Hindu law, as a historical term, refers to the code of laws applied to
Hindus
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
,
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
s,
Jain
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
s and
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
s in
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
.
[ Hindu law, in modern scholarship, also refers to the legal theory, jurisprudence and philosophical reflections on the nature of law discovered in ancient and medieval era Indian texts.][ It is one of the oldest known jurisprudence theories in the world and began three thousand years ago whose original sources were the Hindu texts.][
Hindu tradition, in its surviving ancient texts, does not universally express the law in the canonical sense of '' ius'' or of '']lex
Lex or LEX may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lex'', a daily featured column in the ''Financial Times''
Games
* Lex, the mascot of the word-forming puzzle video game ''Bookworm''
* Lex, the protagonist of the word-forming puzzle video ga ...
''.[ The ancient term in Indian texts is ]Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
, which means more than a code of law, though collections of legal maxims were compiled into works such as the Nāradasmṛti.[ The term "Hindu law" is a colonial construction, and emerged after the colonial rule arrived in ]Indian Subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
, and when in 1772 it was decided by British colonial officials, that European common law system would not be implemented in India, that Hindus of India would be ruled under their "Hindu law" and Muslims of India would be ruled under "Muslim law" (Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
).[Ludo Rocher (1978), Hindu Conceptions of Law, Hastings Law Journal, Volume 29, pages 1283-1297]
The substance of Hindu law implemented by the British was derived from a Dharmaśāstra
''Dharmaśāstra'' ( sa, धर्मशास्त्र) is a genre of Sanskrit texts on law and conduct, and refers to the treatises (shastras, śāstras) on dharma. Unlike Dharmasūtra which are based upon Vedas, these texts are mainly b ...
named Manusmriti
The ''Manusmṛiti'' ( sa, मनुस्मृति), also known as the ''Mānava-Dharmaśāstra'' or Laws of Manu, is one of the many legal texts and constitution among the many ' of Hinduism. In ancient India, the sages often wrote their ...
, one of the many treatises (śāstra
''Shastra'' (, IAST: , ) is a Sanskrit word that means "precept, rules, manual, compendium, book or treatise" in a general sense.Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on 'zAstra'' The w ...
) on ''Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
''.[ The British, however, mistook the Dharmaśāstra as codes of law and failed to recognise that these Sanskrit texts were not used as statements of positive law until the British colonial officials chose to do so.][Donald Davis (2010), The Spirit of Hindu Law, Cambridge University Press, , page 13-16, 166-179] Rather, Dharmaśāstra contained jurisprudence commentary, i.e., a theoretical reflection upon practical law, but not a statement of the law of the land as such. Scholars have also questioned the authenticity and the corruption in the Manusmriti manuscript used to derive the colonial era Hindu law.[
In colonial history context, the construction and implementation of Hindu law and Islamic law was an attempt at "legal pluralism" during the British colonial era, where people in the same region were subjected to different civil and criminal laws based on the religion of the plaintiff and defendant.][ Legal scholars state that this divided the Indian society, and that Indian law and politics have ever since vacillated between "legal pluralism – the notion that religion is the basic unit of society and different religions must have different legal rights and obligations" and "legal universalism – the notion that individuals are the basic unit of society and all citizens must have uniform legal rights and obligations".][
]
Terminology and nomenclature
In Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
, law is discussed as a subset of ''dharma'' which signifies behaviors that are considered in accord with ''rta
RTA may refer to:
Media
* Radio and Television Arts, program at Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
* Radio Television Afghanistan
** RTA TV, an Afghan channel
* Radiodiffusion Télévision Algérienne
* Real time attack, a game speedrun
Scienc ...
'', the order that makes life and the universe possible, and includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and ‘'right way of living'’. The concept of ''Dharma'' includes Hindu law.[Robert Lingat, "Les Quatre Pieds du Procés," ''Journal Asiatique'' 250 (1962), 490–1; and Richard W. Lariviere, "Law and Religion in India," in ''Law, Morality, and Religion: Global Perspectives''. ed. Alan Watson (Berkeley: University of California, 1996); K.V. Rangaswami Aiyangar, ''Rājadharma'' (Adyar: Adyar Library, 1941), 23;]
In ancient texts of Hinduism, the concept of dharma incorporates the principles of law, order, harmony, and truth. It is explained as the necessary law of life and equated to ''satya
''Satya'' (Sanskrit: सत्य; IAST: ''satya)'' is a Sanskrit word loosely translated as truth, essence. A. A. Macdonell, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Asian Educational Services, , pp. 330–331 It also refers to a virtue in Indian relig ...
