mentioned, conveys both himself and those cattle to the summit of beatitude. 43. Let no twice-born man, whose mind is improved by learning, hurt animals without the sanction of scripture, even though in pressing distress, whether he live in his own house, or in that of his preceptor, or in a forest. 44. That hurt, which the scripture ordains, and which is done in this world of moveable and immoveable creatures, he must consider as no hurt at all; since law shone forth from the light of the scripture. 45. He, who injures animals, that are not injurious, from a wish to give himself pleasure, adds nothing to his own happiness, living or dead; 46. While he, who gives no creature willingly the pain of confinement or death, but seeks the good of all sentient beings, enjoys bliss without end. 47. He, who injures no animated creature, shall attain without hardship whatever he thinks of, whatever he strives for, whatever he fixes his mind on. 48. Flesh-meat cannot be procured without injury to animals, and the slaughter of animals obstructs the path to beatitude; from flesh-meat, therefore, let man abstain : |