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...

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

अनुष्णाभिरफेनाभिरद्भिस्तीर्थेन धर्मवित् ।
शौचेप्सुः सर्वदाऽचामेदेकान्ते प्रागुदङ्मुखः ॥ ६१ ॥

anuṣṇābhiraphenābhiradbhistīrthena dharmavit |
śaucepsuḥ sarvadā'cāmedekānte prāgudaṅmukhaḥ || 61 ||

One who knows his duties, when desiring cleanliness, should always sip, through the proper receptacle, water which is neither hot nor frothy,—in solitude, with his face towards the North or the East.—(61)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Hot’ hero stands for boiled; elsewhere we read that the sipping should be done ‘with unboiled water.’ So that the prohibition docs not apply to such water as is naturally hot, or has imbibed the beat of the hot atmosphere.

Froth’ is meant to include ‘bubbles’ also, as elsewhere we read that ‘the water should be free from froth and bubbles.’

The terms ‘through the proper receptacle’ and ‘one who knows his duties’ have been added only for the purpose of filling up the metre.

Desiring cleanliness’—seeking to attain cleanliness, i.e., purity. The sense is that without the sipping of water he can never be clean.

Always’—i.e., not only at the timo of eating, as would seem implied by the fact of the rule occurring in the section on ‘eating,’—but also at other times, when, for instance, one seeks cleanliness after passing urine or stool, etc.

Though ‘water’ is the object of the act of sipping, yet it is put in the Instrumental Case, with a view to indicate that what is prescribed is meant to be applicable not only to the water that is sipped but also to that which forms the instrument in such acts as the washing of the feet and the like. What we hold is that in the act of sipping also the water is only the ‘instrument’; specially as the sipping does not constitute the sanctification of the water (in which case alone the water could be the ‘object’).

In solitude’—i.e., in a clean place; a solitary place, being uncrowded by people, is generally clean.

With his face towards the North or the East’;—the term ‘face’ is to be construed along with each of the two terms (‘East’ and ‘North’); as Gauṭama (1.35) says that ‘the man should face either the North or the East.’ The compound should be expounded as ‘he who has his face towards the North, East’; the compound being a pure Bahuvrīhi, not a Bahuvrīhi containing another copulative compound [i.e., we cannot expound the compound as ‘North and East,’ and then compound this with the term ‘mukha,’ the sense in this case being ‘one having his face towards the North and the East’]. If wo made tho Bahuvrīhi contain a copulative compound, then if the compound ‘prāṅudak’ were taken as an aggregative copulative, it should have an additional ‘a’ at the end; nor could it be taken as a segregative copulative. Further, it is not possible for the man to face both the North and the East at one and the same time; for in that case, the rule would mean that one part of the sipping should be done with face towards the North, and another part of it with face towards the East; and this would mean that the sipping is not done at one place. Then again, the directions mentioned do not form the principal factor in the predicate of the sentence, which alone could justify their being taken reciprocally; nor does the term ‘prāṅudak’ from a well-known name of the North-East quarter, in the manner in which ‘dakṣina- pūrva’ does of the South-East quarter; hence there can be no justification for the compound being taken as a containing another compound name of a particular quarter, [i.e., we cannot take ‘prāṅudak’ as the name of the North-East quarter and then compound it with ‘mukha’]. For these reasons the. compound cannot be taken as a ‘Bahuvrīhi’ containing within itself another compound. From all this it follows that option, is meant; as is clearly laid down in another Smṛti—‘Acts of cleanliness should be begun with

face towards the North or the East’ (Gauṭama 1.35). This option is just like the option that we have in the case of the Sāman to be sung at the Ṣaḍoha sacrifice, where the injunction being in the form that ‘the Bṛhadrathantara Sāman should be sung,’ what is actually done is that on some days of the sacrifice (which lasts for six days) they sing the ‘Bṛhat’ while on other the ‘RathantaraSāman; and never on any one day do they ever sing both the Sāmans.—(61)

The ‘sipping,’ as consisting of the drinking of water, has been prescribed; but the exact quantity of the water to be sipped has not yet been laid down. Hence the Text now proceeds to define the precise measure (of the water to be sipped):—

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vīramitrodaya (Āhnika, p. 66), where it is explained that what the epithet ‘anuṣṇabhiḥ’ means is that the water should not be heated by fire, as is distinctly stated by Viṣṇu;—again on page 77, where it is stated to be the injunction of ācamana in general, for all the three castes;—also on page 79, where it is added that ‘ekānte’ means not crowded,—where alone the mind can be calm and collected,—as is laid down by Viṣṇu.

