Yajnavalkya-smriti (Vyavaharadhyaya)—Critical study

by Kalita Nabanita | 2017 | 87,413 words

Hinduism Dharmashastra

This page relates ‘Vyavaharapadas Enumerated in the Vyavaharadhyaya’ of the

study on the Vyavaharadhyaya of the Yajnavalkya-smriti: one of the most
prominent Smritis dealing with Dharmashastra (ancient Indian science of law),
dating to the 1st century B.C. The Yajnavalkyasmriti scientifically arranges its
contents in three sections: Acara (proper conduct), Vyavahara (proper law) and
Prayashcitta (expiation). Vyavahara deals with judicial procedure and legal system
such as substantive law and procedural law.

Chapter 2.2a - The Vyavahārapadas Enumerated in the Vyavahārādhyāya

The topic or subject-matter of vyavahāra is known as vyavahārapada. According

to Manu, pada means sthāna.[1] Yājñavalkya states that if a person, oppressed by
one or more persons in a manner, transgressing the law of Smṛtis and established
usages, applies or complains to the king (or any officer in charge of the
administration of justice), then it forms the vyavahārapada.88 Vijñāneśvara
explains the word pada as viṣaya, meaning subject-matter.[2] Aparārka,
commenting on it says, padaṃ sthānaṃ nimittamiti yāvat.[3]

This definition shows three elements necessary to constitute a vyavahārapada, i.e.

1. the breach of a rule prescribed by the Smṛtis or by a customary rule,

2. injuring forcibly or illegally someone from violation of that rule
3. and finally the complaint of the victim.

From this definition, given by Yājñavalkya, it appears that vyavahārpada indicates

and includes those disputes, which are started or brought before the court at the
instances of the parties.[4] The word vivādapada is used by some writers like
Kauṭilya, Nārada, etc., instead of vyavahārpada.[5] Sometimes, Yājñavalkya seems
to have distinguished between vivāda and vyavahāra. Vivāda is used in the sense
of lawsuit or case, whereas vyavahāra is used to denote judicial procedure.[6]
Therefore, vyavahārpada indicates the process of defining and classifying disputes
or offences under different heads, which are known as titles of law.
Thus, Yājñavalkya’s enumeration of vyavahārpadas are found as follows:-

1. ṛṇādāna (non-payment of debts),

2. upanidhi (laws relating to deposits),
3. dāyavibhāga (divisions of property among heirs),
4. sīmāvivāda (disputes regarding boundaries),
5. svāmīpālavivāda (disputes between the owner (of cattle) and their
herdsmen),
6. asvāmivikraya (sale without ownership),
7. dattāpradānika (laws relating to gift and its acceptance),
8. krītānuśaya (rescission of purchase),
9. abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā (laws relating to breach of contract of service),
10.saṃvid-vyatikrama (breach of established usage),
11.vetanādāna (non-payment of wages),
12.dyūtasamāhvaya (gambling and betting),
13.vākpāruṣya (use of abusive words and defamation)
14.daṇḍapāruṣya (assault and violence)
15.sāhasa (robbery and violence)
16.vikrīyāsaṃpradāna (non-delivery after sale),
17.sambhūya-samutthāna (trading by partnership),
18.steya (theft),
19.strīsaṃgrahaṇa (adultery) and
20.prakīrṇaka (miscellaneous rules).

Yājñavalkya in the Vyavahārādhyāya has not followed the eighteen divisions of

vyavahāra as given by Manu. It is necessary to take a glance at the divergence, as
to the order, number and nomenclature of the vyavahārapadas found in
Yājñavalkya with that of in Manu and Nārada. It would throw light on
Yājñavalkya’s thinking and his maturity in treating the titles of law or vyavahāra.

The difference of the vyavahārapadas in Manu, Yājñavalkya and Nārada[8] is

shown below:-
 Yājñavalkyasmṛti
Manusmṛti
1. ṛṇādāna,
1. ṛṇādāna,
2. upanidhi,
2. nikṣepa, Nāradasmṛti
3. dāyavibhāga,
3. asvāmivikraya, 1. ṛṇādāna,
4. sīmāvivāda,
4. sambhūya- 2. nikṣepa/ upanidhi,
5. svāmīpālavivāda,
samutthāna, 3. sambhūya-samutthāna,
6. asvāmivikraya,
5.
7. dattāpradānika,
dattasyānapakarma, 4. dattāpradānika,
8. krītānuśaya,
6. vetanādāna, 5. abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā,
9. abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā,
7. 6. vetanasyānapākarma,
saṃvidvyatikrama, 7. asvāmivikraya,
10. saṃvid-
8. 8. vikrīyāsaṃpradāna,
vyatikrama,
krayavikrayānuśaya, 9. krītānuśaya,
11. vetanādāna,
10.
12. dyūtasamāhvaya,
9. svāmipālavivāda, samayasyānapakarma,
13. vākpāruṣya,
10. sīmāvivāda, 11. sīmāvivāda,
14. daṇḍapāruṣya,
11. daṇḍapāruṣya, 12. strīpuṃsayoga,
15. sāhasa,
12. vākpāruṣya, 13. dāyabhāga,
16.
13. steya, 14. sāhasa,
vikrīyāsaṃpradāna,
14. sāhasa, 15. vākpāruṣya,
17.
15. strīsaṃgrahaṇa, 16. daṇḍapāruṣya,
sambhūyasamutthāna,
16. strīpuṃdharma, 17. dyūtasamāhvaya,
17. vibhāga, 18. prakīrṇaka.
18. steya,
18.
19. strīsaṃgrahaṇa,
dyūtasamāhvaya.
20. prakīrṇaka.

