Verse 8.114

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

अग्निं वाऽहारयेदेनमप्सु चैनं निमज्जयेत् ।
पुत्रदारस्य वाप्येनं शिरांसि स्पर्शयेत् पृथक् ॥ ११४ ॥

agniṃ vā'hārayedenamapsu cainaṃ nimajjayet |
putradārasya vāpyenaṃ śirāṃsi sparśayet pṛthak || 114 ||

Or, he may make him fetch fire, or make him dive under water, or make him touch the heads of his son and wife severally.—(114)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘He shall make him fetch water’—with the hand, with only the leaf of the fig tree intervening. As for the other details, regarding the man going seven steps and so forth,—all this may be found in other Smṛtis (e.g., Yājñavalkya, Vyavahāra, 103, and Nārada 2.296). The matter being well known by tradition, our author has simply stated the ‘fetching of fire.’

‘He,’ i.e., the Judge—‘shall make him dive under water.’

‘He shall make him touch the heads of his son and wife, secerally,’—the man shall touch the head with his hand; and as this occurs in the context dealing with ‘oaths,’ the man should be made to utter the swearing words also.

‘Severally’—separately, one by one.—(114)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 694);—the second half in Smṛtitattva (II, p. 611);—and in Vīramitrodaya (Vyavahāra, 71b and 88b), which says that the touching of the head is to be done with the right hand.

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 8.114-116)

Yājñavalkya (2.96-113).—‘The Balance for women, children, aged persons, the lame, the Brāhmaṇa and the invalid; Fire or Water or seven Yavas or seven Poisons for the Śūdra. Neither the Plough-share nor the Poison nor the Balance shall he used in suits whose value is less than a thousand paṇas; hut in connection with the business of the King, or when one is accused of heinous crimes, the pure men shall always use these. (Then follows the detailed procedure of the ordeals.)’

Viṣṇu (Chapters 10 to 14).—[Rules regarding ordeal by Balance in Chap. 10, regarding that by fire in Chap. 11: ‘That man whose hands are burnt ever so little should be deemed guilty; but if he remains wholly unburnt, he is freed from the charge regarding that by Water, in Chap. 12: ‘The defendant should enter water;...... if he is not seen above the water during the time that a man brings back a discharged arrow, he is proclaimed innocent; hut in the contrary case, he is declared guilty, even though only one limb of his may have become visible;’—regarding that by Poison in Chap. 13:—and regarding that by Sacred Libation, in Chap. 14.]

Nārada (1.251-253).—‘Holy Manu has ordained that five kinds of ordeals should be administered to those involved in a doubtful case, specially if the matter under dispute is of a recondite nature. The Balance, Fire, Water, Poison and fifthly, Consecrated Water are the ordeals ordained for the purgation of high-minded persons. Those ordeals have been ordained by Nārada, for the purpose of proving the innocence of criminals who are defendants in a law-suit, and in order that right may be discerned from wrong.’ [Then follow detailed instructions regarding the ordeals, up to verse 348.]—‘If the members of the court should declare him unhurt, he shall he honourably released as innocent; if he is burnt, he shall receive due punishment’ (363).—‘If the man returning with the discharged arrow does not see the defendant rising in water, the defendant should he acquitted; otherwise he is guilty; even though only one limb of his may have become visible’ (311-312).

Bṛhaspati (10.4-2).—‘The Balance, Fire, Water, Poison, and fifthly, Sacred Libation, sixthly grains of rice, seventhly, a hot piece of gold, are declared to he ordeals;—the Plough-share is mentioned as the eighth; the ordeal by Dharmas the ninth. Truth, a vehicle, weapons, cows, grains, gold, venerable gods and Brāhmaṇas, the heads of sons and wives,—by these have oaths to be taken. When a dispute between two litigants has arisen regarding a debt or some other matter, that ordeal is to be administered which is in keeping with the amount of the sum in dispute and with the character and strength of the person to he examined. The ordeal by Poison should he administered where property worth a thousand has been stolen; that by Fire when it is a quarter less than that; when the charge concerns four hundred, the Hot Piece of Gold should be administered; when three hundred, Grains of Rice should be used; and the Sacred Libation, when it is half of that; when a hundred has been stolen, or falsely denied, purgation by Dharma should be administered; thieves of cows should be subjected, by preference, to ordeal by the Plough-share.’

Śukranīti (4.5.493 et seq.).—‘When the plaintiff is not prepared to accept the result of the ordeal as final, the ordeal shall not be administered: an ordeal is to be administered to the Accused only; never shall the judge ask the accuser to go through the ordeal; but if he so wills it, he may be put through it. In the case of those who have been suspected by the King, ordeal may be prescribed. In cases of adultery and incestuous intercourse, and of heinous offences, ordeal shall be administered; there is no other proof. In the case of those against whom there is a presumptive charge of theft, the ordeal of lifting a small piece of metal out of boiling oil is ordained. In the case of indictment for murder, even though human evidence be available, if the accuser volunteers to have recourse to ordeal, the human evidence may be ignored. Where the witness that is produced is suspected of dishonesty, the King shall, before admitting his evidence, test him by means of an ordeal.’

Viṣṇu (8.40).—‘Whenever a perjured witness has given false evidence in a suit, the King must reverse the judgment; and whatever has been done should be regarded as undone.’

Nārada (2.40).—‘When a man has lost his cause through the dishonesty of witnesses or judges, the cause may be tried anew.’