The Vīramitrodaya is a commentary on

Yajnavalkya Smriti Yajnavalkya or Yagyavalkya ( sa, याज्ञवल्क्य, ) is a Hindu Vedic sage figuring in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (c. 700 BCE)., Quote: "Yajnavalkya, a Vedic sage, taught..."Ben-Ami Scharfstein (1998), ''A comparative histor ...

and a Hindu law digest written by Mitramiśra which covers nearly every aspect of ''

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 ...

''. The text also includes

Vyavahāra Vyavahāra ( sa, व्यवहार) is an important concept of Hindu law denoting legal procedure. The term is analyzed by Kātyāyana as follows: "Vi means ‘various,’ ava means ‘doubt,’ hara is ‘removal’; legal procedure is calle ...

as well, as the name would suggest. The work was done at the behest of Vīrasimha, the king of

Orchha Orchha is a town, near city of Niwari in Niwari district of Madhya Pradesh state, India. The town was established by rajput ruler Rudra Pratap Singh some time after 1501, as the seat of an eponymous former princely state of covering parts of c ...

, from 1605-1627. The privy Council in the Benares School of Hindu Law considered the text to be a work of high authority. Mitamiśra's text includes hundreds of citations in which he analyzes and critiques numerous arguments, particularly those made by members of the Bengal school.

Text

The text is divided into sections, called ''prakāśas'' which include:

''Vyavahāra''

* The ''Vyavahāra-Prakāśa'' is considered to be the largest ''nibandha'', or digest written on the ''

'' * The text is divided into four parts:

1.) Composition of the Court

* Constitution of the ''sabhā'' * The Appointment of judges * Conflict with the ''

'' * Various grades of the courts * Burden and means of proof

2.) Modes of Proof

* Witnesses * Documents

3.) 18 Titles of Law

# the first is the non-payment of debts # deposits # sale without ownership # partnerships # delivery and non-delivery of gifts # non-payment of wages # breach of contract # cancellation of a sale or purchase # disputes between owners and herdsman # the Law on boundary disputes # verbal assault # physical assault # theft # violence # sexual crimes against women # Law concerning husband and wife # partition of inheritance # gambling and bettingOlivelle, Patrick, The Law Code of Manu, Oxford University Press, 2004, p. 123

4.) Matters for the king

''Paribhāśā''

''Samskāra''

*Astrological matters relating to marriage

''Rājanti''

*The qualifications of ministers *Preparing for battle *Routine for kings *Time and procedure for coronation

''Āhnika''

* The daily duties to be done when rising and before going to bed.

''Pūjā''

*Those entitled to perform worship of the gods * Proper flowers and clothing for worship

''Tirtha''

* Discuss those able to undertake a pilgrimage * Times for a pilgrimage * Ceremonial acts to be done for men, such as bathing, fasting and shaving.

''Laksana''

* The human body * Qualities needed for the queen, ministers, astrologers, and physicians.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Viramitrodaya Hindu law Sanskrit texts