The Manusmṛti (), also known as the Mānava-Dharmaśāstra or the Laws of Manu, is a major legal text among the many of Hinduism.Manusmriti, The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History (2009), Oxford University Press, , See entry for Manusmriti It contains rules on many aspects of dharma and is especially famous for its discussion of different rules for the four varnas (inherited social classes, often called caste).
Over fifty manuscripts of the Manusmriti are now known, but the earliest discovered, most translated, and presumed authentic version since the 18th century is the "Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) manuscript with Kulluka Bhatta commentary". Modern scholarship states this presumed authenticity is false, and that the various manuscripts of Manusmriti discovered in India are inconsistent with each other.
The metrical text is in Sanskrit, is dated to the 2nd century BCE to 2nd century CE, and presents itself as a discourse given by Manu (Svayambhuva) and Bhrigu on dharma topics such as duties, rights, laws, conduct, varna, gender norms, and virtues. The text's influence had historically spread outside India, influencing Hindu kingdoms in modern Cambodia and Indonesia.Robert Lingat (1973), The Classical Law of India, University of California Press, , p. 77Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 3–4Steven Collins (1993), The discourse of what is primary, Journal of Indian philosophy, Volume 21, pp. 301–393
In 1776, Manusmriti became one of the first Sanskrit texts to be translated into English (the original Sanskrit book was never found), by British philologist Sir William Jones. Manusmriti was used to construct the Hindu law code for the East India Company-administered enclaves.P Bilimoria (2011), "The Idea of Hindu Law", Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia, Volume 43, pp. 103–130Donald Davis (2010), The Spirit of Hindu Law, Cambridge University Press, , pp. 13–16, 166–179 In modern times, the text is controversial due to its commentary on women and lower castes.
Nomenclature The title Manusmriti is a relatively modern term and a late innovation, probably coined because the text is in a verse form. The over-fifty manuscripts discovered of the text never use this title, but state the title as Manava Dharmashastra (Sanskrit: मानव धर्मशास्त्र) in their colophons at the end of each chapter. In modern scholarship, these two titles refer to the same text.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 18–19, 41
Chronology Philologists Jones and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel, in the 18th century, dated Manusmriti to around 1250 BCE and 1000 BCE respectively, which, from later linguistic developments, is untenable due to the language of the text which must be later than the late Vedic texts such as the Upanishads, themselves dated a few centuries later, around 500 BCE. Later scholars shifted the chronology of the text to between the 1st or 2nd century CE. Olivelle adds that numismatic evidence and the mention of gold coins as a fine suggest the text may date to the 2nd or 3rd century CE.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 24–25 However, the majority of scholars agree that it was composed sometime between 200 BCE and 200 CE.
Most scholars consider the text a composite produced by many authors put together over a long period. Olivelle states that the various ancient and medieval Indian texts claim revisions and editions were derived from the original text with 100,000 verses and 1,080 chapters. However, the text version in modern use, according to Olivelle, is likely the work of a single author or a chairman with research assistants.
Manusmriti, Olivelle states, was not a new document - it drew on other texts, and reflects "a crystallization of an accumulated knowledge" in ancient India. The root of theoretical models within Manusmriti rely on at least two shastras that pre-date it: artha (statecraft and legal process) and dharma (an ancient Indian concept that includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and others discussed in various Dharmasutras, older than Manusmriti).Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 41–49 Its contents can be traced to Kalpasutras of the Vedic era, which led to the development of Smartasutras consisting of Grihyasutras and Dharmasutras.John Bowker (2012), The Message and the Book: Sacred Texts of the World's Religions, Yale University Press, , pp. 179–180 The foundational texts of Manusmriti include many of these sutras, all from an era preceding the common era. Most of these ancient texts are now lost, and only four have survived: the law codes of Apastamba, Gautama, Baudhayana and Vasishtha.Patrick Olivelle (1999), Dharmasutras – the law codes of ancient India, Oxford University Press, , pp. xxiv–xxv, 280–314
Structure The ancient version of the text has been subdivided into twelve Adhyayas (chapters), but the original text had no such division. The text covers different topics, and is unique among ancient Indian texts in using "transitional verses" to mark the end of one subject and the start of the next. The text can be broadly divided into four, each of different length. and each further divided into subsections: Creation of the world Source of dharma The dharma of the four social classes Law of karma, rebirth and final liberation
The text is composed in metric Shlokas (verses), in the form of a dialogue between an exalted teacher and disciples who are eager to learn about the various aspects of dharma.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 25–27 The first 58 verses are attributed by the text to Manu, while the remaining more than two thousand verses are attributed to his student Bhrigu. Olivelle lists the subsections as follows:Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 9–10
Sources of the law The Dharmasya Yonih (Sources of the Law) has twenty-four verses and one transition verse. These verses state what the text considers as the proper and just sources of law:
This section of Manusmriti, like other Hindu law texts, includes fourfold sources of Dharma, states Levinson, which include Atmana santushti (satisfaction of one's conscience), Sadachara (local norms of virtuous individuals), Smriti and Sruti.David Levinson (2002), Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment, Volume 1, SAGE Publications, , p. 829Werner Menski, Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity (Delhi: Oxford UP, 2003), p. 126 and Domenico Francavilla, The Roots of Hindu Jurisprudence: Sources of Dharma and Interpretation in Mīmāṃsā and Dharmaśāstra. Corpus Iuris Sanscriticum. Vol. 7 (Torino: CESMEO, 2006), pp. 165–176.
