Smriti and the Evolution of Hindu Law: From Manusmriti to Mitakshara and Dayabhaga

27th May, 2025 - 8:50 am Categories: Legal Case 0 Comments

As society went on to develop further, various thought paradigms for legal differentiations cropped up, each making interpretations of Smriti principles through regional customary demands. Among the most important schools of Hindu law produced during this time were the two: Mitakshara and Dayabhaga. They became influential in forming regional legal traditions, especially concerning property and inheritance. The south-based Mitakshara school supported the rights of a joint family and followed Manusmriti but interpreted it in terms of regional application. The Dayabhaga school, primarily followed in Bengal, adopted a distinct approach to inheritance where individual rights were given more importance than joint family claims. These schools have provided a dual yet harmonious framework for the application of Hindu law across different regions in India and have explained how ancient legal principles could be made amenable to different local contexts.

History of such schools describes one of the most important dimensions of the development of Smriti: uniformity with flexibility. All regions followed the same basic Smritis but differed in their formulations and applications to adapt to regional peculiarities and customs. Flexibility helped the Smritis to remain applicable to every kind of social setting and ensured pluralistic legal tradition within a single cultural framework. Thus, while Hindu law was based on exactly the same core values and texts, it also exhibited remarkable sensitivity to local requirements, thereby staying valid all through the ages.

Another characteristic feature of Smriti literature is the hierarchical character of various texts that emerged. Though Manusmriti was the supreme authority, other Smritis like Yajnavalkya Smriti and Narada Smriti attained prominence in different areas of the law. This hierarchy helped reconcile the variations among texts by developing a canon of preference anchored in the relative authority of each Smriti. This means, despite Yajnavalkya Smriti accepting Manusmriti’s principles, it charted a more flexible approach to law and included some provisions for evolving social milieus. This was supplemented by the Narada Smriti, which is particularly rich in content regarding legal procedures and commercial law. It, therefore, assisted in forming a codified body of law that was applicable in specific domains. The hierarchical arrangement thus enabled the coexistence of more than one Smritis, creating a comprehensive legal framework that could address most issues under a varied spectrum without undermining the generic principles of Hindu jurisprudence.

The principle of “temporal proximity” further assisted in making Smriti law adaptable. In conflicts between older and newer texts, preference was often given to the more recent text. It is this principle that makes Smriti literature in tandem with the society evolve with new values and practices within a legal framework while maintaining the continuation of tradition. The value of temporal proximity towards this objective became a systemic way of social progress because law codes would state an early understanding about the need for legal codes to express current realities. For example, if an opinion in the Yajnavalkya Smriti conflicted with that of Manusmriti, the former could be followed because it was more recent and generally better suited to the situation in consideration.

Commentary literature, or Nibandhas, was also a part of the Smriti tradition, which afforded a detailed exposition of the Smriti texts. Many influential scholars authored this body of work, often in commentaries that explained, clarified, and sometimes reconciled apparent contradictions in Smriti texts. Among the best known are Vijnaneshwara, whose Mitakshara commented on Smriti, and Jimutavahana, whose Dayabhaga commented on Smriti. Both these commentaries form the basis of explaining the principles in the matter of Smriti for its practical application. They explained abstract concepts in the law and showed how these ancient texts can actually be used to solve contemporary and everyday problems.

Commentary traditions well illustrate also another facet of Hindu law, namely its dynamic character. The commentators have made Smriti adaptable to changing times by explaining the principles in new contexts and have played an important role in the life-giving process of Smriti tradition. They addressed issues arising from the changes in social, economic, and cultural conditions but ensured that ancient legal principles had the capability of providing for the needs of the people. In this aspect, they demonstrated that the Smriti tradition was dynamic enough; that is to say, Hindu law was not a stagnant canon of rules and a living body of jurisprudence capable of growing with time.

Thus, it is actually an in-depth journey through ancient Indian legal history, showing the adaptability and resilience of Hindu law. Ranging from Manusmriti up to hierarchical structures formed by other Smritis, this tradition imposed principles on social and legal life throughout the centuries. This rise of schools like Mitakshara and Dayabhaga showed these principles could be modified according to the regions, yet they managed to keep themselves glued to the main ethos. They achieved this through temporal nearness and via commentators who actually made Smritis suit the changing conditions of society, validating the existence of the universal constitution. Such phenomenal development in the Smriti tradition has encouraged it to remain as an essential depository of ancient Indian wisdom building the legal and social texture of India generation after generation and a testament to human laws’ adaptability.

MAIN PRINCIPLES AND JURIDICAL CONCEPTS IN IMPORTANT SMRITIS

Some of these basic concepts enshrined in the Smritis reveal a sophisticated understanding of law and societal organization. The concept of Dharma is at the centre of Smriti jurisprudence, which encompasses not only legal duties but also moral and social obligations, bringing into this approach towards law something unique to Hindu legal tradition that differed from other older legal traditions.

Property law in Smritis is such a complex structure of possession and inheritance. Institutions of joint family property are critically described in the writings especially in Yajnavalkya Smriti, which gradually became parts of modern Hindu law. Divergence of ancestral and self-acquired property, rights of different members of the family, and rules of partition are one of those sophisticated understandings of the property relationship in ancient India.

The Smritis deal with eight types of marriage, and there are different jurisprudential and social implications attached to each of the above types. The texts have dealt absolutely with the provisions of the marriage ceremony, rights, and liabilities of spouses, and conditions for a valid marriage. However, some forms of marriage under Smritis, which were discussed above, are now no more valid. However, the general principles related to consent, capacity, and prohibited relationships are still applicable in Hindu law with respect to modern marriage.

The law of inheritance as revealed in Smritis exhibits remarkable sophistication in dealing with succession matters. The same has been treated differently for men and women, distinctions between tali, and various other provisions created to take care of different situations. These elaborate provisions of Smritis gave birth to the concept of coparcenary which, again, was modified by modern times.

Author: Kaustubh Kumar, in case of any queries please contact/write back to us via email to chhavi@khuranaandkhurana.com or at Khurana & Khurana, Advocates and IP Attorney.

REFERENCES

Journal Articles:

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5. Parashar, Archana, “Gender Inequality and Religious Personal Laws in India” 14 Brown J. World Aff. 103 (2008)