History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v2.c26.312

v2.c26.312

These passages lead to the inference that in ancient times girls were sometimes purchased for marriage, as was the case in many other countries. But gradually public feeling entirely changed and not only was the sale of daughters by the father or brother severely condemned, but even taking of presents by them was looked down upon. Āp. Dh. S. has already been quoted above (note 1174). The Baud. Dh. S. (I. 11. 20-21)¹¹⁷⁶ quotes two verses 'that woman who is purchased with wealth is not declared to be a legally wedded wife (a *patnī*); she is not (to be associated with the husband) in rites for the gods or manes and Kaśyapa declares that she is a *dāsī* (slave girl). Those, who, blinded by greed, give their daughters in marriage for a fee (*śulka*), are sinners, sellers of their own selves and perpetrators of great sin and they fall into hell &c.' In another place Baud. says 'he who gives his daughter (in marriage) by sale (as a chattel) sells his merit (*puṇya)'. Manu (III. 51, 54-55) strikes¹¹⁷⁷ a tender note about daughters when he says 'a father should not take even the smallest gratuity for his daughter; if he takes a gratuity through greed he becomes the seller of his child; when relations do not take for themselves wealth given by the bridegroom as gratuity (but hand it over to the girl) there is no sale (of the girl); the wealth so taken is for honouring the maidens and is only taken from the bridegroom out of loving concern for them. Fathers, brothers, husbands and brothers-in-law desiring their own welfare should honour women and should give them ornaments'. Manu (IX. 98) further recommends that 'even a śūdra should not take a gratuity when giving his daughter (in marriage), since in taking a gratuity he clandestinely sells his daughter'. Yāj. III. 236, Manu XI. 61 include the sale of children among upapātakas. The Mahābhārata (Anuśāsana 93. 133 and 94. 3) condemns the taking of a gratuity for giving a girl and Anuśāsana (45. 18-19) speaks of *gāthās* of Yama contained in dharma-śāstras 'who-ever sells his son for a price, or gives a daughter for the sake of his own liveli-hood in return for a gratuity, would fall into a most horrible hell called Kālasūtra'. Verse 23 of the same chapter says 'even a stranger cannot be sold, what of one's own children'. Verse 20 (= Manu III. 53) condemns even the ārṣa form of marriage as a sale because a pair of cattle is therein taken by the girl's father. In Kerala or Malabar it is believed that the great teacher Śaṁkara laid down 64 *ācāras*, among which are prohibition of the sale of girls, prohibition of *satī* &c. *Vide* I. A. vol. IV, pp. 255-256 and also Atri v. 389 and Āp. (in verse) IX. 25 (ed. by Jīvānanda). This practice, however, persisted till modern times. For example, in an inscription dated about 1425¹¹⁷⁸ A. D. from Paḍaivīḍu (North Arcot District) we find an agreement signed by the representatives of Karṇāṭa, Tamil, Telugu and Lāṭa (South Gujarat) brāhmaṇas that they would give up taking gold for their daughters and get them married by the simple *kanyādāna* (the Brāhma form) and that the father who accepted gold and the bridegroom who paid gold were to be punished by the king and were to be excommunicated from the brāhmaṇa caste. The Peshwa¹¹⁷⁹ issued orders (about 1800 A. D.) addressed to the brāhmaṇas of Wai (in the Satara District) forbidding them to take money for giving their daughters in marriage and prescribing fines for the father who took money, for the giver and the intermediary who brought about the marriage. Among certain castes and among the śūdras even now money or money's worth is often taken when a daughter is married, but generally the money is meant as a provision for the girl and for defraying the expenses of the girl's father.