Verse 8.126 [Considerations regarding Punishments]

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

अनुबन्धं परिज्ञाय देशकालौ च तत्त्वतः ।
सारापराधो चालोक्य दण्डं दण्ड्येषु पातयेत् ॥ १२६ ॥

anubandhaṃ parijñāya deśakālau ca tattvataḥ |
sārāparādho cālokya daṇḍaṃ daṇḍyeṣu pātayet || 126 ||

Having duly ascertained the motive and the time and place, and having taken into consideration the condition (of the accused) and the nature of the offence,—he shall inflict punishment upon those deserving punishment.—(126)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

This verse forms the basis for all penalties and offences, described above; and it is in accordance with this that all punishment is to be determined.

‘Motive,’ ‘anubandha,’ literally means repealed action or that which leads to repeated action; the meaning thus is that the king shall ascertain what it was that led the man to commit the offence, i.e., he shall find out if he was urged to it by the starving condition of his family, or by association with criminals, or by reason of his being addicted to drink and gambling,—and if he did it intentionally or by mistake,—if he was urged to it by another person, or he did it voluntarily. These are the points to be considered in the ascertaining of the man’s ‘motive.’

‘Place,’—a village, forest, granary or pasture-ground.

‘Time’—whether it was night or day; whether it was a time of scarcity or of plenty; whether the criminal is a youth or a full-grown person.

‘Condition,’—capability or otherwise to suffer the penalty,—whether he is rich or poor.

^‘Offence’—under which of the eighteen categories the act falls.

Having, in due order, considered all this, the king shall ‘inflict the punishment,’—so that the condition of the society may not suffer.—(126)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

‘Anubandham’—‘Motive or frequency’ (Medhātithi and Govindarāja)—‘frequency’ (Kullūka and Nārāyaṇa).

‘Sārāprādhau’—Nandana reading ‘Sārāsārau,’ explains it as ‘strength or weakness of the offender.’

Tins verse is quoted in Vivādaratnākara (p. 627), which explains ‘Sāra’ as strength and ‘anubandha’ as ‘repetition of the improper act.’

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Gautama (12.51).—‘The award of punishment must be regulated by a consideration of the status of the criminal, of his bodily strength, of the nature of the crime, and whether the offence has been repeated.’

Yājñavalkya (1.367).—‘On those deserving punishment, the King shall inflict punishment after having considered the nature of the crime, the time, place and strength of the criminal, as also his age, conduct and wealth.’

Nārada (Punishments, 38).—‘After carefully considering the nature of the offence, the place and time, and after examining the ability of the offender, and his motive, he shall inflict the punishments.’

Bṛhaspati (27.4-7).—‘When he has discovered a man to be an offender, the King should inflict on him, reprimand, reproach or corporal chastisement, or one of the four grades of fines. He shall inflict gentle reprimand when the offence is very light; harsh reproach for a crime of the first degree; a fine for a crime of the middlemost degree, and arrest in the case of high treason. Banishment also may be resorted to by a king desirous of promoting his own welfare;...... and all the various forms of punishment should be combined in the case of one who has committed a mortal sin. The King should punish elders, domestic priests and persons commanding respect, with admonition only; other litigants he should punish with fine, when they are found guilty; and on the perpetrators of a heavy crime, he should inflict corporal punishment.’