Administration and Social Life under Vijayanagar c8.58

c8.58

Nuniz condemns the laws that obtained in the Vijayanagar empire. He says: "No law is possible in the country where these pagodas are, save only the law of the Brahmans, which is that of the priests."34 But such a downright condemnation is quite unfair. Very often the kings had to consult the Brahmans who were the only men who had a correct knowledge of the law of the land. Small criminal cases might have been decided by the kings themselves "without much ado" on the spot. But in cases of a complicated nature they could not but have consulted the Brahmans. This however should not lead us to conclude that law was that of the Brahmans or was that of the priests, for there was nothing wrong in the kings' seeking the advice of the sacerdotal class which had a sound knowledge of law. Surely the remarks of Nuniz are unwarranted.