Manava Dharmashastra 2.102

2.102

ayamatrādhikāra ucyate | enaḥ pratiṣiddhasevanājjāto doṣastaṃ vyapohatyapanudati | niśi bhavaṃ naiśaṃ rātrau kṛtam | evaṃ malamenaḥśabdena samānārtham | na ca sarvasya divākṛtasya naiśikasya caitatprāyaścittam | tathā sati kṛcchrādyupadeśaprāyaścittaviśeṣo'narthakaḥ syāt | "arke cenmadhu vindeta kimarthaṃ parvataṃ vrajediti” laukikātpravādāt | kiṃ tarhi yadanucitaṃ kṛtaṃ aśakyaparihāramanāmnātaprāyaścittaviśelaghīya enastadapaiti | yathā suptasya hastacāraśayyāparivartanādinā sūkṣmaprāṇivadho, guhyāṅgakaṇḍūkarṣaṇaṃ 'nākasmātspṛśediti' pratiṣiddham, lālāsravādinā cāśucitvamatatkālakṛtaśaucasyāvasthāne pratiṣiddhasevanādi | etadabhiprāyamevedaṃ “sarvadaivāśucirjñeyaḥ sandhyopāsanavarjitaḥ” iti | na cānityatāpattiḥ, evaṃvidhasya doṣasya sarvadābhāvāt | divā ca pathi gacchannanyastrīmukhasandhānasampannaṃ tajjanyacittavikāronmīlane kuddhāślīlasambhāṣaṇam | tatsandhyāvidhī apanaudataḥ |

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):
The present verse describes the motive for the act in question.

‘Sin’—the guilt born of having recourse to such acts as are prohibited.

‘Removes’—sets aside.

‘Of the night’—that which comes about—is committed—during the night.

The term ‘malam’ is synoymous with ‘enaḥ.’

This cannot mean that the act under question is sufficient expiation for all the sin that one may have committed during the night and day. For if it were so, then there would be no point in the prescribing of the Kṛcchra and other specific expiating rites; for the simple reason that—‘when one can find honey in a frequented place why should he go to the mountain?’—as the well known saying has it. All that the present verse means is that the act removes just those minor sins that one might commit by chance (not habitually), or which could not be avoided,—for which no specially expiatory rites arc prescribed. For instance, when a sleeping man throws about his arms or turns upon his sides, he might cause the death of small insects; or ho may, during sleep, happen to scratch his private parts, the unnecessary touching of which has been prohibited; or the uncleanliness that might be caused by the flowing out of saliva, which is not cleaned immediately; or the having recourse to prohibited things at improper times. It is in view of such minor sins that we have the assertion that ‘the man who does not offer the Twilight-Prayers should at all times be regarded as unclean.