In ancient times, the wise sages laid down clear and firm laws for the well-being of society, guiding both king and subject in the ways of righteousness and justice. When grave offenses occurred, such as approaching a teacher’s wife, there was prescribed a fearful atonement; for drinking liquor, the offender was marked with the emblem of liquor; for theft, the sign of a beast was imposed; and for the slaying of a Brahmin, the head of a man was used as a mark of shame. The king, as the upholder of dharma, was entrusted with the duty to execute sinful Śūdras and others who committed severe wrongs, but sinful Brahmins were to be banished from the realm. The wealth of those guilty of great sins was to be consigned to Varuṇa, the lord of the waters, as an act of purification. Within the villages, anyone who provided food to thieves, or acted as their storekeeper or treasurer, was to face the king’s ultimate punishment, for such acts undermined the very order of society. The king was also to root out corrupt officials and border chiefs, and especially those who, after making a pact, committed theft under the cover of night, for their betrayal was most wicked. For such traitors, the king was to cut off their hands and impale them upon a sharp stake, demonstrating the severe consequences of their misdeeds. Those who broke into temples or shrines, violating sacred spaces, were likewise to be executed. Even smaller transgressions did not go unnoticed. Whoever discarded filth upon the royal road without necessity was to be fined a kārṣāpaṇa, and required to clean up the mess. Those who broke sacred images or their pedestals were to pay a fine of five hundred coins, as were those who acted fraudulently with weights, measures, or value in trade. Merchants who first received the due or the middle fine by taking goods without paying the proper price were to be restrained. The king was to impose the highest fines upon those who adulterated goods or sold items under a false name, for such deception corroded trust. Forgers were to receive the middle fine, while counterfeiters faced the highest penalty; those who caused disputes were to be penalized double that amount. Eating forbidden food, whether by a Brahmin or a Śūdra, incurred a fine of a kṛṣṇala; the same penalty applied to those issuing false orders or destroying forged goods. Anyone who committed such acts, or who gave poison, set fire, or caused the death of a husband, teacher, Brahmin, or child, was required to pay the highest fine. For mutilations such as cutting off ears, noses, or fingers, the punishment was banishment along with cows; the same applied to those who destroyed fields, houses, villages, or forests. Approaching the king’s wife was a crime punished with burning by fire from the funeral pyre, as was falsifying the king’s orders. Releasing a repeat-offender thief incurred the highest fine, as did mounting the king’s chariot or seat without permission. Anyone who, after being justly defeated, returned to dispute the outcome was punished with double the fine. One who called for a duel, or who shouted out when not summoned, or who fled after being released by an officer, was to be bound as a warning to others. In matters of war and statecraft, Puṣkara taught that when the king, hearing a loud outcry, believed his rear guard had been overpowered by the enemy, he should promptly initiate a campaign. With confidence in his strong soldiers, well-paid retainers, and abundant forces, the king was to guard his base and, with his army, enter the camp. Advancement was best when the enemy was in distress, afflicted by fate, during earthquakes, when the enemy’s banner was damaged, or when omens were unfavorable to the adversary. Conversely, one should advance when there were auspicious bodily twitches or when favorable dreams were seen. The appearance of auspicious omens or birds signaled the time to enter the enemy’s city, and during the rainy season, an army rich in infantry and elephants was most effective. An army abundant in infantry was always victorious, and twitching on the right side of the body was considered auspicious; such signs on the left side, back, or heart, however, were inauspicious. The wise were to recognize the meaning of marks, swellings, and twitchings, for they revealed the will of fate. Puṣkara further explained the nature of dreams, both auspicious and inauspicious, and how to counteract the effects of bad dreams. Wherever grass or trees arose on the body, except for the navel, it was a sign to be heeded. Dreams of grinding on the head, shaving copper vessels, being shaven or naked, wearing dirty garments, oiling the body, or being smeared with mud were all considered inauspicious. Other signs included falling from heights, marriage, singing or playing stringed instruments for amusement, and climbing branches. Acquiring lotuses or copper, killing serpents, seeing blood-red flowering trees, or contact with a caṇḍāla were also ill omens. Entering the mother’s womb, ascending the funeral pyre, falling upon Indra’s banner, or upon the moon or sun, as well as witnessing portents among divine, aerial, or earthly beings, or the anger of gods, twice-borns, kings, or teachers, were all considered inauspicious. Playing instruments without stringed accompaniment or without music, descending into streams, bathing with cow dung water, muddy water, or ink-water, losing one’s limbs, purging, vomiting, going southward, succumbing to disease, losing fruits, or breaking metals, all bore negative meanings. Falling from houses, sweeping the house, being carried by boars, ghosts, flesh-eaters, monkeys, or outcastes, as well as drinking oil, bathing, wearing garlands stained with blood, or anointing oneself, were all dreams of ill omen. Yet, telling such dreams to others was believed to bring good fortune. After such dreams, one should bathe, honor the twice-born, offer oblations with sesame seeds, and worship Hari, Brahmā, Śiva, the Sun, and the Gaṇas. Reciting hymns and chanting the Purusha Sūkta and similar texts brought purification. The sages taught that dreams seen in the first watch of the night would bear fruit after a year; those in the second watch after six months; in the third, after three months; and in the fourth, within half a month or ten days at sunrise. If both auspicious and inauspicious dreams were seen in a single night, the outcome would follow the dream seen last. Thus were the laws of conduct, the signs of fate, and the ways of atonement and purification revealed, guiding king and subject alike upon the path of righteousness and wisdom.