Hindu Law and Custom (Recht und Sitte) c7.759

c7.759

The patriarch who was at the head of the family, could not, as a rule, be compelled to divide the property and so until his death the number of the members of the family living with him on the common property would be steadily increasing, particularly as every male descendant brought home a daughter-in-law even in his tender years, the daughters even after marriage remained in the paternal house till they were 13 years of age and over and above the legitimate sons there were adoptive and illegitimate sons of every kind and besides the legitimate wives there were also the concubines.