Vol. 3 · pages 366–370

353 THE MORALS OF THE HOUSE home, the king shall only fine the merchant five hundred, and the soldier a thousand; VIII. 377. Both of them, however, if they commit that offence with a priestess not only guarded but eminent for good qualities, shall be punished like men of the servile class, or be burned in a fire of dry grass or reeds. VIII. 382. If a merchant converse criminally with a guarded woman of the military, or a soldier with one of the mercantile class, they both deserve the same punishment as in the case of a priestess unguarded. VIII. 383. But a Brahmen, who shall commit dultery with a guarded woman of those two classes, must be fined a thousand panas; and for the like offence with a guarded woman of the servile class, the fine of a soldier or a merchant shall be also one thousand. VIII. 384. For adultery with a woman of the military class, if unguarded, the fine of a merchant is five hundred; but a soldier, for the converse of that offence, must be shaved with urine, or pay the fine just mentioned. VIII. 385. A priest shall pay five hundred panas if he connect himself criminally with an unguarded woman of the military, commercial, or servile class, and a thousand, for such a connexion with a woman of vile mixed breed. Turning to the system of punishment for offences Manu’s Scheme throws an interesting light on the subject. Consider the following ordinances: VIII. 379. Ignominious tonsure is ordained, instead of capital punishment, for an adulterer of the priestly class, where the punishment of other classes may extend to loss of life. VIII. 380. Never shall the king slay a Brahmen, though convicted of all possible crimes; let him banish the offender from his realm, but with all his property secure, and his body unhurt. XI. 127. For killing intentionally a virtuous man of the military class, the penance must a fourth part of that ordained for killing a priest; for killing a Vaisya, only an eighth; for killing a Sudra, who had been constant in discharging his duties, a sixteenth part. XI. 128. But, if a Brahmen kill a Kshatriya without malice, he must, after a full performance of his religious rites, give the priests one bull together with a thousand cows. XI. 129. Or he may perform for three years the penance for slaying a Brahmen, mortifying his organs of sensation and action, letting his hair grow long, and living remote from the town, with the root of a tree for his mansion.

354 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES XI. 130. If he kill without malice a Vaisya, who had a good moral character, he may perform the same penance for one year, or give the priests a hundred cows and a bull. XI. 131. For six months must he perform this whole penance, if without intention he kill a Sudra; or he may give ten white cows and a bull to the priests. VIII. 381. No greater crime is known on earth than slaying a Brahmen; and the king, therefore, must not even form in his mind an idea of killing a priest. VIII. 126. Let the king having considered and ascertained the frequency of a similar offence, the place and time, the ability of the criminal to pay or suffer and the crime itself, cause punishment to fall on those alone, who deserve it. VIII. 124. Manu, son of the Self-existent, has named ten places of punishment, which are appropriate to the three lower classes, but a Brahmen must depart from the realm unhurt in any one of them. VIII. 125. The part of generation, the belly, the tongue, the two hands, and, fifthly, the two feet, the eye, the nose, both ears, the property, and, in a capital case, the whole body. On the point of rights and duties relating to religious Sacraments and Sacrifices the views of Manu are noteworthy: II. 28. By studying the Veda, by religious observances, by oblations to fire, by the ceremony of Traividya, by offering to the Gods and Manes, by the procreation of children, by the five great sacraments, and by solemn sacrifices, this human body is rendered fit for a divine state. III. 69. For the sake of expiating offences committed ignorantly in those places mentioned in order, the five great sacrements were appointed by eminent sages to be performed each day by such as keep house. III. 70. Teaching and studying the scripture is the sacrament of the Veda; offering cakes and water, the sacrament of the Manes; an oblation to fire, the sacrament of the Deities; giving rice or other food to living creatures, the sacrament of spirits; receiving guests with honour, the sacrament of men. III. 71. Whoever omits not those five great ceremonies, if he have ability to perform them, is untained by the sins of the five slaughtering places, even though he constantly reside at home. Such are the ordinances of Manu. Laws are never complete enough to cover every point. There are always moot questions. Manu was conscious of this and provides for such contingencies.

