Verse 9.89

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

काममामरणात् तिष्ठेद् गृहे कन्यार्तुमत्यपि ।
न चैवैनां प्रयच्छेत् तु गुणहीनाय कर्हि चित् ॥ ८९ ॥

kāmamāmaraṇāt tiṣṭhed gṛhe kanyārtumatyapi |
na caivaināṃ prayacchet tu guṇahīnāya karhi cit || 89 ||

Well might the maiden, even though she may have reached puberty, remain in the house till her death; but the father shall never give her to a man destitute of good qualities.—(89)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

As a rule, the girl should be given away before puberty; but even after puberty, the father should not give her away until a qualified bridegroom has been found.

‘Qualities’— such as a high degree of learning, bravery, physical beauty, right age, being averse to doing acts forbidden by custom and scriptures, love for the bride; and so forth.—(89)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Aparārka (p. 93), which adds that what is meant is that ‘so long as a man with good qualifications is not available she shall not be given to one devoid of qualifications,’ and not that there is nothing wrong, under the circumstances, to keep the girl unmarried even after puberty; as this latter view is contrary to other texts.

It is quoted in Smṛtitattva (II, p. 124), which adds that all that is meant is that the girl should not be given to a man devoid of qualifications;—in Smṛtikaumudī (p. 38);—in Hemādri (Kāla, p. 804), which says that what is meant is that ‘she should not be given to a man without qualifications when a qualified man is available,’ and it is not meant that a girl should never be given to a man without qualifications;—in Smṛticandrikā (Saṃskāra, p. 216), which has the same note;—in Saṃskāraratnamāla (p. 456), which also has the same note;—and in Saṃskāramayūkha (p. 102), which says that ‘api’ and ‘kāmam’ indicate that the verse is not to be taken in its literal sense; all that is meant is to eulogise the marrying of the girl to a qualified man.

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 9.88-89)

See Comparative notes for Verse 9.88.

Other Dharmashastra Concepts:

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