If a person has committed a wrong and seeks purification, there are several sacred paths he may follow. He might choose the Cāndrāyaṇa penance, with its disciplined cycles of food and fasting, or dedicate himself to reciting the Veda Saṃhitā for three months, immersing his mind and spirit in the holy words. Another way is to take up residence in a cowshed, living humbly among the cows and following their gentle ways. By giving a cow in charity, he attains purification. If he subsists solely on milk for a month, or on simple parched grains, his sin is washed away once more. For a grave offense, such as killing a Brāhmaṇa, he should undertake the severe vow prescribed for that act, and observe it for three years. For the killing of a Śūdra, six months of penance is required, or the gift of ten cows. For the destruction of lesser creatures—cat, iguana, mongoose, animal, or frog—specific atonements are set forth. If an elephant is killed, five black bulls should be given; for a parrot, a two-year-old calf suffices. For the cutting down of trees, shrubs, creepers, or a revered hero tree, one must recite the Ṛk one hundred times. Should a donkey be obtained and offered as a sacrificial animal in the southwestern direction, purification is achieved. If a messenger sent by the teacher dies, the teacher himself must perform three kṛcchra penances. When dealing with enemies, one should approach them with gifts of grain, with affection, and by other appropriate means. If a person is falsely accused of a great or minor sin, he must respond according to the gravity of the charge. If one, unauthorized, approaches his brother’s wife, the Cāndrāyaṇa penance must be performed. A celibate student, wishing to atone, should reside in a cowshed for a month and undertake the milk vow. Even those who officiate at a sacrifice for an outcaste must perform the kṛcchra penance three times. Riding a donkey or camel requires the practice of threefold regulation of breath to restore purity. If one insults his teacher, utters ‘hum’ at him, or defeats a Brāhmaṇa in debate, penance is required. If a Brāhmaṇa is threatened with a staff or struck down, the kṛcchra or atikṛcchra penance must be performed. Wherever expiation is prescribed, proper atonement must be undertaken. If the fault is near the planets, such a messenger should be abandoned. If the fault is not publicly known, a secret vow should be performed. For purification, one should bathe in pure water, give a cow that yields milk, recite mantras in water, and offer forty oblations of ghee. If one has drunk liquor, stolen gold, or recited the Rudra in water, a hundred breath-regulations are required to remove all sin. The twice-born, after fasting, should taste the five sacred cow products: semen, feces, and urine. By reciting the elevenfold Rudra, all sin is destroyed for the twice-born. Such a person is untouched by sin and is quickly purified by remembering and practicing these rites. Celibacy, compassion, forbearance, meditation, truthfulness, and purity are virtues to uphold. Bathing, silence, fasting, offering oblations, self-study, and control of the senses are also essential. Pañcagavya, the fivefold essence of the cow—milk, curd, urine, dung, and ghee—should be taken separately, with purifying substances, for six days, while fasting. Water from the leaves of fig, udumbara, lotus, bilva, and kuśa grass is used for purification. Each day, one should drink, in turn, heated milk, ghee, and water, taking only a single meal at night, or whatever is obtained by begging. This is the triple Prajapatya penance, performed in whatever way is possible. The atikṛcchra penance is performed by subsisting on milk for twenty-one days. One may also use oil-cake, pulse, sour gruel, and saktu flour, each on a different day, practicing each for three nights in succession, in order. Finally, during the bright fortnight, one should perform tithi-piṇḍa offerings, increasing their number each day, equal to the number of śikhyaṇḍa birds, thus fulfilling the sacred rites and attaining purity.