Manusmriti with the Commentary of Medhatithi
by Ganganatha Jha | 1920 | 1,381,940 words | ISBN-10: 8120811550 | ISBN-13: 9788120811553
This is the English translation of the Manusmriti, which is a collection of Sanskrit verses dealing with ‘Dharma�, a collective name for human purpose, their duties and the law. Various topics will be dealt with, but this volume of the series includes 12 discourses (adhyaya). The commentary on this text by Medhatithi elaborately explains various t...
Verse 3.26
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:
पृथक� पृथग� वा मिश्रौ वा विवाहौ पूर्वचोदित� �
गान्धर्व� राक्षसश्चै� धर्म्य� क्षत्रस्� तौ स्मृतौ � २६ �pṛthak pṛthag vā miśrau vā vivāhau pūrvacoditau |
gāndharvo rākṣasaścaiva dharmyau kṣatrasya tau smṛtau || 26 ||The two forms of marriage mentioned before�i.e., the Ի and the ṣa—have been declared, whether separately or mixed, to be lawful for the ṣaٰⲹ.�(26)
Medhātithi’s commentary (Գܲṣy):
�Singly’—this is a inert re-iteration, each single form having been already prescribed in the foregoing verses. The ‘mixed� form is what is prescribed here; where the �Ի-ṣa� are prescribed independently of (apart from) the other forms. The notion derived from what has gone before being that each form stands apart by itself, just like the հī being used apart from the Yava,—the present verse lays down the combination (of two). When we have two such texts as ‘offer the հī� and ‘offer the Yava? each of which prescribes a substance to be used at a sacrifice independently of the other,—we conclude that the two are meant to be optional alternatives, and they are not meant to be mixed tip; because, if the mixture of both were used, we would be obeying neither the injunction of Yava, nor that of հī. Similarly, in the present case, when only one girl is to be married, it being impossible to adopt any two forms of marriage, the present text proceeds to prescribe the combination of two of them.
Such a combination of the said two forms would be possible under the following circumstances:—A girl living in her father’s house, happens to see a boy living in the same house and having heard praises from messengers, falls in love with him, but not being mistress of herself she cannot meet him,—and then she enters into a compact with her lover, requests him to take her away by some means or other, and gets herself carried away: and the bridegroom, being possessed of great strength, carries her away after having ‘killed and wounded� (her guardians): Now in this case, since there is ‘voluntary union between the two� (verse 32), it fulfils the conditions of the �Ի� form: while, since he has carried her away, after ‘having killed and wounded� (verse 33), the conditions of the �ṣa� form also become fulfilled.
These two forms are possible for the ṣaٰⲹ only. These two are lawful for the ṣaٰⲹ—says the Text.
Mentioned before—is a mere reiterative reference.
Others have offered the following explanation:—When a ṣaٰⲹ marries several girls, he marries one by the �Ի� form, and another by the �ṣa� form:—and this is the �mixed form� meant by the text. And when all are married by one or the other of these two forms, it is a case of �separately� mentioned by the text. And from this we gather that it is only these two forms of marriage that the ṣaٰⲹ might adopt promiscuously—sometimes the one and sometimes the other; while in the case of the �ʰ貹ٲⲹ� and the rest, he should adopt the same form in all his marriages which he happens to adopt in the first.�(26)
Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha
This verse is quoted in īٰǻ岹ⲹ (Saṃskāra, p. 860), where the following notes are added:—This lays down the forms.permissible for the ṣaٰⲹ under abnormal circumstances.—�ṛt� means unmixed, and �Ѿś,� mixed; we have the latter form in a case where the marriage having been previously settled by mutual understanding between the bride and the bridegroom, if the bride’s people oppose it, the bridegroom takes her away by force, as happened in the case of Kṛṣṇa’s marriage with Rukmiṇ� (described in the 岵ٲ). A further distinction has got to be made here: the ‘mixed� form is permissible only under abnormal conditions, while the ‘unmixed� one is a secondary form permissible for all time; and hence the mention of this latter in the present verse is merely reiterative (as remarked by Medhātithi also),—the reiteration being made for the purpose of indicating the utter inferiority of the ‘mixed� to the ‘unmixed� form. This implies that for other castes also, in the event of an ‘unmixed� form being not possible, the ‘mixed� form becomes permissible.—Even though the Paiśāca has been prohibited for all, yet it has been mentioned among the forms of marriage only for the purpose of its being permitted for the Vaiśya and the Śūdra under exceptionally abnormal circumstances.
Ѳ岹Բٲ (p. 160) also quotes this verse as laying down what is permissible for the ṣaٰⲹ under abnormal conditions. īt adds the following notes:—�ṛt pṛthak� means the primary and the secondary forms, laid down as alternatives; and the second half quotes an example of the ‘mixed� form; there is a ‘mixture� of the Ի and ṣa forms when after a mutual understanding has been arrived at between the bride and the bridegroom, if the bride’s people raise objections to the marriage, the bridegroom fights with them and takes away the bride by force.—This is to be understood only as an illustration; on the same analogy, other ‘mixtures� may be permissible for other castes also.—Even though very much deprecated, the Paiśāca form is permitted under abnormal circumstances for the Vaiśya and the Śūdra,—as also for such twice-born persons as have adopted the living of the Vaiśya or the Śūdra.
This verse is quoted in (Dāna, p. 682).
Comparative notes by various authors
Ѳٲ (Ādi-parva, 73. 12-13).—‘The Ի and the ṣa are lawful for the ṣaٰⲹ: the two may be performed either separately or jointly.�
ܻⲹԲ (1. 11. 16).—‘Some people commend the Ի for all,—since it is accompanied by love.