Hindu Law and Custom (Recht und Sitte) c10.121

c10.121

The ordeals by rice-grains and plough-share should be administered to thieves, the latter specially to thieves of cows (Nār. 1, 337; Bṛh. 10, 11, 29). The ordeal by sacred libation, as the easiest of them all, is also appropriate for the removal of suspicion, particularly in the case of imagined misappropriation on the occasion of a partition, or for gaining confidence even in some proposed transaction (Pitam. 2, 9f.; Bṛh. 25, 98; Vi. 9, 16). As it is not dangerous, the ordeal by balance shall be preferably administered to Brahmans, women, children or to old, blind, lame and sick persons; on the other hand, the poison ordeal as the most dangerous one shall never be applied to such persons (Vi. 9, 23, 27; Y. 2, 98 etc.). A similar spirit of moderation is in evidence in the rule that he who suffers from a disease of the biles shall not be subjected to the poison ordeal, he who suffers from a disease of the mouth shall not be subjected to the rice ordeal, and that the blind and the asthmatic shall not be subjected to fire and water ordeals respectively. On the other hand, it would however be considered an undue favour to prescribe fire ordeal for a smith and water ordeal for a fisherman. The ordeal by sacred libation cannot be administered to an unbeliever or evil-doer or in a period of universal pestilence and scarcity (Vi. 9, 25-32; Nār. 1, 255, 334f.; Quot. 6, 6-11 etc.).