Do
not applaud Exertion in the presence of thy foe but speak highly of
Destiny. Without doubt, the man who relies too much on acts appertaining
to the worship of the gods soon meets with destruction. Cause thy enemy
to perform the great sacrifice called Viswajit and divest him by that
means of all his possessions. Through this thy object will be fulfilled.
Thou mayst then inform thy enemy of the fact that the best men in his
kingdom are being oppressed (with exactions for refilling the exhausted
treasury), and indicate some eminent ascetic conversant with the duties
of Yoga (who will wean thy foe from all earthly possessions). The enemy
will then desire to adopt renunciation and retire into the woods,
solicitous of salvation. Thou shall then, with the aid of drugs prepared
by boiling highly efficacious herbs and plants, and of artificial salts,
destroy the elephants and steeds and men (of thy enemy's dominions).
These and many other well-devised schemes are available, all connected
with fraud. An intelligent person can thus destroy the population of a
hostile kingdom with poison.'"
SECTION CVI
"The king said, 'I do not desire, O Brahmana, to support life by deceit
or fraud. I do not desire wealth, however great, which is to be earned by
unrighteous means. At the very outset of our present discourse I excepted
these means. By the adoption of only such means as would not lead to
censure, of such means as would benefit me in every respect, by
practising only such acts as are not harmful in their consequences, I
desire to live in this world.
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