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 鈥楧harma鈥�, 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 5.150
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:
啶啷嵿啶侧ぞ啶班啶ム 啶膏啶掂じ啷嵿い啷嵿く啶え啶� 啶啷嵿啶多啶氞ぞ啶膏ぞ啶� 啶啶班啶距お啶む啶� 啷�
啶啶班く啷佮啷嵿く啶む 啶掂た啶掂ぞ啶灌 啶む 啶啶班う啶距え啶� 啶膏啶掂ぞ啶啶啶距ぐ啶｀ぎ啷� 啷� 啷оカ啷� 啷�ma峁単al膩rtha峁� svastyayana峁� yaj帽a艣c膩s膩峁� praj膩pate岣� |
prayujyate viv膩he tu prad膩na峁� 蝉惫腻尘测补办腻谤补峁嘺m || 150 ||At their wedding, the sacrifice to Praj膩pati, which is the means of securing welfare, is performed for the purpose of procuring good fortune; it is the giving away that is the source of ownership.鈥�(150).
Medh膩tithi鈥檚 commentary (manubh膩峁a):
鈥�Good fortune鈥� consists in the accomplishment of the desired object; what brings about this is said to be 鈥榝or that purpose;鈥� it is for this that there is 鈥榮acrifice to Praj膩pati.鈥� The term 鈥�尘补峁単补濒腻谤迟丑补尘鈥� is in the neuter form, because it is an adverb.
鈥�Svastyayanam鈥� is that by which 鈥�svasti鈥�, welfare鈥斺赌�墨测补迟别鈥�,鈥�is secured; i.e. whereby the person鈥檚 loved objects do not become lost.
鈥�Their鈥欌�攐f women.
鈥�At wedding鈥�, 鈥榮acrifice鈥� is offered to the deity Praj膩pati. This refers to certain offerings of butter that are presented as to be made at marriage with the mantras 鈥楶raj膩pate &c.鈥� This is only illustrative: it indicates the other deities also鈥�e.g. P奴峁n, Varu峁嘺 and Aryaman. Indicative also of these other deities are such mantra-texts as 鈥斺赌�Pu峁nnu devam varu峁嘺nna devam, &c., &c.鈥�
What, the present text, means is that even without the marriage, ownership is produced by the giving away; and no significance is meant to be attached to the statement that the marriage-sacrifices are performed only for the purpose of securing good fortune; because 鈥榤arriage鈥� has been declared to consist in the 鈥榯aking of a wife鈥�; and even though there may be ownership, the girl does not become 鈥榳ife鈥� until the marriage is performed.鈥�(150).
Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha
(Verse 152 of others.)
鈥�Svastyayanam鈥欌�斺赌楾he recitation of benedictory verses鈥� (Govindar膩ja and Kull奴ka);鈥斺赌榯he 笔耻峁噛腻丑补惫腻肠补苍补 and the rest鈥� (N膩r膩ya峁嘺);鈥斺赌榯he recitation of the texts that precede the nuptial Homa鈥� (R膩ghav膩nanda and Nandana);鈥斺赌榯hat whereby welfare is acquired,鈥� (Medh膩tithi who does not connect the word with 鈥�测补箩帽补岣�鈥�).
鈥�笔谤补箩腻辫补迟别岣�鈥欌�擬edh膩tithi takes this as 鈥榬eferring to the oblations at marriage to Praj膩pati with the mantra Praj膩pate na tvadetanya &c.鈥� (峁歡veda 10.121.10), laid down in certain G峁沨yas奴tras;鈥擭膩r膩ya峁嘺 holds that 鈥�笔谤补箩腻辫补迟墨鈥� here stands for Manu, who is the guardian deity of the bride.
This verse is quoted in 痴墨谤补尘颈迟谤辞诲补测补 (Sa峁僺k膩ra, p. 853),.which adds the following notes:鈥斺赌�Svastyayana鈥� means 鈥榯he request to Br膩hma峁嘺s for the pronouncing of the benedictory syllable svasti,鈥欌�斺赌�笔谤补箩腻辫补迟颈-测补箩帽补 means 鈥榯he offering of cooked rice into fire to Praj膩pati鈥�;鈥攁nd in Vyavah膩ra B膩lambha峁弓i (p. 529).
It is quoted in 厂尘峁泃颈迟补迟迟惫补, (p. 130) which adds the following notes:鈥斺赌�Svastyayanam鈥� stands for the wearing of gold for the purpose of passing a happy life, or for the request to Br膩hma峁嘺s for pronouncing the syllable svasti; and the offering 鈥榯o Praj膩pati鈥� is that which is made during marriage to Praj膩pati as the deity;鈥攖he 鈥�蝉惫腻尘测补办腻谤补峁嘺鈥� is the 鈥榞iving鈥�, the actual giving away, not the mere betrothal.