355 THE MORALS OF THE HOUSE XII. 108. If it be asked, how the law shall be ascertained, when particular cases are not comprised under any of the general rules, the answer is this: “That which well instructed Brahmens propound, shall be held incontestible law.” XII. 109. Well instructed Brahmens are they, who can adduce occular proof from the scripture itself, having studied, as the law ordains, the Vedas and their extended branches, or Vedangas, Mimansa, Nyaya, Dharma, Shastra, Puranas. XII. 113. Even the decision of one priest, if more cannot be assembled, who perfectly knows the principles of the Vedas, must be considered as law of the highest authority; not the opinion of myriads, who have no sacred knowledge. The Laws of Manu are eternal. Therefore there is no question of considering how changes could be effected in them. The only question Manu had to consider was the upholding and maintaining the system. Manu has laid down several provisions with this purpose in view. As to the preservation of the Social Code, Manu has made it the duty of the King to uphold and maintain: VIII. 410. The king should order each man of the mercantile class to practice trade, or money lending, or agriculture and attendance on cattle; and each man of the servile class to act in the service of the twice-born. VIII. 418. With vigilant care should the king exert himself in compelling merchants and mechanics to perform their respective duties; for, when such men swerve from their duty, they throw this world into confusion. Failure to maintain was made an offence in the King punishable at Law. VIII. 335. Neither a father, nor a preceptor, nor a friend, nor a mother, nor a wife, nor a son, nor a domestic priest must be left unpunished by the king, if they adhere not with firmness to their duty. VIII. 336. Where another man of lower birth would be fined one pana, the king shall be fined a thousand, and he shall give the fine to the priests, or cast it into the river, this is a sacred rule. Failure to uphold and maintain the system on the part of the king involved a forfeiture of his right to rule. For Manu allows a right to rebel against, such a King. VIII. 348. The twice-born may take arms, when their duty is obstructed by force; and when, in some evil time, a disaster has befallen the twiceborn classes.

356 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES The right of rebellion is given to the three higher classes and not to the Shudra. This is very natural. Because it is only the three upper classes who would benefit by the maintenance of this system. But supposing the Kshatriyas joined the King in destroying the system what is to be done? Manu gives the authority to the Brahmins to punish all and particularly the Kshatriyas. XI. 31. A priest, who well knows the laws, need not complain to the king of any grievious injury; since, even by his own power, he may chastise those, who injure him. XI. 32. His own power, which depends on himself alone, is mightier than the royal power, which depends on other men; by his own might, therefore, may a Brahman coerce his foes. XI. 33. He may use, without hesitation, the powerful charms revealed to Atharvan, and by him to Angiras; for speech is the weapon of a Brahmen; with that he may destroy his oppressors. IX. 320. Of a military man, who raises his arm violently on all occasions against the priestly class, the priest himself shall be the chastiser; since the soldier originally proceeded from the Brahmen.” How can the Brahmins punish the Kshatriyas unless they can take arms? Manu knows this and therefore allows the Brahmins to arm themselves to punish the Kshatriyas. XII. 100. Command of armies, royal authority, power of inflicting punishment, and sovereign dominion over all nations, he only well deserves, who perfectly understands the Veda Shastra. So intent is Manu on the maintenance of the system of Chaturvarna that he did not hesitate to make this fundamental change in it. For to ask a Brahman to take up arms is a fundamental change as compared with the rule that was prevalent before Manu. The prohibition against Brahmin handling arms was very strict. In the Apastamba Dharma Sutras which is prior to Manu the rule is laid down in the following terms: I. 10, 29, 6. A Brahmin shall not take up a weapon in his hand’ though he be only desirous of examining it.” Successor of Manu—Baudhayana—improved upon him, and laid down in his Code of Laws: II. 24, 18. For the protection of the Cows, Brahmins, or in the case of the confusion of Varnas, Brahmins and Vaisyas (also) should take up arms, out of consideration for the Dharma. and maintain the system at any cost. zz

CHAPTER 13 Essays on the Bhagwat Gita: Philosophic Defence of CounterRevolution: Krishna and His Gita The first page of ‘Essays on the Bhagvat Gita’ is autographed by Dr. Ambedkar, Next 42 pages consist of analytical notes on Viral Parva and Uddyog Parva including the table of contents on this subject. The table of contents is printed in the schemes. This file contains two typed copies of an essay entitled ‘Philosophic Defence of Counter-Revolution—Krishna and His Gita’. The last sentence of this essay is left incomplete. The total number of typed pages of this essay is 40 only. The notes on Viral Parva & Udyog Parva are printed in the next chapters.—Editors. What is the place of the Bhagwat Gita in the literature of ancient India? Is it a gospel of the Hindu Religion in the same way as the Bible is of the Christian Religion? The Hindus have come to regard it as their gospel. If it is a gospel, what does it really teach? What is the doctrine it stands for? The variety of answers given to this question by students competent to speak on the subject is really bewildering. Bohtlingk 1 says: “The Gita contains by the side of many high and beautiful thoughts, not only a few weak points; contradictions (which the commentators have tried to pass over as excusable), repetitions, exaggerations, absurdities and loathsome points.” “Hopkins 2 speaks of the Bhagvat Gita as a characteristic work of the Hindu Literature in its sublimity as in its puerilities, in its logic as in its want of it; ..... an ill-assorted cabinet of primitive philosophical opinions.” In his judgment: 1 Quoted by Garbe in his Introduction to the Bhagvat Gita (Indian Antiquary 1918 Supplement). 2. Religion of India pp. 390-400.