Jīmūtavāhana (c. 12th century) was an Indian
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
scholar and writer of legal and religious treatises on
Vaishnavism
Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
of early medieval period. He was the earliest writer on ''
smriti
''Smriti'' ( sa, स्मृति, IAST: '), literally "that which is remembered" are a body of Hindu texts usually attributed to an author, traditionally written down, in contrast to Śrutis (the Vedic literature) considered authorless, that ...
'' (law) from
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 ...
whose texts are extant.
Major works
Jīmūtavāhana is known for his three major works. These three works are probably the parts of a bigger comprehensive digest, the ''Dharma Ratna''.
His ''Kalaviveka'' is an exhaustive analysis of the auspicious ''kala'' (timings) for the performance of religious rites and ceremonies. This text also contains discussions on solar and lunar months. Based on the evidence of the last of a number of exact dates examined in this text, it is assumed that the text was written soon after March, 1093.
His or or has dealt with (judicial procedure). The text is divided into five sections, ''Vyvaharamukha'', ''Bhashapada'', ''Uttarapada'', ''Kriyapada'' and ''Nirnayapada''.
His magnum opus ''
Dāyabhāga
The ''Dāyabhāga'' is a Hindu law treatise written by Jīmūtavāhana which primarily focuses on inheritance procedure. The ''Dāyabhāga'' was the strongest authority in Modern British Indian courts in the Bengal region of India, although this h ...
'' has dealt with the laws of inheritance based on ''
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 ...
''. In Bengal (and post-independence West Bengal and Tripura) and Assam,
Dāyabhāga
The ''Dāyabhāga'' is a Hindu law treatise written by Jīmūtavāhana which primarily focuses on inheritance procedure. The ''Dāyabhāga'' was the strongest authority in Modern British Indian courts in the Bengal region of India, although this h ...
was the principal guide for laws on inheritance till the enactment of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. This treatise differs in some aspects from
Mitakshara, which was prevalent in other parts of India based on
Yajnavalkya Smrti. The right of a widow without any male issue to inherit the properties of her deceased husband is recognized in ''
Dāyabhāga
The ''Dāyabhāga'' is a Hindu law treatise written by Jīmūtavāhana which primarily focuses on inheritance procedure. The ''Dāyabhāga'' was the strongest authority in Modern British Indian courts in the Bengal region of India, although this h ...
''.
''Dayabhagatippani'' of Srinath Acharyachudamani (c. 16th century), ''Dayabhagatika'' of
Raghunandan Bhattacharya (16th century) and ''Dayabhagatika'' of Srikrishna Tarkalankar (18th century) are the notable commentaries written on ''Dayabhaga'' during the late medieval period.
See also
*
Dāyabhāga
The ''Dāyabhāga'' is a Hindu law treatise written by Jīmūtavāhana which primarily focuses on inheritance procedure. The ''Dāyabhāga'' was the strongest authority in Modern British Indian courts in the Bengal region of India, although this h ...
References
*Roy, Niharranjan. ''Bangalir Itihas: Adiparba'' (in Bengali), Dey’s Publishing, Kolkata, 1993, , pp. 615–616.
* Rocher, Ludo. ''Jīmūtavāhana's Dāyabhāga'', Oxford Univ Press, 2002,
{{authority control
Hindu law
Sanskrit scholars from Bengal