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Dr. Charlotte Krause: Her Life & Literature
propriety and etiquette, even if he happen to be a judge, or a king even, or to occupy any other responsible post which requires energetic and even violent acting, in the interest of the State.
[g] The Twelve Vratas of Laymen
The twelve Vratas of laymen are sub-divided into three parts, viz., the five Aṇuvratas, the three Gunavratas and the four Šikṣāvratas.
(a) The Five Aņuvratas
The five Aṇuvratas, i.e., small vows represent only a milder form of the great vows of ascetics. By the First Anuvrata, the Śrāvaka promises to give up destroying, intentionally and without purpose, the lives of harmless living beings, which are gifted with free locomotion. With reference to this formulation, it has often been said that, whereas the Sadhu practises complete non-injury, or expressed in the old way, twentytwentieths of non-injury, the Śrāvaka only practises one-twentieth and a quarter; ten-twentieths being substracted by excepting beings without spontaneous locomotion, as plants, water, fire, air and minerals, five further twentieths by excepting harmless creatures, two and a half-twentieths by excepting unintentional, and one and a quarter-twentieths by excepting purposeless injury. That means, of course, practically, that he is allowed self-defence, as well as such actions including injury of lower life, as are necessary for his subsistence, such as the construction of houses or wells, the gathering of fruit and vegetables and their preparation, the use of vehicles, etc., etc.
By the Second Aṇuvrata, he promises to give up all untrue and other utterances of grossly injurious character, with reference to marriageable women, cows, land, deposits and false witness.
By the Third Aṇuvrata, he promises never to appropriate things ungiven, neither living nor lifeless ones, in the intention of stealing.
By the Fourth Aṇuvrata, he promises either matrimonial faithfulness to his wife, or merely renounces intercourse with the
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