History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c71.s1.313

v5.c71.s1.313

It is now proper to turn to the penances prescribed for individual sins of different types (grave sins, minor sins and the like). It may be noted that the smṛtis contain numerous prāyaścittas for the same sin and that it is often difficult to reconcile all the dicta The commentaries and digests such as the Mit and the Prāyaścitta-viveka therefore try to assign to each penance an appropriate provision, looking to all the circumstances noted above (i.e they are bent on 'viṣayavyavasthā').206a In this work, it is not necessary to set out in detail the numerous penances for numberless lapses that are prescribed in the several smṛtis and digests. In the Śabdakalpadruma (part III) there is an analysis from the Prāyaścitta-viveka alone of the several lapses, the penances for them, the number of cows to be donated as substitutes, the monetary equivalents when even cows cannot be donated and the *dakṣiṇā* in each case, which occupy pages 321 to 364. Setting out all these lapses together with the penances for them would only be a matter of academic interest and of no practical value, as almost all the prāyaścittas have become antiquated and are hardly ever performed now except in the form of gifts of cows or money to brāhmaṇas, pilgrimages and recitation of Vedic mantras or *japa* of the names of some favourite deity such as Viṣṇu or Śiva. Therefore only a few typical sins alone will be taken for treatment here and later on a list of all penances with brief descriptions will be furnished.