The Book of the Sons of Fire

Part 5

These are the decrees of Amos, which he made so that justice should prevail in the land of his people. That wickedness and wrongdoing should be destroyed and the strong prevented from oppressing the weak. Amos said, "In the days that are yet to come and for all future, let these decrees remain as a memorial".

"When they are used in judgment, let the judges have wisdom and give attention to the words that are written. Let every judge seek to root out the wicked and evildoers from the land and promote the welfare of the people. If he seek Truth and Justice among these words, when they are before him, let him remember that no written words can serve him fully. Truth and Justice are but dimly reflected in the writings and laws of men and must be made clearer by the light of righteousness within his own heart".

`The seats of judgement are to be raised above all small thoughts and unworthy aims. If petty-minded men are permitted to argue over the form of sentences or pick out particular words for attention, then there will be no end to pettiness. Let no deduction or interpretation be made from the decrees, which alters them".

"Judge every man with the scales weighed in his favour. Do not be hasty in rendering a decision, time will make it more just. Be patient and calm in speech, whatever the provocation. The impatient and bad-tempered judge is an unworthy judge who sits astride an untamed horse."

"The words of a judge must be shaped to fit the ears of his listeners. They must be spoken at the right time and in the right manner. His speech should not be too long or too short and every word should be well chosen." "The frailties of men accompany judges to their seats, therefore no judge shall sit in judgement alone. Where no punishment is provided by decree, then the judges shall fix the punishment according to past judgements. Where the words of a decree refer to men, then women shall be treated in the same manner, unless it be otherwise stated elsewhere. A child is one whose body has not reached manhood or womanhood."

"When two persons stand before a judge he should look upon them as though both were likely to be in the wrong, and when they have gone, as though both may have been in the right. The motives of men are many and strange, and even though they bow to the judgement the dispute between them may not be settled with justice." "When a rich man and a poor man come before a judge for a decision between them, he cannot say in his heart, "How can I say the poor man is wrong and the rich man is right and add to the misery of the poor man?" Neither can he say in his heart, "How can I say the poor man is right and the rich man is wrong, when the rich man is powerful and I may be delivered into his hand?"

"If there is a dispute between men the judges shall not let one sit and the other stand, or be patient with one and impatient with the other. Both may sit or both may stand and unless one be afflicted they shall at all times be equal before the judges."

"A judge shall never say anything that will indicate a way to win his favour or to obtain a favourable decision. If all men walked in righteousness there would beno need of judges to punish the wicked. Therefore, righteousness is more desirable than the laws of men. If all men walked in the light of Truth there would be no need of judges to settle disputes between them. But as men see only a pale reflection of Truth, and that distorted by their own understanding of it, there are times when two men in dispute each believes truly that he is right. It is then that they come before the judges, believing them able to see Truth more clearly. Let the judges be able to see Truth better than any who come before them."

"When a man comes before the judges, having his life or freedom at stake or the freedom of one of his family, then the judges shall first hear reasons why they should consider him innocent or in the right, and not why they should consider him guilty or in the wrong."

"Every man who comes before the pillars of the judgement place to bear witness shall be given a drink from the cup of marat and shall swear the judgement oath before the shrine and fire. Every man shall be allowed two months to discover those who speak for him, and if he ask for another two months with reason it shall not be denied him".

These are the decrees of Amos for the Children of Light: "It is decreed that no man shall worship in the temple of any god or stand in homage before any image or idol. No god shall be joined with The Supreme Spirit in worship and the whole of his devotion and worship shall be given to The Supreme Spirit."

"It is decreed that no man shall swear an oath in the name of The Supreme Spirit or in any other name which shall bind him to do anything against the Scriptures of The Supreme Spirit. Neither shall he swear an oath which will incline his loyalties and obligations away from those who walk in their light. But as kings and governors must be served, and loyalty and obligation together with duty are our declared principles, to swear to serve them well or be faithful to a trust or an obligation is not denied him. The only solemn oath binding upon a man shall be that sworn on his immortal soul, for to swear in the name of The Supreme Spirit is forbidden."

"It is decreed that no man shall sell or barter spiritual knowledge or knowledge of The Great Path of the True Way. He shall not come into a sacred place or enter into prayer while drunk. Neither shall he do these things when unwashed, unless he be a wayfarer or one who has come from a distant place on the same day. If water is unavailable to purify himself, clean sand is not to be despised."

"It is decreed that all those who truly follow the Great Path of the True Way and those who are of the Brotherhood of Men who serve The Supreme Spirit shall be called the Children of Light. If any among them shall turn from the Children of light through fear of others, then he is unworthy and shall be cast out. He shall not be numbered among them here or in Heaven, where there is a special place for the Children of Light. But those who remain loyal to the Children of Light, even though they have to flee to strange places, if they continue to struggle there is no wrong in them."