On the tern ‘prāgudaṅmukhaḥ,’ this work has the following note, criticising Medhātithi’s explanation:—“The term prāgudaṅmukhaḥ must mean the north-east quarter, on the strength of the declaration of Hārīta; and in the Śruti also we see the term used in the sense of the north-easte. g. in the passage referring to the branch of the Palāśa tree—

Prāchīmāharati, udīchīmāharati, prāgudīchīmāharati’ and also in Kātyāyanasūtra, where it is said—‘prāgudakpravaṇam devayajanam,’ where the term ‘prāgudak’ stands for the north-east. For these reasons the assertion of Medhātithi—that ‘the term prāgudak being never found used in the sense of north-east, it should not be explained as such,’—must be disregarded. Medhātithi has explained the compound prāguduṅmukhaḥ as a Bahuvrīhi compound composed of three terms, whereby the meaning comes to be that the man must face the East or the North.”

The writer has conveniently ignored Medhātithi’s reference to Gautama 1.35, in support of his interpretation.

The second half of the verse is quoted in Śuddhi-kaumudī (p. 339);—and in Hemādri (Śrāddha, p. 983), which notes that ‘anuṣṇābhiḥ’ is meant to prohibit the water heated by fire.

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Bodhāyanā-Dharmasūtra, 1. 5. 14.—‘Water-sipping should never be done with the lingers, nor with such water as has hubbies or foam, is brackish or saltish, or muddy, or discoloured, or foul-smelling.’

Baudhāyana (Vīra-Āhnika, p. 71).—‘Sipping should not be done with water left over after washing the feet; or if this has to be done, it should be done after pouring out some of the water on the ground.’

Āpastamba-Dharmasūtra, 5. 15. 4-7.—‘Water should not bo sipped out of rain-showers; nor out of cavities in the Earth; nor with warm water, without reason.’ [‘Reason’ such as sickness.] [Hut according to Vaśiṣṭha, if the cavity contained water enough for satisfying the cow, which is not unclean, then, it may be used.]

Vaśiṣṭha-Smṛti, 3. 36.—‘Sipping should not be done with water with bad colour, bad smell or bad taste, or that proceeding from an unclean source.’

Viṣṇu-Smṛti, 62. 5.—‘Seated in a clean place, with arms between the knees, facing the East or the North, with happy and concentrated mind, he should sip water, which is not fire-heated, which is free from foam, which has not been brought by the Śūdra, and which is not brackish.’

Yājñavalkya, 1.20.—‘With water in its natural condition, free from bubbles and foam.’

Gobhila-Gṛhyasūtra, 1.2.22-23.—‘With water, not hot, nor with bubbles.’

Śaṅkha (Vīra-Āhnika, p. 66).—‘With water pulled out, which is free from bubbles and foam, not heated by fire, nor brackish.’

Gautama and Śaṅkha-Likhita (Do., p. 67).—‘Not with water fetched by a Śūdra or an unclean person or by one hand.’ Kūrmapurāṇa (Do.).—‘With water which is not brackish and which has not been fetched by a Śūdra or by an unclean person; nor with water brought with one hand.’

Saṃvarta (Do.).—‘Never with water offered by a Śūdra or an unclean person, or with one hand.’

Śaṅkha-Likhita (Do., p. 68).—‘With water pulled out, purified, examined, not brackish, nor heated, nor with foam and bubbles.’

Pracetas (Do., p. 69).—‘One should twice, thrice or four times sip water, without making any sound, which is not hot, nor with foam, which has been purified by cloth and by the eve,—reaching the heart.’

Hārīta (Do., p. 70).—‘Nor with water which has not been looked into, which is hot or unclean; discoloured or foul-smelling or foamy.’

Parāśara (Do., p. 71).—‘Sipping should not be done with water fetched by a Śūdra, or with one hand, or by one who has not kept the observances, or by an unknown person.’

Yama (Parāśaramādhava, p. 222).—‘It has been declared that at night, the wise men may be purified by even such water as has not been looked into; as also for sick men.’

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