History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v1.c6.s18.49.2

v1.c6.s18.49.2

The words ‘śāstra of Manu’ occur only once even in the Anuśāsana, while in about ten places in the same *parvan* we come across only the words ‘Manu said’. If the words ‘Manu said’ in the Anuśāsana indicate in the Anuśāsana a reference to the extant Manusmṛti, there is no cogent reason why the same words in other *parvans* should not be regarded as referring to the Manusmṛti. Besides in the Śāntiparva also we meet with the words ‘Dharmas or rājadharmas of Manu’ and in Ādiparva the word ‘dharma-darśane’ (120. 32). That is obviously a reference to some work of Manu. Hopkins further says (Great Epic of India, p. 21) that all the express citations of Manu in the Anuśāsana, except one, agree very closely with our Manu, while in the other *parvans* the citations agree only up to one-third or one-half. In the first place I demur to the latter statement. The agreements of the citations in the other books are as close and almost as frequent as in the Anuśāsana, e. g. excepting Śānti 21. 12 and 57. 43-45 all citations of Manu therein, referred to above, agree closely with Manu 7. 89, 9. 225-26, 9. 17-19 and 27, 6. 33 and 81, 11. 259-60, 5. 43 and 45 and 48-49. The same is the case with the few citations of Manu in the Vanaparva. Bühler says that the Mahābhārata knew only of the dharmasūtras. But there is positively not one express citation attributed by name to the well-known writers of dharmasūtras, such as Gautama, Baudhāyana, Āpastamba, Vasiṣṭha or Śaṅkha-Likhita.