Verse 8.342

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

असन्दितानां सन्दाता सन्दितानां च मोक्षकः ।
दासाश्वरथहर्ता च प्राप्तः स्याच्चोरकिल्बिषम् ॥ ३४२ ॥

asanditānāṃ sandātā sanditānāṃ ca mokṣakaḥ |
dāsāśvarathahartā ca prāptaḥ syāccorakilbiṣam || 342 ||

One who enchains the unchained, or sets free the enchained, as also one who takes away a slave, a horse or a chariot, incurs the guilt of the thief.—(342)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Sometimes horses and other animals, freed from their tethers, are found to be grazing in fields covered with fodder; if during the time the master of the Held or the keeper of the cattle happen to be asleep, and some one else ‘enchains’—ties them up,—the presumption is that he is going to steal the cattle, and hence he deserves to be punished like a thief. But there is nothing wrong in a case where one ties up an animal that may have strayed either from the owner’s house or from the. herd, with a view to keeping it from harm.

The same penalty applies to one who puts a rope round the neck of the cow; also to one who ‘sets free’ those that are ‘enchained’—tied up with chains in the feet.

Similarly one who ‘takes away slaves’—those engaged to serve in return for maintenance,—by enticing them with such words as—‘I shall pay yon more, why do you stick to this man?’

For the enticing away of persons of noble families, the ‘death-penalty’ has been laid down above under 323, and the present verso lays down that for enticing slaves and similar persons; and just as in the former case what is meant is that persons belonging to noble families should not be enticed away, nor forcibly carried away by stealth,—so in the present case also.

‘Who takes away horses and chariots’;—Verse 324 has referred to horses belonging to the king, the present refers to those belonging to the people. In the former case the punishment depends upon the Rājā’s wish, but in the present case ‘immolation’ is strictly laid down.

Though there are several forms of punishment for thieves, yet ‘immolation’ is what should be taken to be meant here, on the strength of what is laid down in other Smṛti texts, such as—‘Those who entice away prisoners, horses and elephants and those who attach people by force should be impaled.’ In the present case however the general law relating to thieves—that of cutting off the limb whereby he does the act—may be applied.

Others take this verse to refer to ‘chariots with horses yoked to them,’ which includes the bullock-cart and the rest also.

Under this explanation, the exact punishment for the stealing of horses only, or chariots only, would have to be found out; specially as in other smṛti -texts, ‘immolation’ has been prescribed for the stealing of horses only. It may be that the same penalty may apply also to the case of stealing horses along with chariots.

According to those who explain the ‘haraṇa,’ ‘taking away,’ of the text as enticing away with inducements, the term ‘chariot’ has to be taken as standing for the chariot-maker; and this would include all kinds of mechanics. So that for enticing away a mechanic, the penalty would be the same as that in the case of the thief. Horses also are ‘enticed away with inducements’ by having a mare placed before them.—(342)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vivādaratnākara (p. 319), which adds the following notes:—‘Sandhātā,’ one who ties up with a view to taking it away;—similarly ‘vimokṣakaḥ’ (which is its reading for ‘ca mokṣakaḥ’), is one who sets it free with the intention of taking it;—‘caurakilviṣam,’ the penalty for theft, corporal or monetary;—and in Vivādacintāmaṇi (p. 136) which explains the meaning to be that the punishment is to be meted out to (1) the person who tethers untethered cattle for the purpose of taking it away, or (2) one who untethers those that are tethered, for taking them away, or (3) one who deprives one of any one of the properties mentioned,—i.e. the share and the rest.’

 

Comparative notes by various authors

See Texts under CCCXXV above.