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:

वैश्यशूद्रावपि प्राप्तौ कुटुम्बेऽतिथिधर्मिणौ ।
भोजयेत् सह भृत्यैस्तावानृशंस्यं प्रयोजयन् ॥ ११२ ॥

vaiśyaśūdrāvapi prāptau kuṭumbe'tithidharmiṇau |
bhojayet saha bhṛtyaistāvānṛśaṃsyaṃ prayojayan || 112 ||

The Vaiśya and the Śūdra also, when arrived in the family in the character of guests, he should feed, along with his servants,—showing his compassionate disposition.—(112)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Those that have the character of guests are said to arrive ‘in the character of guests;’ the ‘character of the guest’ has been already described.

Family’—House.

Arrived’—Come.

He should feed the Vaiśya and the Śūdra also, like the Kṣatriya. The time, for feeding them is after the quests, relations and friends have eaten, but before the House-holder and his wife.

Along with’ means simply ‘at the same time.’

Compassionate disposition’—sympathy, pity.

Showing’—providing proof of, having recourse to.

This last clause has been added with a view to show that those here mentioned are not objects of respect. It is one who is to be kindly treated that deserves compassion, and not one who is to be worshipped. Towards pergons deserving kindly treatment, if help can be accorded, this is done by everyone who desires his own welfare. But its omission does not mean ill-treatment of the guest. What is meant is that the merit derived from helping the person deserving compassion is not similar to that derived from entertaining the guest; it is inferior to this latter.—(112)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

Parāśaramādhava (Ācāra, p. 354) quotes this verse without comment;—also Aparārka (p. 152), which explains ‘ānṛśaṃsyam’ as ‘anaiṣṭhuryam,’ ‘absence of hard-heartedness.’—It is quoted also in Varṣakriyā-kaumudī (p. 572), which explains ‘Kuṭumbe’ as ‘in the house’.

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 3.110-112)

See Comparative notes for Verse 3.110.

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