Verse 1
I will not cheat a brahmin· Verses 1–6
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1Bali, the master of the house, spoken to in this way by the teacher of his line, king, was silent a moment and then said to his teacher, weighing his words. 2What the revered one has said is true: this is the duty of householders, that a man should never let it stand in the way of gain, or of what he wants, or of good name, or of his living. 3And being who I am, how am I to refuse a brahmin out of greed for money, when I have promised and said I give? I am Prahlada's grandson. Am I to be a cheat? 4There is no wrongdoing greater than untruth. So this earth has said: she can bear everything, I hold, except a man given to lies.
5I am not afraid of hell, nor of poverty, nor of a sea of unhappiness, nor of falling from my place, nor of death, as I am afraid of cheating a brahmin. 6Wealth and the rest will leave a man in this world when he is dead. What is the point of parting with it, if a brahmin is not to be made glad by it?