Draupadi said : I never disregard or speak ill of religion, O son of Pritha; why should I disregard God, the lord of creations?

O descendant of Bharata, consider me raving as being stricken with misery, listen to me, I shall again bewail.

O represser of enemies, forsooth every conscious being should engage in actions in this world; it is only the immobile and not even other creatures that can live without action.

Immediately after the birth the calf sucks the mother's teat. (People feel distress) as soon as incantations are performed on their statues; the creatures, O Yudhishthira, deserve the character of their lives according to pristine actions.

O foremost of Bharatas, this is the difference of man from mobile creatures, that he aspires to like his course of life both in this world and in the next by means of his acts.

O descendant of Bharata, all creatures perceive the impression of the pristine life and they visibly reap in this world the fruits of their acts.

All creatures live according to the impression of the pristine life, even the creatures and the ordainers of the universe like a crane that lives on the water.

The course of life for a creatures that does not act is impossible; for them there is action and never inaction.

You should therefore act and never incur censure by leaving affection; cover yourself with action as with an armour. There might not be one in a thousand who does not truly understand the utility of work.

One should act either for increasing or protecting his wealth; if spent without being earned it vanishes although it be like (the mount) Himavana.

All creatures would have been exterminated if there were no action; if acts had born no fruits they would not have multiplied.

It is sometimes observed that creatures perform acts that give them no fruits; for without action the course of life would be an impossibility.

Whoever in this world believe in Destiny and whoever in chance are both the worst of people; those only are praiseworthy who believe in the efficacy of acts.

He, who has been at ease without any action and believing in Destiny, is soon consumed like an unburnt earthen pot in water.

So also that man, who believes in chance and who, though capable of work, does not work, does not live long, for his life is one of weakness and helplessness.

If a person in the world attains, by accident, to an accession of wealth-people consider it derived from chance for none has tried for it.

O son of Pritha, whatever good fortune a person acquires in consequence of religious rites is called Providential.

The fruit, that a person reaps by acting himself and which is the direct outcome of his actions, is considered as a proof of manliness.

Of best of men, know that the riches acquired spontaneously and without cause are considered as a spontaneous acquisition.

Whatever is thus acquired accidentally, providentially or spontaneously by a person is the outcome of his pristine actions.

And judging according to their pristine actions, the good and bad, the ordainer of the universe distributes among men, their portions in this world.

Know that whatever actions, either good or bad, that a person performs are the outcome of God's arrangements with reference to their pristine actions.

This body is the instrument of God for actions; inert in itself, it performs what is urged on by God.

O son of Kunti, it is the supreme Lord of all who makes all creatures do what they do, though they themselves are all inert.

O hero, having settled upon some object in mind, a man carries it out into action aided by his intelligence; man is himself therefore the cause.

O best of men, the number of actions cannot be ascertained for towns and palaces are the result of man's acts. By the aid of their intelligence, intelligent men know that oil may be had from sesame, curds from milk and that food may be cooked by means of igniting fuel; they know the means for accomplishing them.

Thereupon they set themselves, by instruinents, to accomplishing them; and creatures maintain their lives by the results acquired in these directions by their own acts.

If a work is done by a clever work-man it is done well; from the difference in execution another work may be said to be that of an unskilled hand.

If a person were not himself the instrument of his acts, the sacrifices would not bear any fruits in his case nor would anybody be a disciple or preceptor.

It is because a person is himself the instrument of his action that he is praised when or he acquires success, so the doer is censured when he is unsuccessful; nothing else exists.

Some say that everything is the outcome of chance, some say everything is providential, whereas others hold that this, is not so, but everything that is said to be the outcome of Destiny or chance is the result of pristine actions.

It is seen that wealth proceeds from chance Destiny; something accidental and something natural. In the acquisition of fruits for a man, there is not the fourth cause; this is said by those who are cognizant of truth and well-versed in knowledge.

If God himself were not the bestower of good or bad fruits then among creatures there would not be any miserable being.

If pristine actions had no existence then all purposes for which a man would work should prove successful.

Those persons, who do not observe these three doors for the accomplishment of objects as well as for the failure, are dull and exist like the body itself.

Man should always act; for this is the conclusion of Manu; a person that does not act is always defeated.

A man of action in this world, O Yudhishthira, generally meets with success; the idle however never acquire success.

If success becomes impossible a person should remove the difficulties; when engaged in action, O king, he is freed from debts (whether he is successful or not).

Adversity overpowers a person who is idle and lies down, whereas whoever is active reaps success and enjoys prosperity.

Intelligent persons engaged confidently in acts consider all who are diffident as doubting and unsuccessful.

Now we are overtaken by misfortune and if you engage in action this misfortune will certainly be removed.

Even if you are unsuccessful it shall be proved to you. Vrikodara, Vivatsu and the twins (that you are unable to take the kingdom).

The actions of others have been seen crowned with success and ours might be as well; how can one, performing action, perceive beforehand what would be the result?

Having tilled the ground with plough one sows the seeds; the tiller then sits silent (for) the clouds are the next cause.

If however the clouds do not favour him the cultivator is not to blame-he says :-"I have done what others do."

If however I do not meet with success I am not to blame thinking this he contents himself and does not reproach himself.

O descendant of Bharata, no one should despair saying, “I am working still I do not succeed," for besides exertion there are two other ause for success.

Success or failure, no one should despair, for success in action depends upon the union of many circumstances.

One element wanting proportionate success does not come or nothing at all; if however no exertion is made no success is acquired, nor any quality is seen.

The man is by his intelligence and according to his might and power, brings place, time, means and auspicious rites for the acquisition of prosperity.

One should assiduously engage in action, his guide being his prowess; among the qualities necessary for action energy is the foremost.

If an intelligent man finds his enemy superior to him in many qualities he should accomplish his object by the arts of conciliation and proper appliances.

O Yudhishthira, he should wish for the calamity and banishment (of his foe), what of mortal men, even he be an ocean or a mountain.

A person, by actively praying into the holes of his enemy, satisfies a debt to himself as well as to his enemies.

A man should never think ill of himself; whoever thinks ill of himself never earnis splendid prosperity.

O descendant of Bharata, the success of persons is thus situated; it is said that the course of success depends upon time and situation.

In the days of yore my father housed a learned Brahmana; he said all this to my father, O foremost of Bharatas. My brothers, formerly accept from Brihaspati inoral precepts and then in our house I heard all this from them.

O king, O Yudhishthira, he said this to me, consoling, who had approached my father for some work and who for serving was seated on my father's lap.