Listen, O noble one, to the plight of those afflicted by hunger. Just as the sun’s rays draw up water from the earth, so too does the fire of the stomach consume and dry up the vital channels within the body. When hunger seizes a person, his strength fades—he cannot hear, nor smell, nor see with his eyes. He is burned within, wasted, bewildered, and dried up, his senses lost in the torment of hunger. Such a one cannot discern east or south, west or even north; he knows not above nor below. When hunger overtakes him, he becomes numb, deaf, dull, and even lame. Fierceness and lack of restraint arise; in desperation, one may abandon father, mother, sons, wife, daughter, brother—even his own kin. In such a state, he cannot honor his ancestors, nor the gods, nor even his teacher. He fails to recognize the sages who come to him, so deeply is he afflicted by hunger. These are the conditions that befall embodied beings deprived of food. Therefore, one should give food with faith. By doing so, he becomes one with Brahman and rejoices together with Brahman. Whoever offers well-prepared food daily to a Brāhmaṇa, or recites the merit of giving food—especially at a śrāddha—performs a most auspicious act. With focused mind, at the new moon when the śrāddha is performed in the presence of ancestral spirits, he ensures that the gift is heard and received. Such a giver pleases his ancestors for his entire life, without doubt. When he offers in the presence of the gods and the twice-born, he is released from bondage. Even one who listens to these teachings—whether alert, careless, or by chance, even without devotion—is freed from sin. Brahmins who are generous are happy and share in righteousness. Restraint, self-control, and discipline are declared by those who see the truth as the highest virtues. Especially for Brahmins, restraint is the eternal law. Through restraint, brilliance increases, and pure restraint is supreme. A person becomes free from evil and radiant through restraint. All disciplines and auspicious duties in the world arise from restraint, and restraint surpasses even the fruits of sacrifice. Austerity, sacrifice, and giving are born of restraint alone. What use is the forest to one without restraint, or even an ashram to one who is restrained? Wherever a restrained person dwells, that place becomes a great hermitage. For one who is endowed with good conduct, who lives straightforwardly with senses under control, what need is there for ashrams? Even in the forest, faults arise for the passionate; but in the house, restraining the five senses is true austerity. For one free from passion and malice, the home itself becomes a forest of austerity. For householders whose livelihood is righteous, who are always content, attached to home, with senses controlled, fond of guests, and established in discipline, righteousness is found even at home. There is no liberation for one absorbed in the science of words, nor for one attached to caste distinctions, nor for one intent only on food and clothing, nor for one engaged in worldly customs. Liberation is certain for one of solitary character, firm in vow, who has withdrawn from sense pleasures, whose mind is fixed in spiritual discipline, and who is ever non-violent. The restrained one sleeps happily and awakens happily. One whose mind is equal toward all beings truly awakens. One does not travel happily by chariot, nor by horse, nor by elephant, as one travels happily on the great road with the self subdued. One should not act as does a provoked snake, or an enraged enemy, or a wild beast—nor should the self be left without restraint. They do not call Yama, the god of death, ‘restraint’; the self is truly called restraint. By whom the self is restrained, that restraint is supreme. People speak of Yama as ‘restraint,’ but in vain do they fear; for one who restrains the self, what can Yama do? From flesh-eating beings and those without restraint, there is always fear; to restrain them, punishment was created by the Self-born. Punishment protects beings and preserves the people; it restrains the wicked and is hard to overcome. Dark, youthful, red-eyed, and a source of fear for all creatures, punishment is the ruler of men, in whom righteousness is established. Among all the stages of life, self-restraint is the highest vow. Hear now the marks by which one is called self-restrained: freedom from miserliness, gentleness, contentment, proper conduct, absence of envy, reverence for the teacher, compassion toward beings, and absence of slander. By these six, self-restraint is described by the sages of tranquil mind. Righteousness and liberation depend on compassion, as does heaven. He does not become angry when insulted, nor overjoyed when honored; steadfast in pleasure and pain alike, such a calm one is so called. Indeed, the calm person sleeps happily and awakens happily; he remains in the highest good, while the scorner perishes. When insulted, he does not brood; he never commits sin. Considering his own duty, he does not disparage another’s duty. He knows himself and does not blame others for faults—whether lacking in mantras, in rites, by birth, or otherwise. Self-restraint covers all defects, just as a cloth covers a blemished limb. Those who do not recognize self-restraint study in vain, for learning is rooted in self-restraint. Self-restraint is eternal righteousness. He who weighs self-restraint as equal to gold on a scale is called steadfast, not deluded by wealth. Of all vows, self-restraint alone is the supreme refuge.