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 9.285
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:
सङ्क्रमध्वजयष्टीनां प्रतिमानां च भेदकः ।
प्रतिकुर्याच्च तत् सर्वं पञ्च दद्यात्शतानि च ॥ २८५ ॥saṅkramadhvajayaṣṭīnāṃ pratimānāṃ ca bhedakaḥ |
pratikuryācca tat sarvaṃ pañca dadyātśatāni ca || 285 ||He who destroys a crossing, a flag, a pole or images, shall repair the whole of it and shall pay five hundred.—(285)
Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):
‘Crossing’—the contrivance by way of which people cross over waterways.
‘Flag’—i.e., the white piece of cloth, which serves as the insignia of Royalty and of Councillors.
‘Pole’—in temples; similarly ‘images’— installed in temples.
‘He shall repair it’—i.e., restore it to its original condition.—(285)
Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha
‘Yaṣṭi’.—‘The flag-staff of a village’ (Nārāyaṇa);—such poles as stand in tanks and other places’ (Kullūka).
‘Pratimā’.—‘Statues of men, the penalty for breaking the image of gods being death’ (Nārāyaṇa);—‘common images made of clay and so forth’ (Kullūka).
This verse is quoted in Vivādaratnākara (p. 363), which adds the following notes:—‘Saṅkramaḥ’, bridge built of wood and other materials for crossing over water, which is commonly known as ‘Sāṅkham’ (V. L. Sāṇk);—‘dhvaja’, that which marks a temple or such other places;—‘Yaṣṭi’, planted in market-places or tanks or houses;—‘pratimā’, images of gods,—‘pratikuryāt’, should restore to its former position.
It is quoted in Aparārka (p. 822);—in Vivādacintāmaṇi (Calcutta, p. 101), which adds the following notes—‘Saṅkrama’ is what is known as ‘Sākama’, ‘dhvaja’ is the garuḍa-dhvaja and like things dedicated to some deity,—‘yaṣṭī’ is the post marking a market-place,—‘pratimā’, image of some deity,—one who breaks any one of these things should be fined 500;—and in Prāyascittaviveka (p. 247).
Comparative notes by various authors
Viṣṇu (5.174).—‘He who sells forbidden food, or food which must not be sold, and he who breaks the image of a deity, shall pay the highest amercement.’