8. Dharma Sutras and Dharma Shastras

The ancient Hindu law-books mark an important phase in the development of ethical thought in India. These law-books developed the rudimentary social and ethical percepts available in the Vedas and certain contemporary social customs to present a coherent legal system.

Prof. Buhler in his introduction to Manu Dharma Sastra(sacred books of east, vol.xxv) beings out the dominant hypothesis about the origin of the code. According to him, it belongs to the later-Vedic period when “the systematic cultivation of the sacred sciences of brahmanas began and for a long time had its centre’s in the ancient Sutrakaranas the school which first collected the fragmentary doctrines scattered in the old Vedic works and arranged them for the convenience of oral instruction in sutras or strings of aphorisms.^[1]

Manu’s idea of morality is comprehensive and philosophically interesting. Manu Dharma Sastra deals with all the aspects of human life and comes out with a comprehensive set of duties regulation one’s conduct towards oneself, towards the society towards other creatures, towards the universe as a whole. Hence, it is very difficult to define Manu’s view of morality unless we see what it means to him in individual, social, practical and spiritual spheres of human life.

The period succeeding the Upanisadic age can be termed as the age of Dharma Sutras and Dharma Shastras, the latter also known as Smritis. In these scriptures the duties peculiar to each varna and each ashram have been described in great details. Besides the duties peculiar to male and female belonging to different varnas and ashram as these scriptures describe in detail, the duties of the rulers, the women and the accidental duties. Like Upanisads they also hold the grihastha Ashram as the basis of society and the most important ashrama. Therefore, they have particularly devoted their attention to the detailed and minute description of all the duties peculiar to the grihastha ashrama. The Dharma Sutras have described in details the daily duties of the five maha yajnas, the three types of debts, the hospitability towards guests, the types of marriages, the peculiar duties of the ladies of the household and the various types of sanskaras. These scriptures have described in detail the sanskaras beginning right from the conception of human being till his death. The scriptures also describe what is known as sadharana dharma or the ordinary duties. These according to Manu are ten. Prashasta Pada has particularly distinguished between general and particular dharmas and described them in detail. Besides, mention has been made of the intentional duties which are performed due to certain intentions or aims. While proper actions have been described in detail, the improper actions have been also listed and prescriptions have been given about atonation concerning improper actions. Manu has described ten dharmas such as dhriti, kshama, dama, asteya, saucha, indriya nigraha, dhi, vidya, satya palan and akrodha. Other sutras have added in this list-charity or dana, daya or pity, ahimsa or non-violence.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Manu Dharma Sastra, Sacred Book of the East Vol25.p xviii