'' (Sanskrit: सत्यं, truth),[ in hymn 1.4.14 of Brhadaranyaka Upanishad, as follows:
]
Related terms
In ancient Hindu jurisprudence texts, a number of Sanskrit words refer to aspects of law. Some of these include ''Niyama'' (Sanskrit: नियम, rule), ''Nyasa'' (न्याय, justice), ''Yuktata'' (युक्तता, justice), ''Samya'' (साम्य, equality and impartiality in law), ''Vidhi'' (विधि, precept or rule), ''Vyavastha'' (व्यवस्था, regulation), ''Sambhasa'' (सम्भाषा, contract or mutual engagement), ''Prasamvida-patra'' (प्रसंविदा-पत्र, written contract), ''Vivadayati'' (विवादयति, litigate or dispute), ''Adhivakta'' (अधिवक्ता, lawyer), ''Nyayavadi'' (न्यायवादी, male lawyer), ''Nyayavadini'' (न्यायवादिनी, female lawyer), ''Nyayadata'' (न्यायदाता, judge), ''Danda'' (दण्ड, punishment, penalty or fine), among others.[
]
Classical Hindu law
John Mayne, in 1910, wrote that the classical Hindu law has the oldest pedigree of any known system of jurisprudence
Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...
.[John Dawson Mayne (1910), , Stevens and Hynes, Harvard Law Library Series, see Preface section] Mayne noted that while being ancient, the conflicting texts on almost every question presents a great difficulty in deciding what the classical Hindu law was. As more literature emerges, and is translated or interpreted, Mayne noted that the conflict between the texts on every matter of law has multiplied, and that there is a lack of consensus between the Western legal scholars resident in India.[
Ludo Rocher states that Hindu tradition does not express law in the sense of ''ius'' nor of ''lex''.][ The term "Hindu law" is a colonial construction, and emerged when the colonial rule arrived in South Asia, and when in 1772 it was decided by British colonial officials in consultation with Mughal rulers, that European common law system would not be implemented in India, that Hindus of India would be ruled under their "Hindu law" and Muslims of India would be ruled under sharia (Muslim law).] However, Hindu law was neither mentioned, nor in use, nor codified, during the 600 years of Islamic rule of India. An attempt was made to find any old surviving Sanskrit text that mentioned elements of law, and this is how Western editors and translators arrived at the equation that "dharma shastra equals lawbook, code or Institute", states Rocher.[
Scholars such as Derrett, Menski and others have repeatedly asked whether and what evidence there is that the Dharmasastras were the actual legal authority before and during the Islamic rule in India. They have also questioned whether the Dharmasastras contain "precepts" or "recommendations", that is whether the jurisprudence mentioned in Dharmasastras was actually ever used in disputes in Indian society. Early scholars during the British colonial rule such as John Mayne suggested that it is probable that Dharma-smriti texts reflect the "practical administration of law", at least before the arrival of Islam in India.][Axel Michaels (2010), Hinduism and Law: An Introduction (Editors: Lubin and Davis), Cambridge University Press, , Chapter 3 and pages 58-73 with footnotes] However, most later scholars state that Dharma texts of Hinduism are "purely or mostly concerned with moral and religious norms which have some but not a very close relationship to legal practice".[ A few scholars have suggested that the Dharma-related Smritis such as Manusmriti, Naradasmriti and Parashara Smriti do not embody the Hindu law but are commentaries and scholarly notes on more ancient authoritative legal texts that have been lost or yet to be found.][
Classical Hindu law, states Donald Davis, "represents one of the least known, yet most sophisticated traditions of legal theory and jurisprudence in world history. Hindu jurisprudential texts contain elaborate and careful philosophical reflections on the nature of law and religion. The nature of Hindu law as a tradition has been subject to some debate and some misunderstanding both within and especially outside of specialist circles."]
In South India, temples were intimately involved in the administration of law.
Sources of Dharma
''Śruti'' have been considered as the authority in the Hindu Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
. The ''Smritis'', such as Manusmriti, Naradasmriti and Parashara Smriti, contribute to the exposition of the Hindu Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
but are considered less authoritative than ''Śruti
''Shruti'' ( sa, श्रुति, , ) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" and refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism. Manusmriti states: ''Śrutistu vedo vijñeyaḥ'' ( ...
s'' (the Vedic corpus that includes early Upanishads). The root texts of ancient Hindu jurisprudence and law are the ''Dharma-sūtras''. These express that the Shruti, Smriti and Achara are sources of jurisprudence and law.[ The precedence of these sources is declared in the opening verses of each of the known, surviving Dharma-sūtras. For example,][
The ''Smritis'', such as Manusmriti, Naradasmriti, Yajnavalkya Smrti and Parashara Smriti, expanded this definition, as follows,
As a source of ''Dharma'', only three of the four types of texts in the Vedas have behavioral precepts. Lingat notes (abridged),][
Bilimoria states the role of ''Shruti'' in Hindu Dharma has been inspired by "the belief in a higher natural cosmic order (''Rta'' succeeded later by the concept ''Dharma'') that regulates the universe and provides the basis for its growth, flourishing and sustenance – be that of the gods, human beings, animals and eco-formations".
