Dharmaśāstra

Dharmaśāstra () is a genre of Sanskrit texts and refers to the śāstra, or Indic branch of learning, pertaining to Hindu dharma, religious and legal duty. The voluminous textual corpus of Dharmaśāstra is primarily a product of the Brahmanical tradition in India and represents the elaborate scholastic system of an expert tradition.Patrick Olivelle, Manu's Code of Law: A Critical Edition and Translation of the Mānava-Dharmaśāstra (New York: Oxford UP, 2005), 64. Because of its sophisticated jurisprudence, Dharmaśāstra was taken by early British colonial administrators to be the law of the land for Hindus in India.For a good overview of the British attitudes toward and administration of Hindu law, see J. Duncan M. Derrett, "The Administration of Hindu Law by the British," Comparative Studies in Society and History 4:1 (1961), pp.10-52. Ever since, Dharmaśāstra has been linked with Hindu law, despite the fact that its contents deal as much or more with religious life as with law. In fact, a separation of religion and law within Dharmaśāstra is artificial and has been repeatedly questioned.See, for example, Ludo Rocher, "Hindu Law and Religion: Where to draw the line?" in Malik Ram Felicitation Volume, ed. S.A.J. Zaidi. (New Delhi, 1972), pp.167-194 and Richard W. Lariviere, "Law and Religion in India" in Law, Morality, and Religion: Global Perspectives, ed. Alan Watson (Berkeley: University of California Press), pp.75-94. Others have, however, argued for a distinction of religious and secular law within Dharmaśāstra.On this distinction in relation to punishment, see Timothy Lubin, "Punishment and Expiation: Overlapping Domains in Brahmanical Law," Indologica Taurinensia 33 (2007): 93-122. Dharmaśāstra is important within the Hindu tradition--first, as a source of religious law describing the life of an ideal householder and, second, as symbol of the summation of Hindu knowledge about religion, law, ethics, etc.
"Pandurang Vaman Kane, a great Sanskritist wedded to social reform, continued the earlier tradition of scholarship. His monumental work entitled the "History of the Dharmasastra", published in five volumes in the twentieth century, is an encyclopedia of ancient social laws and customs. This enables us to study the social processes in ancient India."
== Contents of Dharmaśāstra ==
All Dharmaśāstra derives its authority with reference to the Vedas, though few, if any, of the contents of most Dharmaśāstra texts can be directly linked with extant Vedic texts.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India. trans. J.D.M. Derrett (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973), 7-8. Traditionally, Dharmaśāstra has, since the time of the , been divided into three major topics: 1) ācāra, rules pertaining to daily rituals, life-cycle rites, and other duties of four castes or s, 2) vyavahāra, rules pertaining to the procedures for resolving doubts about dharma and rules of substantive law categorized according the standard eighteen titles of Hindu law, and 3) prāyaścitta, rules about expiations and penances for violations of the rules of dharma.
Combining the categorization given in the with a more descriptive catalog of the contents in Dharmaśāstra texts found in P.V. Kane's History of DharmaśāstraP.V. Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra: (ancient and mediaeval, religious and civil law). (Poona: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 1962 - 1975). presents the following list of topics:
===Ācāra===
The category of ācāra comprised rules governing obligations and proper conduct for all the s and āśramas, closely related to Mīmāṃsā laws of proper ritual conduct. It also had the broader meaning of conventions of practice, though still carrying the moral connotation of "right practice," i.e. the authorized practices of good people passed down over generations.
:* Sources of dharma
:* - the rules of the class-based social system, such as the specific duties given to each class and the rules for intermarriage.
:* Consecratory, or life-cycle, rites - rituals that mark important occasions in a persons life such as birth, marriage, and the tying of the yajñopavītam or sacred thread.
:* Āśramas - the four stages of life (the student, the householder, the forest dweller, and the renouncer) and :the duties expected during each.
:* Five great sacrifices - daily sacrifices by Brahmin householders to the Vedas (through teaching), the ancestors (through libations), the gods (through fire offerings), beings (through Bali offerings), and guests (through hospitality).Manu 3.69-70 
:* Rules for food - class-based regulations on what to eat and how to abtain food. 
:* Religious gifts (dāna) - the caste breakdown of who is to accept and who is to give gifts. The Vedas are followed when performing sacrifices or giving gifts, since consequences for improper gift giving and receiving can be severe.
:* Funerary and ancestral rites - Under this topic would fall rules regarding proper rituals surrounding the cremation of the deceased, as well as fulfilling the dvija 's obligations to his deceased ancestors through the performance of the śrāddha ritual.
===Vyavahāra===
Vyavahāra is an important concept of Hindu law denoting legal procedure. Kane defines it as follows: "When the ramifications of right conduct, that are together called dharma and that can be established with efforts (of various kinds such as truthful speech, etc.) have been violated, the dispute (in a court between parties) which springs from what is sought to be proved (such as debt), is said to be vyavahāra."P.V. Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra, Vol. 3, p. 247 The king's personal dharma is inextricably linked to legal proceedings and his dharma is determined the by the merits and demerits of his subjects, therefore it is crucial he bring about justice to injustice. This is why it is stressed in the dharmaśāstras how important it is for the king to be fair and righteous and to appoint learned Brahmins to counsel and help him in legal matters. 
