History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c93.371.3

v7.c93.371.3

that in former ages (Kṛta and Tretā) people practised *tapas* and were endowed with knowledge while in the Dvāpara and Kali ages men have lost the powers possessed by men of the past ages and therefore *niyoga* is forbidden. Yājñavalkya himself proposes (II. 21) that when two smṛtis are in conflict 'reasoning based on the practices of elders was of greater force'. Nārada has a similar rule.²⁰⁶¹ Another device was to declare that the nature of Dharma differed in each of the four yugas and that in the kṛta, tretā, dvāpara and kali ages the Dharmas respectively promulgated by Manu, Gautama, Śaṅkha-Likhita and Parāśara were to prevail.²⁰⁶² This also could not solve all difficulties, since medieval commentators and digests found that even what was allowed by Parāśara (such as permitting a brāhmaṇa to eat food at the²⁰⁶³ house of such sūdras as his dāsa, cowherd, barber, family friend and a cultivator of his land for a half share of the crops, permission for a married woman to re-marry in certain circumstances), came to be disapproved of or condemned by people. Another expedient in cases of conflict among smṛtis was provided by Gobhila viz. where there is a conflict of (smṛti) passages, the opinion of the majority should prevail.²⁰⁶⁴