Levinson states that the role of ''Shruti'' and ''Smriti'' in Hindu law is as a source of guidance, and its tradition cultivates the principle that "the facts and circumstances of any particular case determine what is good or bad".][ The later Hindu texts include fourfold sources of ''Dharma'', states Levinson, which include ''Atmanastushti'' (satisfaction of one's conscience), ''Sadachara'' (local norms of virtuous individuals), ''Smriti'' and ''Sruti''.][Devid Levinson (2002), Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment, Volume 1, SAGE Publications, , page 829]
Cited texts
Unlike the Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
& Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
, the Vedas
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
don't discuss about societal matters directly. Classical Hindu law is derived from the following sources
= ''Dharmasutra''
=
As a part of the Kalpa
Kalevan Pallo (KalPa) is a professional ice hockey team which competes in the Finnish Liiga. They play in Kuopio, Finland at the Niiralan monttu, Olvi Areena.
Team history
Established in 1929 as ''Sortavalan Palloseura'' in Sortavala, the club r ...
texts within the Vedanga
The Vedanga ( sa, वेदाङ्ग ', "limbs of the Veda") are six auxiliary disciplines of Hinduism that developed in ancient times and have been connected with the study of the Vedas:James Lochtefeld (2002), "Vedanga" in The Illustrated Enc ...
corpus of literature, they deal with personal conduct (alongside the Grihya Sutras) & social regulations in accordance to the principles of the Vedas
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
. The texts are
= ''Dharmashastra''
=
These texts, whose authorships are traditionally attributed to the Vedic sages, elaborate the topics discussed in the ''dharmasutra''s.
''Dharmashastra''s available in printed format are
#Angirasa smriti
#Atri smriti
#Apastambha smriti
#Aushanasa smriti
#Brihaspati smriti
#Brihat Parashara smriti
#Daksha smriti
#Devala smriti
#Gobhila smriti
#Gautama smriti
#Harita smriti
#Katyayana smriti
#Kashyapa smriti
#Laghu Atri smriti
#Laghu Harita smriti
#Laghu Vishnu smriti
#Laghu Shankha smriti
#Likhita smriti
#Manu smriti
#Narada smriti
#Parashara smriti
#Prajapati smriti
#Samvarta smriti
#Shankha smriti
#Shankha-Likhita smriti
#Shatatapa smriti
#Vasistha smriti
#Vyasa smriti
#Vishnu smriti
#Vriddha Atreya smriti
#Yajnavalkya smriti
#Yama smriti
''Dharmashastra''s whose existence is known through citations by commentators & ''nibandhakara''s but didn't survive in complete manuscript form till now are
#Budha smriti
#Chhagaleya smriti
#Cyavana smriti
#Jamadagni smriti
#Jabala smriti
#Marichi smriti
#Prachetas smriti
#Pitamaha smriti
#Paithinasi smriti
#Rishyasringa smriti
#Sumantu smriti
#Shaunaka smriti
#Vishwamitra smriti
= Commentaries
=
Commentaries on the above-mentioned texts composed by erudite scholars discuss on their practical applications & execution of the statements in the ''dharmasutra''s & ''dharmashastra''s .
= ''Nibandha''s
=
Digests & compendiums composed by various scholars attempt to resolve difference of opinion on similar topics among the various texts & authors.
Regional variations
In the ''Collector of Madhura Vs Mottoo Ramalinga Sathupathy'' case (1869), the Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
observed that there was no uniformity in the observance of Hindu law (as described in the ''dharmashastra''s, commentaries & digests composed by various Hindu scholars) by Hindus throughout the realm
A realm is a community or territory over which a sovereign rules. The term is commonly used to describe a monarchical or dynastic state. A realm may also be a subdivision within an empire, if it has its own monarch, e.g. the German Empire.
Etym ...
. The court observed that
* On the basis of adherence to property law, Hindus are divided into 2 schools –
#the Dayabhaga school, observed by Hindus in Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
& Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
,
#the Mitakshara school observed by all other Hindu communities of the Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
.
* The Mitakshara school is subdivided into
#The Benaras school which cites the '' Viramitrodaya'' of Mitra Mishra, ''Nirnayasindhu'' & ''Vivadatandava'' of Kamalakara Bhatta, ''Dattakamimasa'' of Nanda Pandita, ''Subodhini'' & ''Balambhatti'' commentaries of the ''Mitakshara'' as authority and is observed by Hindus of United Provinces, Central Provinces
The Central Provinces was a province of British India. It comprised British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered parts of present-day Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states. Its capital was Nagpur. ...
& Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
.
#The Mithila school which cites ''Vivadachintamani'' of Vachaspati Mishra, ''Vivadaratnakara'' of Chandeshvara Thakura, ''Vivadachandra'' of Misaru Mishra, ''Smrityarthasara'' of Sridhara & ''Madanaparijata'' of Vishveshvara Bhatta as authority & is observed by Hindus of Mithila Mithila may refer to:
Places
* Mithilā, a synonym for the ancient Videha state
** Mithilā (ancient city), the ancient capital city of Videha
* Mithila (region), a cultural region (historical and contemporary), now divided between India and Nepal
...
