A History of Indian Literature v1.c8.s7.42

v1.c8.s7.42

Four duties has the Brahman: Brahmanic descent, corresponding conduct, fame (attained through erudition) and "ripening of the people" (*i.e.* offering of sacrifices, by means of which people are made ripe for the Beyond). But the "ripened" people also have four duties towards the Brahmans: They must show them honour, give them presents, may not oppress and not kill them. The property of a Brahman may under no circumstances be touched by the king; and if a king gives his whole country with all that is in it, to the priests as a sacrificial fee (dakṣiṇā), then it is always understood that the property of Brahmans is excepted. A king can certainly oppress a Brahman, but if he does so, evil will befall him. At the consecration of a king the priest says "this man, ye people, is your king; Soma is the king of us Brahmans," to which the Śatapatha-Brāhmaṇa observes: "By this formula he makes the whole nation as food for the king; ³ the Brahman alone he excepts; therefore the Brahman must not be utilised as food; for he has Soma as his king." ⁴ Only the murder of a Brahman is real murder. In a quarrel between a Brahman and a non-Brahman the judge must always decide in favour of the Brahman, for the Brahman may not be contradicted.⁵