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:

येनास्मिन् कर्मणा लोके ख्यातिमिच्छति पुष्कलाम् ।
न च शोचत्यसम्पत्तौ तद् विज्ञेयं तु राजसम् ॥ ३६ ॥

yenāsmin karmaṇā loke khyātimicchati puṣkalām |
na ca śocatyasampattau tad vijñeyaṃ tu rājasam || 36 ||

When, by a certain act, the man desires great fame in this world, and does not mind failure—this should be understood to partake of the quality of ‘Rajas.’—(36)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

The motive being—‘by doing this act I shall obtain praise in the world,’—if one performs sacrifices, austerities or other righteous acts; as also such acts for winning fame as giving gifts to the beggars at sacred places, bragging against the king, expounding the scriptures before Śūdras, and so forth.

Great.’—This implies that what is objectionable is the doing of the act with the sole motive of obtaining fame; there is nothing wrong if the fame comes, only by the way; if, for instance, people talk of the man’s righteous deeds, when these are done only through righteousness (and not for any other purpose), such fame does not vitiate the moral quality of the act; as has been declared to be the case with the man in picking up ‘sugar cane,’ as described by Kṛṣṇadvaipāyana in the story of the Mahāhhārata—‘When a man is gathering sugarcane, he gathers, along with it, also grasses and creepers; and in the same manner, the man, when treading the path of righteousness, also obtains fame, happiness and wealth.’

Failure’—of the results to appear;—‘he does not mind’—feels no sorrow; or ‘failure’ may mean the non-completion of the act.—(36)

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 12.32-51)

See Comparative notes for Verse 12.32.

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