#The Dravida school which cites ''Smritichandrika'' of Devanna Bhatta, ''Parasharamadhaviya'' ( Madhavacharya's commentary on ''Parashara smriti''), ''Sarasvativilasa'' of Prataparudra Deva
Prataparudra Deva (Odia: ଗଜପତି ପ୍ରତାପରୁଦ୍ର ଦେବ) was the third Gajapati emperor of Odisha from the Suryavamsa Gajapati Empire started by his grandfather Kapilendra Deva Routaraya. He ruled from the year 149 ...
, ''Viramitrodaya'', ''Vyavaharanirnaya'' of Varadaraja, ''Dattakachandrika'' of Devanna Bhatta, ''Nirnayasindhu'', ''Vivadatandava'', ''Dayavibhaga'' of Kamalakara Bhatta & ''Keshavavaijayanti'' (Nanda Pandita's commentary on the ''Vishnu dharmasutra'') as authority & is observed by Hindus of Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including the ...
.
#The Maratha School which cites ''Vyavaharamayukha'' of Nilakantha Bhatta, ''Smritikaustubha'' of Ananta Deva, ''Viramitrodaya'', ''Nirnayasindhu'', ''Vivadatandava'' & ''Parasharamadhaviya'' as authority and is observed by Hindus of Bombay Presidency
The Bombay Presidency or Bombay Province, also called Bombay and Sind (1843–1936), was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India, with its capital in the city that came up over the seven islands of Bombay. The first mainl ...
.
#The Punjab school which cites ''Nirnayasindhu'', ''Viramitrodaya'' & local customs (later documented as ''Riwaz-i-Aam'') as authority and is observed by Hindus of Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
. Kashmiri Hindus additionally cite the ''Apararkachandrika'' (commentary on the ''Yajnavalkya smriti'' by Aparaditya II, Silahara
The Shilahara Kingdom (IAST: Śilāhāra; also Sinhara, Shailahara, Shrilara, and Silara) was a royal dynasty that established itself in northern and southern Konkan in 8th century CE, present-day Mumbai and Southern Maharashtra (Kolhapur) du ...
king of North Konkan
The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterland ...
)
* The Dayabhaga school cites ''Viramitrodaya'' & ''Dattakachandrika'' as authority. Bengali Hindus
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Benga ...
additionally cite the ''Smrititattva'' of Raghunandana
Raghunandana (c. 16th century CE) was an Indian Sanskrit scholar from the Bengal region. His writings include 28 Smriti digests on Hindu law and a commentary on '' Dayabhaga''.
Life
Raghunandana was born at Nabadwip, to Harihara Bhattacharya. ...
& works of Bengali pandits like Halayudha, Bhavadeva Bhatta & Shulapani while Assamese Hindus cite the works of Pitambara Siddhantavagisha & other pandits from the Kamarupa
Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 11 ...
like Damodara Mishra & Nilambaracharya.
Lawyers in classical Hindu Law
While texts on ancient Hindu law have not survived, texts that confirm the existence of the institution of lawyers in ancient India have.[ The Sanskrit text ''Vivadarnavasetu'', in Chapter 3, for example, states,
]
Punishment in classical Hindu Law
Ancient texts of the Hindu tradition formulate and articulate punishment.[ These texts from the last 2500 years, states Terence Day,][Terence Day (1982), The Conception of Punishment in Early Indian Literature, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, , pages 18-22] imply or recognize key elements in their theories of fair punishment: (1) the texts set a standard of Right, in order to define a violation that warrants punishment; (2) they discuss the possibility of a violation thereby defining a wrongdoing; (3) they discuss a theory of responsibility and assignability of a wrongdoing; (4) the texts discuss degrees of guilt, and therewith the form and severity of punishment must match the transgression; (5) they discuss approved and authorized forms of punishments and how these may be properly administered.[ The goal of punishment, in Hindu law, has been retributive and reformative. Hindu law, states Sarkar, developed the theory of punishment from its foundational theory of what it believed was necessary for the prosperity of the individual and a collection of individuals, of state and non-state.
There are wide variations in the statement of crime and associated punishment in different texts. Some texts for example discuss punishment for crimes such as murder, without mentioning the gender, class or caste of the plaintiff or defendant, while some discuss and differentiate the crime based on gender, class or caste. It is unclear, states Terence Day, whether these were part of the original, because the stylistic, structural and substantive evidence such as inconsistencies between versions of different manuscripts of the same text suggest changes and corruption of the original texts.][Terence Day (1982), The Conception of Punishment in Early Indian Literature, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, , pages 22-24]
The harshest of the all punishments were exclusively applied in case of Shudras while Brahmins
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru o ...
were to receive little punishment for the same crime. Brahmins
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru o ...
were also exempted from receiving corporal punishment and the death sentence
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
.
Outside India
Ancient Hindu legal texts and traditions arrived in parts of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
(Cambodia, Java, Bali, Malaysia, Thailand, and Burma) as trade grew and as part of a larger culture sharing in ancient Asia. In each of these regions, Hindu law fused with local norms and practices, giving rise to legal texts (Āgamas such as the Kuṭāra-Mānawa in Java, and the Buddhist-influenced Dhammasattas/Dhammathats of Burma, such as the Wareru Dhammathat, and Thailand) as well as legal records embodied (as in India) in stone and copper-plate inscriptions.
Anglo-Hindu law
As East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
obtained political and administrative powers, in parts of India, in the late 18th century, it was faced with various state responsibilities such as legislative and judiciary functions.[Tomothy Lubin et al (2010), Hinduism and Law: An Introduction (Editors: Lubin and Davis), Cambridge University Press, , Chapter 1] The East India Company desired a means to establish and maintain the rule of law
The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...
, and property rights, in a stable political environment, to expedite trade, and with minimal expensive military engagement.[ To this end the Company pursued a path of least resistance, relying upon local intermediaries that were mostly Muslims and some Hindus in various Indian states.][ The British exercised power by avoiding interference and adapting to local law practices, as explained by the local intermediaries. The colonial state thus sustained what were essentially pre-colonial religious and political law and conflicts, well into the late nineteenth century.] The colonial policy on the system of personal laws for India, for example, was expressed by Governor-General Hastings in 1772 as follows,
For Muslims of India, the code of Muslim law was readily available in al-Hidaya and Fatawa-i Alamgiri written under sponsorship of Aurangzeb
Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
. For Hindus and other non-Muslims such as Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis and Tribal people, this information was unavailable.[ The British colonial officials, for practice, attempted to extract from the Dharmaśāstra the English categories of law and religion for the purposes of colonial administration.
The early period of Anglo-Hindu Law (1772–1828) was structured along the lines of Muslim law practice. It included the extracted portions of law from one Dharmaśāstra by British colonial government appointed scholars (especially Jones, Henry Thomas Colebrooke, Sutherland, and Borrodaile) in a manner similar to Islamic al-Hidaya and Fatawa-i Alamgiri.][Michael Anderson (1995), Institutions and Ideologies: A SOAS South Asia Reader (Studies in Asian Topics, Editors: David Arnold, Peter Robb), Routledge, , Chapter 10] It also included the use of court pandit
A Pandit ( sa, पण्डित, paṇḍit; hi, पंडित; also spelled Pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt.) is a man with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge whether it is shashtra (Holy Books) or shastra (Wea ...
s in British courts to aid British judges in interpreting Shastras just like Qadi
A qāḍī ( ar, قاضي, Qāḍī; otherwise transliterated as qazi, cadi, kadi, or kazi) is the magistrate or judge of a '' sharīʿa'' court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and mino ...
s (Maulavis) for interpreting the Islamic law.[
The arrival of William Bentinck as the Governor-General of British India in 1828, marked a shift towards universal civil code, whose administration emphasized same law for all human beings, individualism and equal treatment to help liberate, empower and end social practices among Hindus and Muslims of India that had received much public coverage in Britain through the publications of Christian missionaries and individuals such as ]Thomas Macaulay
Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 184 ...
.[
Governor-General Dalhousie, in 1848, extended this trend and stated his policy that the law must "treat all natives much the same manner". Over time, between 1828 and 1855, a series of British parliamentary acts were passed to revise the Anglo-Hindu and Anglo-Muslim laws, such as those relating to the right to religious conversion, widow remarriage, and right to create wills for inheritance.][ In 1832, the British colonial government abolished accepting religious ]fatwa
A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...
as a source of law.[ In 1835, the British began creating a criminal code that would replace the existing criminal code which was a complex conflicting mixture of laws derived from Muslim texts (Quran) and Hindu texts (Shastras), and this common criminal code was ready by 1855.][ These changes were welcomed by Hindu law reform movement, but considered abrogating religion-defined rules within the Muslim law. The changes triggered discontent, call for jihad and religious war, and became partly responsible for the 1857 Indian revolt against the British rule.
In 1864, after the East India Company was dissolved and India became a formal part of the ]British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
, Anglo-Hindu law entered into a second phase (1864–1947), one in which British colonial courts in India relied less on the Muslim Qadis and Hindu Pandit
A Pandit ( sa, पण्डित, paṇḍit; hi, पंडित; also spelled Pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt.) is a man with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge whether it is shashtra (Holy Books) or shastra (Wea ...
s for determining the respective religious laws, and relied more on a written law.[ A universal criminal code in India, that did not discriminate between people based on their religion, was adopted for the first time in 1864.][ It was expanded to include a universal procedural and commercial code by 1882, which overruled pre-existing Anglo-Hindu and Anglo-Muslim laws.][AK Giri (Editors: Pietro Costa and Danilo Zolo, 2007), The Rule of Law History: Theory and Criticism, Springer, , pages 596-597] However, the personal laws for Muslims remained sharia-based, while the Anglo-Hindu law was enacted independent of any text on matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and the Anglo-Hindu law covered all Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists in India. In 1872, the British crown enacted the Indian Christian Marriage Act which covered marriage, divorce and alimony laws for Indian Christians of all denominations except the Roman Catholics.
The development of legal pluralism, that is separate law based on individual's religion, was controversial in India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
from the very start.
Legislation introduced by the British Government was a powerful tool in implementing reforms within the Hindu society. Some important legislations were
# Ban on the practice of ''sati'' in Hindu society
# Legal recognition to remarriage of Hindu widows & a childless widow's right to inherit her deceased husband's property
#Abolition of slavery in Hindu society by the Indian Penal Code
The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is the official criminal code of India. It is a comprehensive code intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law. The code was drafted on the recommendations of first law commission of India established in ...
in 1861
#Legal recognition to dissolution of a Hindu marriage in case of the husband converting to Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
or Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
by The Native Converts' Marriage Dissolution Act (1866)
# Ban on the practice of female infanticide observed by certain Hindu communities in northern India
# Introduction of the concept of 'age of consent' in Hindu society & criminalizing consummation of child-marriages
#Legal recognition to right of a Hindu man to pass down his property to anybody via legal declaration (last will) apart from the heirs identified in religious laws (like children & relatives) by the Indian Succession Act (1925).
# Legal recognition to the right of a diseased/handicapped Hindu to inherit property
# Legal abolition of child-marriage in Hindu society
#Legal recognition to the right of Dalits for entering Hindu temples by The Madras Temple Entry Authorisation and Indemnity Act (1939)
#Legal recognition to the right of a Hindu married woman to live apart from her husband by The Hindu Married Women's Right to Separate Residence and Maintenance Act (1944)
#Legal abolition of bigamy in Hindu society by The Bombay (Prevention of Hindu Bigamy) Marriage Act (1946)
These laws had generated widespread protests & condemnation from the orthodox elements of the Hindu society. The British government failed to strictly implement laws against child-marriages & consummation of child marriages due to fears of the Hindu society rising up in open revolt against them.
Modern Hindu law
After the independence of India from the colonial rule of Britain in 1947, India adopted a new constitution in 1950. Most of the legal code from the colonial era continued as the law of the new nation, including the personal laws contained in Anglo-Hindu law for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, the Anglo-Christian law for Christians, and the Anglo-Muslim law for Muslims. Article 44 of the 1950 Indian constitution mandates a uniform civil code, eliminating all religion-based civil laws including Hindu law, Christian law and Muslim law throughout the territory of India.[ While Hindu law has since been amended to be independent of ancient religious texts, Article 44 of the Indian constitution has remained largely ignored in matters of Muslim law by successive Indian governments since 1950.]
An amendment to the constitution (42nd Amendment, 1976) formally inserted the word ''secular'' as a feature of the Indian republic. However, unlike the Western concept of secularism
Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on Secularity, secular, Naturalism (philosophy), naturalistic considerations.
Secularism is most commonly defined as the Separation of church and state, separation of relig ...
which separates religion and state, the concept of secularism in India means acceptance of religious law
Religious law includes ethical and moral codes taught by religious traditions. Different religious systems hold sacred law in a greater or lesser degree of importance to their belief systems, with some being explicitly antinomian whereas others ...
s as binding on the state, and equal participation of state in different religions.[Donald E Smith (2011), India as a Secular State, Princeton University Press, ][Gerald James Larson (2001), Religion and Personal Law in Secular India: A Call to Judgment, Indiana University Press, ]
Since the early 1950s, India has debated whether legal pluralism should be replaced with legal universalism and a uniform civil code that does not differentiate between people based on their religion. This debate remains unresolved. The Quran-based Indian Muslim Personal Law (Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
t) Application Act of 1937 remains the law of the land of modern India for Indian Muslims, while the Parliamentary, non-religious uniform civil code passed in the mid-1950s applies to Indians who are Hindus (along with Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs and Parsees), as well as to Indian Christians and Jews.[
Legislation introduced by the ]Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
continued to be a tool for inducing reforms within the Hindu society. Some important legislations were
#Legal abolition of caste & sex-based discrimination by Article 15 of the Constitution of India
The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ri ...
#Legal abolition of untouchability
Untouchability is a form of social institution that legitimises and enforces practices that are discriminatory, humiliating, exclusionary and exploitative against people belonging to certain social groups. Although comparable forms of discrimin ...
by Article 17 of the Constitution of India
The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ri ...
# Legal recognition to civil marriage in Hindu society & inter-faith marriage in India
# Legal recognition to inter-caste marriage, abolition of polygamy & introduction of the concept of divorce in Hindu society
#Mandatory enforcement of the protection of civil rights of SC and ST people by The Untouchability (Offenses) Act (1955)
# Legal recognition to Hindu women as legal guardians of their children
# Legal recognition to adoption of Hindu children outside the family, community & caste of the adopter
# Legal recognition to the right of Hindu women for inheriting paternal property & that of all Hindus to inherit property matrilineally
# Criminalisation of hate-crimes against SC and ST people
# Legal abolition of the practice of a Hindu's obligation to repay ancestral debt & recognition to equal rights of both sons & daughters for inheriting ancestral property
# Legal recognition to right of all Hindus irrespective of sex & caste to receive compulsory education
Acceptance to overseas travelling (see Kalapani) was a reformation within the Hindu society implemented without enacting any legislature.
The Hindu code bills
The Hindu code bills were several laws passed in the 1950s that aimed to codify and reform Hindu personal law in India, abolishing religious law in favor of a common law code. Following India's independence in 1947, the Indian National Congress g ...
(stated under nos. 4, 6, 7 and 8) were met with severe criticism & condemnation by Hindu right-wing outfits. In spite of the passage of new laws
The New Laws (Spanish: ''Leyes Nuevas''), also known as the New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians (Spanish: ''Leyes y ordenanzas nuevamente hechas por su Majestad para la gobernación de las Indias y buen t ...
, child marriage
Child marriage is a marriage or similar union, formal or informal, between a child under a certain age – typically 18 years – and an adult or another child.
*
*
*
* The vast majority of child marriages are between a female child and a ma ...
continues to be in vogue among Hindus, especially in rural areas. Calls have also been made to free Hindu temples from government control.
See also
*Comparative law
Comparative law is the study of differences and similarities between the law (legal systems) of different countries. More specifically, it involves the study of the different legal "systems" (or "families") in existence in the world, including the ...
*Dhammasattha
''Dhammasattha'' ("treatise on the law") is the Pali name of a genre of literature found in the Indianized kingdoms of Western mainland Southeast Asia (modern Laos, Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, and Yunnan) principally written in Pali, Burmese, Mon ...
*Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
* Dharmasastra
*Divine law
Divine law is any body of law that is perceived as deriving from a transcendent source, such as the will of God or godsin contrast to man-made law or to secular law. According to Angelos Chaniotis and Rudolph F. Peters, divine laws are typically ...
* Henry Thomas Colebrooke
* Jīmūtavāhana
*List of Hindu empires and dynasties
Indian empires rose to power following the birth of Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism in the Indian subcontinent. The period of the Gupta Empire under Samudragupta is sometimes attributed to as the Golden Age of India.
List
The following list enumera ...
*Religious law
Religious law includes ethical and moral codes taught by religious traditions. Different religious systems hold sacred law in a greater or lesser degree of importance to their belief systems, with some being explicitly antinomian whereas others ...
*Robert Lingat Robert Lingat (Rō̜ Lǣngkā, th, โรแบร์ แลงกาต์, 1892 – 1972), was a French-born academic and legal scholar most known for his masterwork on the practice of classical Hindu Law. He died May 7, 1972, one year befo ...
*Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
*Traditional Chinese law
Traditional Chinese law refers to the laws, regulations, and rules used in China up to 1911, when the last imperial dynasty fell. It has undergone continuous development since at least the 11th century BCE. This legal tradition is distinct from ...
* Wareru Dhammathat
Notes
References
Sources
* Creese, Helen. 2009a. Old Javanese legal traditions in pre-colonial Bali. ''Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde'' 165(2/3): 241–290.
* Creese, Helen. 2009b. "Judicial processes and legal authority in pre-colonial Bali." ''Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde'' 165(4): 515–550.
*
*
* Davis, Jr. Donald R. 1999.
Recovering the Indigenous Legal Traditions of India: Classical Hindu Law in Practice in Late Medieval Kerala
" ''Journal of Indian Philosophy'' 27 (3): 159–213.
* Davis, Jr. Donald R. 2010. ''The Spirit of Hindu Law.'' Cambridge University Press.
* Derrett, J. Duncan M. 1968. ''Religion, Law, and the State in India''. London: Faber & Faber.
* Dhavan, Rajeev. 1992. "Dharmaśāstra and Modern Indian Society: A Preliminary Exploration". ''Journal of the Indian Law Institute'' 34 (4): 515–540.
* Fuller, C.J. 1988. "Hinduism and Scriptural Authority in Modern Indian Law." ''Comparative Studies in Society and History''. 30:2, 225–248.
* Hacker, Paul. 2006
Dharma in Hinduism
''Journal of Indian Philosophy'' 34:5.
* Hooker, M.B., ed. 1986. ''The Laws of South-East Asia. Volume 1: The pre-modern texts''. Singapore: Butterworth & Co.
* Jain, M.P. 1990. ''Outlines of Indian Legal History''. 5th Ed, Nagpur, Wadhwa & Co.
* Jha, Ganganath (trans.)
Manusmṛti with the Manubhāṣyya of Medhātithi
including additional notes, 1920.
* Lariviere, Richard W. 2003. ''The Nāradasmrti''. crit. ed. and trans. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
* Lariviere, Richard W. 1997. "Dharmaśāstra, Custom, 'Real Law,' and 'Apocryphal' Smrtis." In: ''Recht, Staat, und Verwaltung im klassischen Indien'', ed. Bernhard Kölver. Munich: R. Oldenbourg, 97–110.
* Lariviere, Richard W. 1996. "Law and Religion in India." ''Law, Morality, and Religion: Global Perspectives'', ed. Alan Watson. Berkeley: University of California, 75–94.
* Lingat, Robert. 1973. ''The Classical Law of India''. trans. J.D.M. Derrett. Berkeley: Univ of California Press.
* Lubin, Timothy. 2007
"Punishment and Expiation: Overlapping Domains in Brahmanical Law,"
''Indologica Taurinensia'' 33: 93–122.
* Lubin, Timothy. 2010. "Indic Conceptions of Authority." In: ''Hinduism and Law: An Introduction'', ed. T. Lubin, D.R. Davis, Jr., and J.K. Krishnan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 37–53.
* Lubin, Timothy. 2012. "Legal Diglossia: Modeling Discursive Practices in Premodern Indic Law." In: ''Bilingual Discourse and Cross-cultural Fertilisation: Sanskrit and Tamil in Mediaeval India'', ed. Whitney Cox and Vincenzo Vergiani (Paris/Pondicherry: École française d’Extrême-Orient), pp. 411–455.
* Lubin, Timothy, Donald R. Davis, Jr., and Jayanth K. Krishnan, eds. 2010. ''Hinduism and Law: An Introduction''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
* Menski, Werner. 2003. ''Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity''. Delhi: Oxford UP.
* Olivelle, Patrick. 2004a. "The Semantic History of Dharma in the Middle and late Vedic Periods." ''Journal of Indian Philosophy'' 32 (5): 491–511.
* Olivelle, Patrick. 2004b. ''The Law Code of Manu''. New York: Oxford UP.
* Olivelle, Patrick. 2000. ''Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Āpastamba, Gautama, Baudhāyana, and Vasistha''. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
* Rangaswami Aiyangar, K.V. 1941. ''Rājadharma''. Adyar: Adyar Library.
* Rocher, Ludo. 1978.
Hindu Conceptions of Law
, ''Hastings Law Journal'', 29:6, 1283–1305.
* Rocher, Ludo. 1972. "Hindu Law and Religion: Where to draw the line?" ''Malik Ram Felicitation'' Volume, ed. S.A.J. Zaidi. New Delhi, 167–194.
* Rocher, Ludo. 1956. ''Vacaspati Misra: Vyavaharacintamani. A digest on Hindu legal procedure''. Crit. Ed., with Introduction, Annotated Translation, and Appendices. Ghent University.
* Rocher, Rosane. 2010. "The Creation of Anglo-Hindu Law." In: ''Hinduism and Law: An Introduction'', ed. T. Lubin, D.R. Davis, Jr., and J.K. Krishnan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 78–88.
* Solanki, Gopika. 2011. "Adjudication in Religious Family Laws: Cultural Accommodation, Legal Pluralism and Gender Equality in India". Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press.
* Washbrook, David A. 1981.
Law, State, and Agrarian Society in Colonial India
, ''Modern Asian Studies''. 15:3, 649–721.
* Wezler, Albrecht. 2004. "Dharma in the Veda and the Dharmaśāstras". Journal of Indian Philosophy 32 (5): 629–654.
Further reading
* Davis, Jr. Donald R. 2010. ''The Spirit of Hindu Law'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010),
* Lubin, Timothy, Donald R. Davis, Jr., and Jayanth K. Krishnan, eds. ''Hinduism and Law: An Introduction'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010),
;Anglo-Indian law
* J. Duncan M. Derrett, "The Administration of Hindu Law by the British," ''Comparative Studies in Society and History,'' 4.1 (November 1961).
;Modern Hindu law
* N.R. Raghavachariar, ''Hindu Law- Principles and Precedents'', 12th Edition (Madras).
* Satyajeet A. Desai, ''Mulla's Principles of Hindu Law''. 17th ed. 2 Vol. (New Delhi: Butterworths, 1998).
* Paras Diwan and Peeyushi Diwan, ''Modern Hindu Law''. 10th ed. (Allahabad: Allahabad Law Agency, 1995).
* Ranganath Misra, ''Mayne's Treatise on Hindu Law and Usage''. 15th ed. (New Delhi: Bharat Law House, 2003).
* Werner Menski, ''Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity'' (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2003).
* Gopika Solanki, "Adjudication in Religious Family Laws: Cultural Accommodation, Legal Pluralism and Gender equality in India" (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011).
External links
* JDM Derrett (1961)
The administration of Hindu law by the British
Comparative Studies in Society and History, 4(1), pages 10–52
* KLS Rao (1998)
Practitioners of Hindu Law: Ancient and Modern
Fordham Law Review
* William Hay Macnaghten, Rules of Judicial Proceedings and Rules of Evidence in 11th century CE India, Harvard Law School
* Donald Davis Jr (2007)
Hinduism as a Legal Tradition
''Journal of the American Academy of Religion'', Oxford University Press, 75(2), pages 241–267
{{Hindudharma
History of Hinduism
Ancient Indian law
Law of India
Legal codes
Legal history of India
Religious law