History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v1.c6.s6.18.1

v1.c6.s6.18.1

The extant Baudhāyanadharmasūtra is certainly later than Gautama, as it mentions Gautama twice by name and as one quotation at least is found in the extant Gautama. Besides Baudhāyana quotes by name several teachers on *dharma*, while Gautama quotes only one, Manu. Baudhāyana is far removed from the times of the Upaniṣads. Baud. (II. 7. 15) quotes a verse which is itself an adaptation of a passage from the Chāndogya-upaniṣad.⁷⁹ He quotes Hārīta. It is uncertain whether the Hārītadharmasūtra, a manuscript of which was discovered by the late Vaman Śāstrī Islampurkar at Nasik, is the one intended. Bühler thought that the work of Baudhāyana was earlier than that of Āpastamba by a century or two. His first reason was that Kāṇva Baudhāyana receives homage in the *tarpaṇa* before Āpastamba and Hiraṇyakeśin and that the same order is observed in the Baudhāyana-gṛhyasūtra. But this reason is far from convincing. It may be conceded that Baudhāyana was regarded as the oldest (or the most authoritative or respectable) of the three schools of the Black Yajurveda. But from this it does not at all follow that the extant *dharma-sūtra* of the Baudhāyanīyas is earlier than that of the Āpastambīyas. For aught we know the sūtra compiled for the school of Baudhāyana may be later than the sūtra manual of the Āpastambīyas. We saw above that orthodox opinion, represented by Kumārila, regards Baudhāyana's work as later than Āpastamba's.