From the arrangement of the vyavahārapadas in Manu, Yājñavalkya and Nārada

which is mentioned above, it can be observed that the number of vyavahārapadas is
highest in the Yājñavalkyasmṛti. In the Vyavahārādhyāya of the Yājñavalkyasmṛti,
the duties of husband and wife (strīpuṃdharma) are not included which is
described as one of the vyavahārapadas in the Manusmṛti and in the Nāradasmṛti.
Yājñavalkya might have considered it as a subject not falling within the proper
domain of vyavahāra or law. Therefore, the same is described under the section
named as the ācārādhyāya.[9]

Yājñavalkya has introduced two more topics viz. (1) abhyupetyāśuśrūṣā and (2)
prakīrṇaka, thereby deviating from the eighteenfold division of vyavahārapadas as
given by Manu. Moreover, the topic krayavikrayānuśaya is divided into two, thus
raising the vyavahārapadas, in all, twenty. Nārada also follows the changes
introduced by Yājñavalkya. He has added the two topics and split one topic into
two like Yājñavalkya. Svāmīpālavivāda has been separately discussed in Manu and
Yājñavalkya, but Nārada deals it as a part of sīmāvivāda. Yājñavalkya has treated
adultery or strīsaṃgrahaṇa as an independent topic, while Nārada discusses it
under the title strīpuṃsayoga. Both Manu and Yājñavalkya have treated
vākpāruṣya and daṇḍapāruṣya as individual title of laws, while Nārada describes
both in one chapter. Nārada includes steya under sāhasa and in the appendix.
These are the main characteristics of vyavahārapadas in Manu, Yājñavalkya and
Nārada, which help to show the contribution and advancement of Yājñavalkya
towards the branches or divisions of law that regulated the rights and liabilities of
parties in a legal proceeding.

The Yājñavalkyasmṛti does not provide or make a clear division of vyavahārapadas

into civil and criminal laws. However, an indication of the distinction between
civil and criminal disputes seems to have appeared among the vyavahārapadas of
the Yājñavalkyasmṛti when the author speaks of arthavivāda.[10] In later stages, the
Smṛti writers have developed the distinction among the eighteen vyavahārapadas
into two groups. Bṛhaspati, as quoted in the Smṛticandrikā, states that there are two
kinds of vyavahāra, those arising out of wealth and those arising out of injury.
Fourteen of them have the origin in wealth and four in injury or violence.[11]

It is to be mentioned here that these classifications of vyavahārapadas should not

be considered as exhaustive. Manu suggests this fact after giving the names of
eighteen vyavahārapadas. He says, “Depending on the eternal law, let him (king)
decide the disputes of men which mostly (bhūyiṣṭhaṃ) contend on the titles just
mentioned.”[12] Commentators like Medhātithi, Kullūka, etc., have made this point
clear that the word ‘most’ i.e. bhūyiṣṭhaṃ used by Manu indicates that there can be
more vyavahārapadas than eighteen. These vyavahārapadas do not include all
disputes but only the largest and most important among them.[13] These
classifications of vyavahārapadas and their rules seem to have been derived
directly from actual life and is in agreement with the necessities of the life of those
days.[14]

Thus, it can be that the vyavahārapadas enumerated by Yājñavalkya in the

Vyavahārādhyāya is having some difference from the traditional number of
eighteen vyavahārapadas as mentioned by Manu, and perhaps the reason is that it
embraced most of the disputes, which arose among people during those periods.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
eṣu sthāneṣu bhūyiṣṭhaṃ vivādaṃ caratāṃ nṛṇām// dharma śāśvatamāśritya
kuryātkāryavinirṇāyam// Manusmṛti,8.888 smṛtyācāravyapetena mārgeṇādharṣitaḥ paraiḥ/
āvedayati cedrājñe vyavahārapadaṃ hi tat// Yājñavalkyasmṛti, 2.5
[2]:
Mitākṣarā,Ibid., 2.5
[3]:
Aparārka, Ibid., 2.5
[4]:
Kane, P.V., Op.cit., Volume 3, page250
[5]:
Arthaśāstra,3.16.72-73; Nāradasmṛti, 4.4.1, 4.5. 1
[6]:
Yājñavalkyasmṛti,2.8, 305
[7]:
teṣāmādyamṛṇādānaṃ nikṣepo’svāmivikrayaḥ/ sambhūya ca samutthānaṃ
dattasyānapakarmaca// vetanasyaiva cādānaṃ saṃvidaśca vyatikramaḥ/ krayavikrayānuśayo
vivādaḥ svāmipālayoḥ// sīmāvivādadharmaśca pāruṣye daṇḍavācike/ steyaṃ ca sāhasaṃ caiva
strīsaṃgrahaṇameva ca// strīpuṃdharmo vibhāgaśca dyūtamāhvaya eva ca/ padānyaṣṭādaśaitāni
vyavahārasthitāviha// Manusmṛti, 8.4-7
[8]:
Nāradasmṛti, 1.16-19
[9]:
Yājñavalkyasmṛti,1.51-89
[10]:
sarveṣvarthavivādeṣu balavatuttarā kriyā/ Ibid.,2.23
[11]:
Smṛticandrikā, Vyavahārakāṇḍa 1, page20
[12]:
eṣu sthāneṣu bhūyiṣṭhaṃ vivādaṃ caratāṃ nṛṇām/ dharmaṃ śāśvatamāśritya
kuryātkāryavinirṇayam// Manusmṛti,8.8

[13]:

bhūyiṣṭhagrahaṇaṃ prādhānyakhyāpanārtham/ anye’pi vyavahārahetavaḥ santi/ Medhātithi on

Manusmṛti, 8.8

[14]:

Jolly,J., Hindu Law and Custom, page35