History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v4.c63.14

v4.c63.14

A *vyavahārapada*³²⁸ means 'the topic or subject matter of litigation or dispute'. It is the same thing as '*vivādapada*' which word occurs also in Kauṭ. (III. 16 p. 191 and IV. 7 p. 218) and in Nār. (dattāpradānika 1, abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā 1). Manu VIII. 8 shows that '*pada*' means '*sthāna*'. Yāj. II. 5 defines it as 'If a person, who is set at naught by others in a manner that is opposed to the rules of smṛti and to good usage or conventions, informs the king (or his judge), that is a *vyavahārapada*'. From very ancient times eighteen vyavahārapadas have been enumerated. The underlying idea is that most of the disputes between men can be classified under 18 heads. Even Manu (VIII. 8) was conscious of the fact that the enumeration of 18 vyavahārapadas was a matter of a convenient arrangement and that the number 18 did not embrace all disputes whatever but only the largest number of disputes and the most important among them. Medhātithi and Kullūka make this position quite clear.³²⁹