Verse 4.55

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

नाश्नीयात् सन्धिवेलायां न गच्छेन्नापि संविशेत् ।
न चैव प्रलिखेद् भूमिं नात्मनोऽपहरेत् स्रजम् ॥ ५५ ॥

nāśnīyāt sandhivelāyāṃ na gacchennāpi saṃviśet |
na caiva pralikhed bhūmiṃ nātmano'paharet srajam || 55 ||

At junction-time, he shall not eat, nor travel, nor sleep. He shall not scratch the ground; and he shall not remove his own garland.—(55).

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘Junction-time’—twilight.

‘Saṃveśana’—is sleeping.

Vedic Study also during twilight is going to be forbidden later on. Another Smṛti has forbidden intercourse with women also, during twilight, e.g.—‘At the time of twilight, one shall avoid four acts—eating, sexual intercourse, sleeping and reading.’

‘He shall not scratch the ground.’—What is forbidden is the tearing of the ground, and not the writing of letters, &c., with a writing-brush and such things.

‘He shall not remove his own garland.’—Flowers stringed together are called ‘garland;’ and when one has placed this upon his head, or on his neck, he himself should not remove it,—either because it has faded or because it is found to be too burdensome. What is meant is that he shall have it removed by another person.

Some people assert that the whole of the verse pertains to the time of twilight.—(55).

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

The first quarter of this verse is quoted in Mitākṣarā (on 3.290).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Viṣṇu (63.8).—‘Not at the twilights (shall he travel).’

Viṣṇu (68.12).—‘Not, at the twilights (shall he eat).’

Viṣṇu (71.42).—‘He shall not scratch the ground.’

Viṣṇu (71.55).—‘He shall not remove his own garland.’