History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c72.255
History of Dharmaśāstra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c72.255
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v5.c72.255.1
The Smṛtyarthasāra (p. 94) states the order of *adhikārins* as follows; a competent son is the first adhikārī for offering piṇḍa; in default of a son, husband, wife and co-wives; in default of these, the brother's son, the brother, daughter-in-law, daughter, daughter's son, any other *sagotra*, a *sapiṇḍa*, a fellow-student, a friend, a pupil, the teacher, any relative and anyone who takes the wealth of the deceased may offer *piṇḍa*. The father is not competent to perform śrāddha rites for his (deceased) son, an elder brother for his younger brother; these may even do so through affection but they cannot perform the sapiṇḍīkaraṇa. Parents may offer piṇḍa to unmarried daughters, and even to married daughters in the absence of another (proper) giver. The daughter's son and the maternal grandfather may offer to each other; the daughter's son to maternal grand-mother; the son-in-law and father-in-law to each other, the daughter-in-law to her mother-in-law, brothers among themselves, teacher and pupil to each other. For the order of śrāddhādhikārins, according to the Dāyabhāga, vide H. of Dh vol. III p. 739. The Nirṇayasindhu⁵⁸⁵ says that in the Kali age only two kinds of sons viz. aurasa and dattaka are allowed (out of the twelve mentioned by Yāj. II. 128-132) and the order of śrāddhādhikārins is given by it as follows: aurasa son, then grandson, then great grandson, then adopted son. If there are many sons then the eldest alone is the adhikārin;
v5.c72.255.2
if the eldest be not present or is *patita*, then the son next to the eldest is the adhikārin (and not the youngest). If the sons are divided from each other, then all the rites up to sapiṇḍīkaraṇa are to be performed by the eldest alone who may make the other sons contribute to the expenses, but the yearly śrāddha may be performed by each son separately. If the sons (of the deceased) are not divided, then all rites including the yearly śrāddha also are to be performed by the eldest alone. When the eldest son not being present, the younger one or the youngest performs the cremation, he should perform all rites up to and including the sixteen śrāddhas, but not sapiṇḍīkaraṇa and he should wait for one year for the arrival of the eldest. If the eldest comes to know of the death within one year, he alone should perform the sapiṇḍīkaraṇa. If the eldest son does not come even at the end of one year, then even the youngest may perform sapiṇḍīkaraṇa. If before the expiry of one year the youngest son or some one other than a son performs the monthly, anumāsika, sapiṇḍīkaraṇa śrāddhas, then the eldest son or a son should again perform these. If there is a grandson who has his upanayana performed and there be a son whose upanayana is not performed it is the latter who is a preferable adhikārin, provided he is either three years old or has the cūḍā ceremony performed as stated by Sumantu⁵⁸⁶. Manu II.
v5.c72.255.3
172 states that a boy should not repeat the Veda before the performance of Upanayana except the mantras that are required for the śrāddha of his deceased father or mother. Such a son may perform with Vedic mantras the funeral rites on the death of his father or mother and their yearly and other śrāddhas. If he is unable to repeat the Vedic mantras, he may simply perform the cremation with mantras and the rest may be got performed through another person. In the same way he should make only the declaration (*saṅkalpa*) of *darśaśrāddha* and *mahālaya* and the rest may be performed by some one else. An adopted son becomes an *adhikārin* for funeral rites and the like only if the upanayana has been performed. If there be no lineal descendant up to a great-grandson and also no adopted son, then the wife should perform with mantras the funeral rites and yearly and other śrāddhas but if she is unable to repeat the Vedic mantras, then the same rules apply as in the case of an *anupanīta* son. Even if the husband be not divided from his brother, or he be re-united with his brother, it is the wife and not the brother who is to be preferred as having *adhikāra* for śrāddha, though the brother gets all the property.
v5.c72.255.4
Though some of the latest works on dharmaśāstra like the Nirṇayasindhu⁵⁸⁷ and Dharmasindhu (bhāryayāpi samantrakam-eva-aurdhvadehīkādikaṁ kāryam) allowed the wife to perform rites after death with vedic mantras, several works such as the Mārkaṇḍeya-purāṇa and the Brahmapurāṇa did not allow the wife to repeat Vedic mantras (vide note 583 above). In default of the wife, the daughter has the right to perform rites after death if the deceased was separated and not re-united. But if the deceased was joint then his full brother would be the proper adhikārin after the wife. Among daughters the married one is preferred, though an unmarried daughter is a preferable heir. In default of daughters, the daughter's son is an *adhikārin*; then a brother, then a brother's son. Among brothers a full brother is preferred to a half brother and if there be both elder and younger brothers, then the younger is preferred for performing rites after death (in order to make as near an approach as possible to the relation of father and son). If there be no younger brother, then even an elder one could be *adhikārin*; in default of full brother, a half brother. Some held that even if the deceased was separate from his brother and had a daughter or daughter's son as heir the funeral rites were to be performed by the brother (and not by the daughter or her son), since a sagotra is to be preferred as an adhikārin to one of a different gotra.
v5.c72.255.5
If there be no brother, then a full brother's son was to be preferred, then the half brother's son, then father, then mother, then daughter-in-law, then sister. In case of there being full sisters, half sisters, younger and older sisters the same rules apply as in the case of brothers; in default of any sister, sister's son. If there be many sister's sons, the rules as to brothers would apply. Then come paternal uncle, his son, other sapiṇḍas;⁵⁸⁸ then samānodakas, then other persons born in the same family. In default of these, the sapiṇḍas of the mother, such as the maternal grand-father, maternal uncle, maternal uncle's son in that order; in default of the sapiṇḍas of the mother, the sons of the deceased's paternal or maternal aunt; in default of these the *pitṛ-bandhus* such as the sons of the father's father's sister, of the father's mother's sister, of father's maternal uncle; then the *mātṛ-bandhus* such as mother's father's sisters's son; in default of these, a disciple (of the deceased); in default of disciple, son-in-law of the deceased (or the father-in-law of the deceased); in default of these, a friend; in default, any one who takes the wealth of a brāhmaṇa (deceased); if the deceased was other than a brāhmaṇa the king (who took the wealth of everyone dying heirless, except the wealth of a brāhmaṇa) who arranges for funeral rites through another.