Verse 3.153

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

प्रेष्यो ग्रामस्य राज्ञश्च कुनखी श्यावदन्तकः ।
प्रतिरोद्धा गुरोश्चैव त्यक्ताग्निर्वार्धुषिस्तथा ॥ १५३ ॥

preṣyo grāmasya rājñaśca kunakhī śyāvadantakaḥ |
pratiroddhā guroścaiva tyaktāgnirvārdhuṣistathā || 153 ||

The servant of a village and of the king, one with deformed nails, one with black teeth, the opposer of his superior, one who has forsaken the Fire and the usurer.—(153)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘Servant’—one who carries out orders: one who is sent by the village-people hither and thither, on business.

Similarly, ‘the servant of the king,’ ‘one who hew deformed nail,’ ‘one who has black teeth.’

‘Opposer of his teacher’— he who, in conversation and other things, remains against and in opposition to his superior.

‘One who has forsaken the Fire’—i.e., out of the Three Fires and the Domestic Fire, one who has given up even one,

‘Usurer’—one who, even though he has other menus of living available, lives upon interest. Though ‘Usury’ has been defined as ‘the accumulating of grains by interest,’ yet this definition can be accepted as authoritative only within the limited scope of the subject dealt with by the Smṛti in which it occurs; in fact, grammarians apply the term ‘usurer’ to persons making a living by interest, in connection with things other than grains also: and, in the matter of words and their meanings, grammarians are more authoritative than others; because they make these the subject of careful study.—(153)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

It is interesting to note that this verse is omitted in Parāśaramādhava (Ācāra p. 687) and Madanapārijāta (p. 560), though both quote the preceding and the following verses. But the former includes it in the explanations given later on (on p. 690), where the term ‘tyaktāgnim’ is explained as ‘one who abandons the Śrauta and Smārta fires without any reason for giving up the compulsory duties,’—‘vārdhuṣin’ is explained as ‘one who borrows money at a cheap rate and lends it at a higher rate of interest’

It is quoted in Hemādri (Śrāddha, p. 481);—in Nṛsiṃhaprasāda (Śrāddha p. 9a);—and in Śrāddha-kriyākaumudī (p. 40), which explains ‘guroḥ pratiroddhā’ as ‘one who behaves disagreeably to the Teacher,’ and ‘vārdhuṣī’ as ‘one who lives by lending money on interest’

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 3.150-166)

See Comparative notes for Verse 3.150.