Hindu Law and Custom (Recht und Sitte) c7.552

c7.552

Āp. 2, 11, 17ff. and Vas. 1, 30 ff. omit the Prājāpatya Vivāha and therefore have altogether only six forms of marriage, the Paiśāca Vivāha too,—the last and the worst form, being omitted by them. In the unpublished Hār. the two forms Prājāpatya and Ārṣa are wanting. In their place however Hār. adds the Kṣātra and the Mānuṣa Vivāhas, so that the number at least remains eight. In Mah. 13, 44, 3 ff. only five forms are enumerated—three good ones, namely Brāhma, by which according to the commentary both Ārṣa and Daiva are to be understood, Kṣātra, i. e., according to the commentary, Prājāpatya, which is appropriate for Brahmans and Kṣatriyas, and Gāndharva, and two bad forms, namely Āsura and Paiśāca or Rākṣasa. In Mah. 13 19, 2 only three forms are mentioned as regular which however are here called Ārṣa, Prājāpatya and Āsura. In other passages of course the traditional eight forms of the Smṛtis are given and even the Svayaṃvara is added to them as the ninth,¹ see above.