Charaka-Samhita — trans. Kaviraj Avinash Chandra Kaviratna
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The translator’s English as printed (Avinash Chandra Kaviratna). The original-language text is not held; names are romanised as the translator printed them.
The air does not blow properly ; the earth, discovers preverse conditions y the water (in rivers, canals, and tanks ) dries up f (medicinal) herbs, abandoning their own nature, become preverted.. In consequence of this, cities and towns and villages become destroyed through touch and use.25*
So also, of the destruction (of cities and towns and villages) that is due to weapons, unrighteousness is the cause. People, with cupidity and wrath and boastfulness and pride all greatly excited, disregarding those that are weak, attack one another with weapons for killing kinsmen and relatives and enemies. They attack foes or are attacked by them, or, are destroyed by ■ Rakshasas and hordes of diverse kinds of ghostly beings who take advantage of that unrighteousness or other acts of transgression.
So also, unrighteousness is the cause of curses (that destroy cities and towns and villages.)26t
People, reft of righteousness, and swerving from it, disregard preceptors and seniors, those that are venerable for years, those: that are crowned with success (through penances), and those that are deserving of worship, and perpetrate acts resulting in injury to themselves.27^
* ‘Touch and use' ; touch, as in the case of air ; touch and use, as in the ease of drinks and food. There is no case of use without touch. — T.
■jr What is said here is this : if war be the cause of destruction, then that war has for its cause either cupidity or wrath or boastfulness, or pride or alt these evil passions-. War may take place with either foreign or domestic foesThe destruction- caused by both kinds of war is referred to.
The destruction caused by invisible beings of great power is, it is said here, due to unrighteousness. Cities and towns may also be destroyed by the curses ©f the potent. These curses are brought about by the unrighteousness of the; cursed.— T.
X It should be noted that ‘dhartna1, as used, in these passages, means the
CHA RA RASA MB l TA,
p. 479
These people, cursed by preceptors and seniors and the rest, become quickly consumed into ashes, leading to a' destruction. of thedevoted, through contact with a special cause ; others,, undevoted,, through contact with a general cause.29*
In even remote times no evil could arise from any other sourcethan unrighteousness. In the Krita age, verily, men were endued' with energy equal unto that of the very sons of Aditi, with puis¬ sance stainless and abundant, capable in the flesh of beholding the deities and the celestial Rishis, competent to ordain rules in respect of piety of conduct and sacrifices, with bodies unacquainted with change and as compact as Himalayan adamant,, with agreeable, complexion and senses competent to discharge their functions, with strength, speed, and prowess like those of the deity of wind, with handsome hips, of agreeable stature and lineaments and excellent suppleness and growth, possessed of truth, sincerity, compassion, charity, and self-restraint, observant of regulations of conduct, penances, fasts, Brahmacharyya , and vows, and freed from fear, attachment, malice, stupefaction of judgment, cupidity, wrath, grief, pride, disease, sleep, langour, fatigue, weariness, sloth, and all surroundings ( in the form of family and property). In consequence, they all attained to unlimited length of life.29t duties ordained in the Scriptures. It may be rendered ‘piety’, although righte¬ ousness would be better. — T.
* The last portion of this aphorism is worded in a peculiar way. The sense is this : through the curse of seniors and preceptors, destruction quickly overtakes all men. Those that are devoted to destruction by the curse de¬ nounced, die in consequence of the virtue of the curse, which is, of course, an. especial cause ; those not born, though not cursed, do not take birth. Hence,, the destruction of the province becomes complete.
Here the word ‘Niyatah’ implies those devoted to destruction by the curse:. ‘Pratyaya’ is cause, ‘Upalambha’ is a getting or contact. The ‘Niyatah! die: in consequence of a cause that is especial,, viz., the curse. The ‘Aniyatah’, implying, the unborn children of the cursed ones, become consumed ; that is,, they do not take birth. The curse afflicting the fathers falls upon their unbornchildren also, like the curse on Adam falling upon his unhorn children.
This is just the idea regarding the efficacy of a Brahmana’s curse. — T. t ‘Adikala’ is the first age of the world, called the ‘Krita’.. ‘Aditisutah! implies the deities, for they are sons, of Aditi. Their opponents, the Daityas,. are the children of Diti. Diti and Aditi are sisters, having the celestial RishL Kajyapa for their husband.
p. 480
CM A RA KA - SA M HI TA
For those people endued with high minds and virtues and deeds, the crops that arose were enriched with inconceivable properties of taste and energy and assimilability and potency.
In the beginning of the Krita age this was so in consequence of the land and the rest having been enriched with all the virtues.
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