Agnipurana 253
English (machine translation) 253
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Contents
253.1
Agni said: / A debtor who has received wealth must be made to pay back his creditors in order, / having paid first to a brāhmaṇa, and after him to the king.
253.1.p1
[page 413]
253.2
The debtor must be made by the king to pay a tenth part of what has been recovered; / and a creditor who has received his money must be made to pay five percent.
253.3
One of lower caste who is impoverished should be made to perform labour for the debt; / but an impoverished brāhmaṇa must be made to pay gradually, according to his income.
253.4
If a creditor does not accept his own money which has been lent when it is offered, / it should be deposited with an arbitrator; from that time on, it does not accrue interest.
253.5
The heir must be made to pay the debt, and likewise the taker of the widow; / the son whose wealth has not passed to another [must pay], or the heirs of a sonless man.
253.6
Any debt that has been contracted by undivided [coparceners] for the sake of the family / the heirs must pay, if the head of the family has died or gone abroad.
253.7
A woman need not pay what was contracted by her husband and son, nor a father what was contracted by his son, / except if contracted for the sake of the family; nor a husband what was contracted by his wife.
253.8
The husband of women who are cowherds, vintners, actors, washermen, or hunters / must pay their debt, because their livelihood depends upon them.
253.9
A debt agreed to by a woman must be paid, or what was contracted together with her husband, / or a debt contracted by herself; another woman ought not to pay [it].
253.10
When the father has gone abroad, has died, or is overwhelmed by distress, / the debt must be paid by his sons and grandsons; in case of denial, [it must be] proved by witnesses.
253.11
A debt incurred for liquor, lust, or gambling, the remainder of a fine or toll, / or an idle gift—the son here need not pay such a paternal debt.
253.12
Among brothers, or husband and wife, or father and son,
253.12.p1
[note]
253.12.p2
[note on variant readings] / [page 414]
253.12_2
suretyship, a debt, or [giving] evidence cannot be undertaken while undivided.
253.13
Suretyship is ordained for appearance, for confidence, and for payment; / but if the pledge is false, even the sons of the false [surety] must be made to pay.
253.14
Where a surety for appearance or one for confidence has died, / his sons need not pay the money; those who stood for payment must pay.
253.15
If there are many sureties, they must pay the money in their own shares; / when they are bound under joint liability, [it is recovered] according to the creditor's pleasure.
253.16
Where a surety has been compelled to pay money publicly to the creditor, / twice as much must be repaid to him by the debtor.
253.17
Female cattle [are repaid] with their offspring; grain is twofold; / cloth is declared fourfold, and liquids eightfold.
253.18
A pledge is forfeited when the debt has doubled, if it is not redeemed; / a pledge made for a fixed time is forfeited when the time arrives; a pledge whose usufruct is enjoyed is not forfeited.
253.19
There is no interest on a pledge to be preserved if it is used, nor if it provides service, once proved; / if lost or ruined, it must be replaced, except if caused by fate or the king.
253.20
When the pledge has been established by possession, if, even while being guarded, it has deteriorated / into worthlessness, another must be pledged, or the creditor must receive his money.
253.21
He should make the debtor pay the money secured by a pledge of good character with interest; / an earnest-money deposit must be made to be repaid twofold.
253.22
A pledge must be released when [the debtor] is present; otherwise there will be a fine; / in the absence of the creditor, one may deposit the money with an arbitrator and recover the pledge,
253.23
or it may remain there interest-free, valued at the price of that time;
253.23.p1
[note]
253.23.p2
[note on variant readings] / [page 415]
253.23_2
or [the creditor] may sell it with witnesses, even without the debtor.
253.24
When indeed the debt has become doubled while on pledge, / then the pledge must be released, when double the amount has entered [the creditor's hands] through its yield.
253.25
When one entrusts property into another's hand without declaring its contents while in distress, / that is an open deposit (aupanidhika); it must be returned in the very same state.
253.26
He cannot be made to pay if it was stolen by the king, an act of god, or thieves; / but if after it was demanded he does not give it, he must be made to pay [it] and an equal fine.
253.27
If he uses it for his livelihood of his own accord, he must be fined and made to pay it back with profit; / this same rule applies to borrowed goods, goods deposited for safety, and sealed deposits.
253.27.p1
Thus in the great Agni Purāṇa, the two hundred and fifty-third chapter, entitled Judicial Procedure.
253.27.p3
Now, the two hundred and fifty-fourth chapter:
253.27.p4
Discourse on Divine Proofs.
Other recensions (1)
- Agnipurāṇa (Nag Publishers edition, Delhi) — Sanskrit
Linked texts (1)
- Agnipurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit