Manusmriti with the Commentary of Medhatithi

by Ganganatha Jha | 1920 | 1,381,940 words | ISBN-10: 8120811550 | ISBN-13: 9788120811553

This is the English translation of the Manusmriti, which is a collection of Sanskrit verses dealing with ‘Dharma’, a collective name for human purpose, their duties and the law. Various topics will be dealt with, but this volume of the series includes 12 discourses (adhyaya). The commentary on this text by Medhatithi elaborately explains various t...

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

भर्तरि पुत्रं विजानन्ति श्रुतिद्वैधं तु कर्तरि ।
आहुरुत्पादकं के चिदपरे क्षेत्रिणं विदुः ॥ ३२ ॥

bhartari putraṃ vijānanti śrutidvaidhaṃ tu kartari |
āhurutpādakaṃ ke cidapare kṣetriṇaṃ viduḥ || 32 ||

They recognise the son to be the husband’s; but in regard to one who is only the progenitor, there is diversity of opinion; some people declare the begetter, while others the owner of the soil (to be the owner of the child).—(32)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Husband’—the marrier; the man with whom the woman has gone through the sacrament of marriage; and when a son is born from this husband in that women, ‘they’—all learned men—‘recognise’—accept—the son to be that man’s. There is no difference of opinion on this point; it is an acknowledged principle.

There is diversity of opinion however in regard to one who is the progenitor only’; in a case where the man is not one to whom the woman has been married, but only the begetter of the son in a soil belonging to another man.

This diversity of opinion is next pointed out—‘Some people declare the begetter’ to be the person to whom the child belongs; while others declare ‘the owner of the soil’ to be so; i.e., the person whose wife the woman is, even though he be not the actual begetter.

Having thus propounded the doubt due to the difference of opinion among teachers, the author himself proceeds to justify the doubt.—(32)

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 9.31-44)

See Comparative notes for Verse 9.31.

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