Verse 8.296

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

मनुष्यमारणे क्षिप्रं चौरवत् किल्बिषं भवेत् ।
प्राणभृत्सु महत्स्वर्धं गोगजोष्ट्रहयादिषु ॥ २९६ ॥

manuṣyamāraṇe kṣipraṃ cauravat kilbiṣaṃ bhavet |
prāṇabhṛtsu mahatsvardhaṃ gogajoṣṭrahayādiṣu || 296 ||

If the case of a man being killed, on the spot, the guilt would be similar to that of the thief; and half of that in the case of the larger animals, such as cows, elephants, camels, horses and the like.—(296)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

If on account of the driver being in the position above described, a man happens to be killed by the cart or by the animals yoked to it, then his ‘guilt’—i.e., his punishment—‘would be similar to that of the thief.’

Though the punishment laid down for the thief is either ‘death’ or ‘confiscation of the entire property’ and so forth, yet in the present context it is the fine that is meant, and not ‘death’; as is clear from the words—‘Half of that in the case of the larger animals,’— since it is only of the fine that there can be a ‘half.’

The ‘fine’ for the ‘thief’ has been held to be the ‘highest amercement,’ on the ground that the fine for killing smaller animals, which occupy the third place in the scale—having been put down at ‘two hundred,’ it is only right that in the case of human beings, who occupy the first place in the scale, it should be the ‘highest amercement.’

‘Animals,’—living beings, such as man, beasts and birds,etc.

‘Larger’;—in the case of ‘cows,’ ‘largeness’ consists in their superior quality, while in that of the elephant and other animals, it consists in their size.

The phrase ‘and the like’ is meant to include the ass, the mule, the tiger and others.

Our opinion on this point however is as follows:—If the other punishments of the ‘thief’ were not meant to be applicable to the present case, then the author would have simply mentioned ‘a thousand’ as the fine. The mention of the ‘half’ may justify the exclusion of the penalty of ‘death’; but all the other penalties,—such as ‘confiscation of the entire property,’ and so forth—that have been prescribed in the case of the thief,—must be taken as meant to be applicable to the case of men.

“It cannot be right to apply to the case of man-killing any penalty other than ‘death’; because under 8.323 below, it is clearly laid down in so many words that ‘death’ shall be the penalty in the case of killing a man. Under the circumstances, why should the other explanation (whereby only the other penalties are made applicable) be accepted, simply because the term ‘half’ happens to be used in another sentence? It would be far better to attribute some other figurative meaning to the term ‘half’ itself.”

This would be true if there were any other way of construing the term ‘half’ with ‘death.’ ‘Punishment similar to that of the thief’ having been prescribed, it would not be right to take it to mean one thing (death) in the first sentence and another thing (fine, etc.) in the second.—(296)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vivādaratnākara (p. 283), which adds the following notes:—The term ‘chauravat’ indicates the fine that has been prescribed in connection with the ‘highest amercement’,—and not mutilation or death; as there could be no ‘half’ of the latter,—such a half being prescribed in the latter part of the verse for causing hurt to cows and such other animals.

It is quoted in Vyavahāramayūkha (p. 109);—in Parāśaramādhava (Vyavahāra, p. 291);—and in Mitākṣarā (2.300), where Bālambhaṭṭī adds the following noṭes:—If a man is killed by a chariot, going astray by reason of the careless driver, then he at once becomes as great an offender as a thief, and liable to be punished as a thief ‘Kilviṣam’ is another reading for ‘kilviṣī’; and the penalty meant here must be the ‘highest amercement,’ not death, since the second half of the verse speaks of the ‘half’ of the said penalty, by which ‘half a fine of 500 is meant, for the offence of killing such larger animals as the cow and the like.

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 8.295-298)

See Comparative notes for Verse 8.295.