Verse 7.126

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

पणो देयोऽवकृष्टस्य षडुत्कृष्टस्य वेतनम् ।
षाण्मासिकस्तथाऽच्छादो धान्यद्रोणस्तु मासिकः ॥ १२६ ॥

paṇo deyo'vakṛṣṭasya ṣaḍutkṛṣṭasya vetanam |
ṣāṇmāsikastathā'cchādo dhānyadroṇastu māsikaḥ || 126 ||

One paṇa shall be paid as the wages of the inferior, and six to the superior servant; as also clothing every sixth month and a Droṇa of grain every month.—(126)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

To the ‘inferior servant’—i.e., to one who is employed in such work as sweeping and cleaning; for his living one paṇa should be paid.

To the superior servant shall also be given Clothing every sixth month’; and also ‘a Droṇa of grain’; a ‘droṇa’ is equal to four Ādhakas.

The exact measure of the ‘paṇa’ the author is going to describe later on (8.136).

These verses are meant to prescribe the wages of the servants.—(126)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

‘Paṇa’—See 8.136.

‘Droṇa’—‘Four āḍhakas, i.e., 10 seers’ (Medhātithi and Kullūka);—‘512 palas’ (Govindarāja).

“Govindarāja and Kullūka state that the highest servants shall receive six times as much grain and clothes as the lowest, and the middle class servants three times as much as the lowest”—Buhler.

This verse is quoted in Vīramitrodaya (Rājanīti, p. 252), which adds the following notes:—‘Avakṛṣṭasya,’ ‘of domestic servants’;—‘vetanam,’ fooding,—‘āchādaḥ’, ‘two pieces of clothing’,—‘droṇaḥ ‘four ‘Āḍhakas’;—and in Śuddhikaumudī (p. 240).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Śaṅkha-Likhita (Vīramitrodaya-Rājanīti, p. 252).—‘Two golden pieces constitute the monthly wage; to be paid on calculating after six months, or four months.’