Dharma of the four Varnas
3.1 Rules Relating to Law (2.25 – 10.131) 3.1.1 Rules of Action in Normal Times (2.26 – 9.336) 3.1.1.1 Fourfold Dharma of a Brahmin (2.26 – 6.96) (contains the longest section of Manusmriti, 3.1, called dharmavidhi) 3.1.1.2 Rules of Action for a King (7.1 – 9.324) (contains 960 verses, includes description of institutions and officials of state, how officials are to be appointed, tax laws, rules of war, the role and limits on the power of the king, and long sections on eighteen grounds for litigation, including those related to non-delivery under contract, breach of contract, non-payment of wages, property disputes, inheritance disputes, humiliation and defamation, physical assault, theft, violence of any form, injury, sexual crimes against women, public safety, and others; the section also includes rules of evidence, rules on interrogation of witnesses, and the organisation of court system)Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 10–15, 154–205 3.1.1.3 Rules of Action for Vaiśyas and Śūdras (9.326 – 9.335) (shortest section, eight rules for Vaishyas, two for Shudras, but some applicable laws to these two classes are discussed generically in verses 2.26 – 9.324)Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 16, 8–14, 206–207 3.1.2 Rules of Action in Times of Adversity (10.1 – 11.129) (contains revised rules on the state machinery and four varnas in the times of war, famine or other emergencies)Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 16–17, 208–229 3.2 Rules Relating to Penance (11.1 – 11.265) (includes rules of proportionate punishment; instead of fines, incarceration or death, discusses penance or social isolation as a form of punishment for certain crimes)
The verses 6.97, 9.325, 9.336 and 10.131 are transitional verses. Olivelle notes instances of likely interpolation and insertions in the notes to this section, in both the presumed vulgate version and the critical edition.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 237–350, 914–982
Determination of Karmayoga The verses 12.1, 12.2 and 12.82 are transitional verses. This section is in a different style than the rest of the text, raising questions of whether this entire chapter was added later. While there is evidence that this chapter was extensively redacted over time, it is unclear whether the entire chapter is of a later era. 4.1 Fruits of Action (12.3–81) (section on actions and consequences, personal responsibility, action as a means of moksha – the highest personal bliss)Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 10, 17–19, 230–236, 290–292 4.2 Rules of Action for Supreme Good (12.83–115) (section on karma, duties and responsibilities as a means of supreme good)
The closing verses of Manusmriti declare,
Contents The structure and contents of the Manusmriti suggest it to be a document predominantly targeted at the Brahmins (priestly class) and the Kshatriyas (king, administration and warrior class). The text dedicates 1,034 verses, the largest portion, on laws for and expected virtues of Brahmins, and 971 verses for Kshatriyas.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , p. 41 The statement of rules for the Vaishyas (merchant class) and the Shudras (artisans and working class) in the text is extraordinarily brief. Olivelle suggests that this may be because the text was composed to address the balance "between the political power and the priestly interests", and because of the rise in foreign invasions of India in the period it was composed.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 16, 62–65
On virtues and outcast Manusmriti lists and recommends virtues in many verses. For example, verse 6.75 recommends non-violence towards everyone and temperance as key virtues,J Duncan M Derrett (1975), Bharuci's commentary on the Manusmrti, Schriftenreihe des Sudasien-Instituts der Universitat Heidelberg, , p. 23 while verse 10.63 preaches that all four varnas must abstain from injuring any creature, abstain from falsehood and abstain from appropriating the property of others.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 208–214, 337
Similarly, in verse 4.204, states Olivelle, some manuscripts of Manusmriti list the recommended virtues to be, "compassion, forbearance, truthfulness, non-injury, self-control, not desiring, meditation, serenity, sweetness and honesty" as primary, and "purification, sacrifices, ascetic toil, gift giving, Vedic recitation, restraining the sexual organs, observances, fasts, silence and bathing" as secondary.Patrick Olivelle (2005), Manu's Code of Law, Oxford University Press, , p. 275 A few manuscripts of the text contain a different verse 4.204, according to Olivelle, and list the recommended virtues to be, "not injuring anyone, speaking the truth, chastity, honesty and not stealing" as central and primary, while "not being angry, obedience to the teacher, purification, eating moderately and vigilance" to desirable and secondary.