Panchatantra

by Vishnu Sharma

"A king is ruined through bad advisers, A Sanyasi through company, A son through over-indulgence, A Brahmin through lack of studying the shastras,

A business or a farm through neglect, And a family and character through contact with bad people."

'What cannot be achieved by force, Can be achieved through deceit.

"A single archer, behind the wall of a castle Can fight a hundred men of the enemy."

"Suppress your enemies and diseases At the very beginning Or they will become strong And destroy you."

"He who attacks an enemy, Without knowing his strength, Is sure to be destroyed, Like a moth in the fire."

'When a king submits himself entirely To one adviser, That man becomes haughty and mad for power:

He will try to be independent And as this desire grows in his heart, In the end he will secretly plan the king's death.'

"to take pity on an enemy is against the royal code.

'In the company of the wicked, The good follow the wrong path, And so the wise shun the company of wicked men.'

'Refrain from entertaining a man Whose character is unknown.

'You cannot change a person's temperament by preaching, Even boiled water will Finally get cold.'

'Glue, an idiot, a woman, a crab, A shark, indigo dye and a drunkard, Once they attach themselves to something, They will never let go.'

"A man of intelligence who seeks his welfare, Will never trust anyone Whose character, family and strength He does not know."

'He who sacks his own confidants And engages outsiders in their place, Shall die like King Kukudruma.'

'The poor, the sick, fools, exiles, And servants who have to serve all their lives, All these, although living, Are, in reality, dead.'

"The fool who thinks that a king loves him, Should be thought of as an ox without horns."

'Enter into marriage ties and friendship Only with those, who are socially and financially Your equals.'

'Wicked people, although they may be insignificant, Are mean-minded and live deceptively; One way or another, they will cause you death,

So too, continuous complaints Against someone else, Poison a man's mind.'

"Those who refuse to follow The advice of friends who wish them well, Come to grief,

'Even in bad times, A man should not lose hope, For by making an effort, He can certainly find a solution.'

"He who puts his mind to a problem Before it presents itself, And he who puts his mind to it When it actually arrives, Both these categories escape, But those who depend on luck, Will be destroyed,

'When a weak man meets a stronger opponent, The best thing he can do is run, Or else make for a hideout, There's no other way out.'

'Those who, in time of calamity, Can without difficulty go elsewhere, Avoid seeing the destruction, Of their families and land.'

"When a weakling gets angry, He hurts only himself." And, "He who attacks an enemy Without knowing his strength, Will be destroyed like the moth in fire."

"Small insignificant things united, Become unconquerable; Thin blades of grass, woven into a thick rope Can tie up an elephant.

'In affluent times, All men are your friends, But the person who helps you When times are bad, Regard him as your true friend, Even when he belongs to a different caste.'

"When a man can tell his sorrows To an affectionate friend Or a dutiful servant, An obedient wife Or a powerful master, That man finds relief."

'The wind has the strength to pull down a tree But not to raise it again. So also, a small-minded man can destroy others' work But he cannot reconstruct it.'

'Let your heart be hard as stone And your tongue as soft as butter, Destroy your enemy without mercy.'

'A cunning man, Even at the cost of tormenting others, Artfully looks after his own interests And keeps his plans a secret,

'Only a man who can reach his goal Through cunningness and intrigue, Avoiding war, Deserves to be a minister.'

'A good king, served by a wicked minister, Is shunned by all, Just like a lake of sweet water, When it has crocodiles all round it.'

"You should only give advice To someone who specifically asks for it, Otherwise, it's like crying in the wilderness."

"A man who has not wandered in different lands And has not learned foreign languages, Nor studied various cultures, And made himself a fortune, Is born in vain on this earth."

"A clever man does not show off his wealth to anyone, For even the mind of a sage May be shaken by the sight of money." '

"A righteous man looks upon other men's women As his own mother, And other men's wealth As crow droppings And other human beings As his own self."

"A wise man thinks not only of a solution to his problems, But also of its consequences.

'Let your speech be soft as butter But your heart as hard as stone, Advise your enemy in such a way That he is wiped out, along with his race.'

'A man who has formerly lived in great style But now lives in great misery, Is looked down upon by all.'

"One man is kind to another, Not only out of affection But out of fear, greed and other reasons.

If, for no reason at all, One man is over-attentive to another, It's very doubtful that the situation will end well."

'Fools sneer at the wise, The poor hate the rich, The wicked run down the righteous, And harlots discredit the names of virtuous women.'

'A shrewd enemy is far preferable To a foolish benefactor;

'A harlot pretends to be shy, Salty water is always colder, A hypocrite always asserts his straightforwardness, And a crook is a charming talker.'

'He who betrays a trusting friend, Shall remain in Naraka* For as long as the sun and moon Continue to shine.'

"Clever people and those well versed in nitishastras, Even when they are without means, Achieve success very quickly

When disaster is imminent, A man's mind is in turmoil, Even his wits fail him."

'He who holds- on to his courage, In the face of disaster, Will, with the help of his intelligence, Ultimately surmount all his difficulties.'