History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v2.c19.64

v2.c19.64

The stories of king Kārtavīrya and Viśvāmitra who respectively carried off the cows of Jamadagni and Vasiṣṭha narrated in the Mahābhārata (Śānti 49 for Kārtavīrya; Ādi. 175 for Viśvāmitra) and the Purāṇas show how several kings were high-handed and treated brāhmaṇas with no respect whatever. It appears that even the wives of brāhmaṇas are not quite safe at the hands of kings. 'The chamberlain (kṣatṛ) of that king in whose kingdom the wife of a brāhmaṇa is thoughtlessly put under restraint does not march in front of cooking vessels with a golden ornament on his neck'⁹⁹ (Atharva V. 17. 14). The somewhat mystical hymn (Ṛg. X. 109) where 'brahmajāyā' figures prominently probably hints at the same fact (viz. the kidnapping of the wives of brāhmaṇas).