Verse 9.207

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

भ्रातॄणां यस्तु नैहेत धनं शक्तः स्वकर्मणा ।
स निर्भाज्यः स्वकादंशात् किं चिद् दत्त्वोपजीवनम् ॥ २०७ ॥

bhrātṝṇāṃ yastu naiheta dhanaṃ śaktaḥ svakarmaṇā |
sa nirbhājyaḥ svakādaṃśāt kiṃ cid dattvopajīvanam || 207 ||

Among brothers, if any one, being quite competent through his own profession, does not desire the property, he shall be debarred from his share, after a little has been given to him by way of maintenance.—(207)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

When several brothers are living together, and jointly manage their ancestral properly by cultivation and other means, if any one of them does not help in the management,—it is the debarring of such a brother that is declared here.

‘He shall be debarred’— set aside—‘from his share’ in the nett profits of the estate. These profits shall not he given to the said brother; he however is not to be debarred from the main ancestral estate. But the profits also shall not be wholly taken away from him; a part of his share of the profits shall be taken by the others, in exchange for their own labour, and the remainder shall he given to him ‘by way of maintenance.’

Or ‘nirbhājyaḥ’ may mean ‘shall he separated,’ ‘not allowed to live jointly.’ Because, it is just possible that after some time ho may acquire more property and become entitled to an equal share (?) In such a case what the allotment of shares shall be has been indicated by Nārada, whose declaration shows that the man is to have a larger share in the property named, and only a small share in what is not. so named. (?)—(207)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 720), which explains ‘Svakād aṃśāt’ as ‘from the property acquired by the brothers’;—in Smṛtitattva II (p. 171), in the sense that one, who, by reason of his own capacity (to earn) is not desirous of any share in the ancestral property, shall be given some such tiling as a seer of rice, and be separated from the family, as a safeguard against trouble arising from his sons and descendants;—and by Jīmūtavāhana (Dāyabhāga, p. 110).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 9.204-208)

See Comparative notes for Verse 9.204.