"It is decreed that if a man hear anything about an evil deed or know something about it and fail to disclose the knowledge before a judge or to the judge's servant, he shall not go unpunished."

"It is decreed that if any man will not bear witness to murder, to theft or to adultery, he shall not go unpunished. If he bear false witness according to his own understanding, before the flame and shrine, if it be grievous he shall lose his tongue."

"It is decreed that if any man make a false accusation of adultery against his wife, without just cause and without her acting indiscreetly, he shall receive seventy lashes."

"If any man slay another he shall die, unless it be done in his own defence or in defence of his house and family. He shall not die if he who is slain be an adulterer or a seducer of one within the household of the slayer." "It is decreed that if any man slay another in anger, during an argument or dispute, and if the fight be fair and equal, then he shall be exiled. But if any man slay another by lying in wait, or by guile or by coming behind him, he shall not live."

"It is decreed that revengers of blood shall be appointed by the judges, and no man shall revenge another of his own blood unless he be appointed by the judges."

"It is decreed that if a man slay another without intent to slay, without hatred or malice, then he shall not die for the slaying."

"It is decreed that no man shall be put to death by the word of one witness. If a wife cause the death of her husband through neglect or malice, she shall not live. The law of blood shedding is: a freeman for a freeman, a slave for a slave and a woman for a woman. The free can be enslaved to repay a death."

"It is decreed that when a man must die because of his deed, it shall be by the sword, by drowning or by entombment. A woman shall be smothered or entombed or drowned."

"It is decreed that if a man strike his father or his mother or curse them, he shall be seized and sold into slavery and the money received shall be given to his father and his brothers. But if a man stand between bis father and his mother and his sister because he fears for their lives, then he shall not be punished. In this case the matter shall not fail to come before the judges, for if the father be a man of such violence, how can he claim to be numbered among the Children of Light?"

"It is decreed that if a man seize upon another to sell him into captivity, he who seizes shall die. If a man smite another so that he lose an eye or a tooth or suffer any wound, and this without provocation, then he who committed the wrong shall make it good in kind, according to the judgement."

"It is decreed that if the beast of any man injure another man within its own place of confinement, then there shall be no blame upon the owner of the beast. But if the beast be outside its place of confinement and loose, he who owns the beast shall make restitution in kind. If the beast has been savage in times past and this made known to he who owns it, and it strays beyond the limits of its enclosure to harm a man, then who owns it shall make restitution to threefold the damage. The beast shall also be slain, but the carcass shall belong to he who owned the beast."

"It is decreed that if a beast stray beyond the limits of its confines and being savage to the knowledge of he who owns it, if it cause the death of any man, then he who owns it shall die. But if it be so decreed by the judges his life may be ransomed."

"It is decreed that if a man shall cause death or injury to the beast of any man and the beast be within its proper place of confinement or upon the lands of its owner, then he who caused the death or injury shall make restitution to threefold its value. If the beast be outside the lands of he who owns it and be the cause of no danger or damage, then he who caused its death shall make restitution to its value. If it was seeming that the beast would be the cause of danger or much damage, then providing there was no choice but to slay it, there shall be no restitution, but the carcass shall be returned to the owner."

"It is decreed that if the beast of any man cause the death of another man's beast, then the beast causing death shall be sold and the money received divided between the owners. But if the beast causing the death was known to be savage and its owner informed, then he shall make restitution in full to the value of the dead beast, but the carcass shall be his."

"It is decreed that if a man shall cause anything growing within the pastures of another or upon his cultivated land, to be damaged by a negligent or purposeful deed, then he shall make restitution twofold its value. If a man find the beast of another man going astray, he shall not pass it unheeded but shall provide for its return to its owner. Having done this he shall not lose or go unrewarded, but if the owner of the beast be a poor man, then bear with him."

"It is decreed that if a man set off a fire he shall make restitution for whatever it consumes to a like value in kind. But if he be careless or seek to bide his deed, then he shall make restitution twofold. If a thing be scorched or there is a blackening of wood or stone, the amount to be paid for restitution shall be agreed by the judges. If the fire was caused by accident, then he who caused it shall make restitution to half the value of whatever it consumes. The fire a man handles is like the arrow he shoots, for the bowman is liable, no matter how far his arrow flies."

"It is decreed that if a man steal any beast or fowl and dispose of it so that it is not recovered, he shall make restitution of threefold its value and shall not go unpunished. But if the beast or fowl be recovered and restored, then he who stole it shall pay its value and shall not go unpunished."

"It is decreed that if a man give anything into the keeping of another and that thing be of gold or other metal, or of some other nature and it be stolen, then the thief, if caught, shall pay twice its value and the money shall be divided equally between he who owns it and he who held it. If the thing is not restored to its owner, then the thief, if caught, shall pay its value threefold and one part shall go to he who held it and two parts to he who owned it. The thief shall not go unpunished."