:* Duties of a king - Though this topic covers duties and obligations of the king (rājadharma), and thus would seem to belong under the heading of ācāra, the office of the king was so closely intertwined with punishment and legal procedure that, even from the time of the Āpastamba Dharmasutrā, duties of the king are described along with rules of legal procedure.On this topic, see Olivelle, Patrick. 
Language, Tests, and Society: Explorations in Ancient Indian Culture and Religion. p. 174
:* Legal procedure, (Vyavahāra) - according to the dharmaśāstras includes: court, listening to and assessing witnesses and their testimony, deciding and enforcing punishment, and the pursuit of Justice in the face of Injustice.
:* Eighteen Hindu Titles of Law - make up the grounds for litigation and the performance of the legal process.
===Prāyaścitta===
 
Prāyaścittas are seen as means of removing sin, as they are undertaken to atone for not doing what is ordained or doing something which has been forbidden.Kane, P.V. History of the Dharmaśāstras Vol. 4 p. 58
:* Rules for renunciation - This topic deals with who is allowed to renounce as a sannyasin, from which of the āśramas they may renounce, and what implications their status as ritually dead has on their legal and social standing. 
:* Categories of sin - the classification of different sins into categories depending on gravity of the sin and means of reducing it
:* Expiations and penances, (Prāyaścitta) - means of reducing sin.
:* Karma - a principle in which “cause and effect are as inseparably linked in the moral sphere as assumed in the physical sphere by science. A good action has its reward and a bad action leads to retribution. If the bad actions do not yield their consequences in this life, the soul begins another existence and in the new environment undergoes suffering for its past deeds”.Kane, P.V. History of the Dharmaśāstras Vol. 4 p. 38 
:* Pilgrimage - a journey to a holy place in order obtain merit and expiate sins.
:* Vrata - religious vows or rites that can be used to reduce sin
:* Utsavas - festivals and religious celebrations.
:* Śānti - propitiatory rites undertaken in order to appease the gods when omens have revealed their displeasure.
In addition to these topics, Dharmaśāstra makes extensive use of the tradition of textual hermeneutics known as , which describes in great detail how to interpret the ritual texts of the Vedic corpus. The principles of have been borrowed and reapplied to a broader range of religious and legal phenomena in the Dharmaśāstra.Kisori Lal Sarkar, The Mimansa Rules of Interpretation as applied to Hindu Law. Tagore Law Lectures of 1905 (Calcutta: Thacker, Spink, 1909). Other cognate disciplines important for understanding Dharmaśāstra are grammar and Nyāya.
== Principal Root Texts ==
While there are literally hundreds of Dharmaśāstra texts and many more commentaries and digests, the principal Dharmaśāstra texts include:
===The Dharmasūtras===
The Dharmasūtras are the first four texts of the Dharmasastra tradition and they focus on the idea of dharma, the principal guide by which Hindus strive to live their lives. The Dharmasūtras are written in concise prose, leaving much up to the educated reader to interpret.The most important of these texts are the sutras of Āpastamba, Gautama, Baudhāyana, and Vasiṣṭha.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxi
The Dharmasūtras can be called the guidebooks of dharma as they contain the rules of conduct and rites as practiced in the Vedic schools. They discuss about the duties of people at different stages of life like studenthood, householdership, retirement and renunciation. These stages are also called āśramas. They also discuss about the rites and duties of kings, judicial matters, and even personal practices like the regulations in diet, offenses and expiations, daily oblations, and funerary practices.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxi 
====Literary History====
The Dharmasūtras belong to the literary tradition of the Vedas. The primary Vedas are the Ṛg, Yajur, Sāma, and Atharva. Later, these Vedic branches split into various other branches the reasons of which remain unclear.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxii 
Each branch of the Vedas is further divided into two categories namely the Saṃhitā which is a collection of the foundational texts of the Vedas and the Brāhmaṇa which is prose text that explains the meaning of the liturgy. The Brāhmaṇa was further divided into Āraṇyakas which contain the esoteric sections of the Brāhmaṇas while the others are called the Upaniṣads. The Vedic basis of Dharma literature is found in the Brahmana texts.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxiii 
Towards the end of the vedic period after the middle of the 1st millennium BCE the language of the vedic texts grew very archaic to the people of that time since the texts were centuries removed form the time of their composition. This led to the formation of Vedic Supplements called the vedāṇga which literally means ‘limbs of the Veda’ which consisted of ritual expositions of the Veda, grammar, astronomy, etymology, phonetics, metrics (A2.8.11).Although, these expert traditions developed within the vedic branches, they later became independent.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxiii
====Style of Composition====
The hymns of Ṛgveda are one of the earliest texts composed in verse. The Brāhmaṇa which belongs to the middle vedic period followed by the vedāṇga are composed in prose. The basic texts are composed in an aphoristic style know as the sūtra which literally means thread on which each aphorism is strung like a pearl.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxiv 
The Dharmasūtras are a part of the Kalpasūtras which give a vivid description of the rituals. The Kalpasutras are of three kinds namely the Śrautasūtras which deals with vedic rituals, Gṛhyasūtras which deals with domestic rituals and Dharmasūtras.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p xxiv The Dharmasūtras of Āpastamba, Baudhāyana form a part of larger Kalpasutra.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p xxiv 
The sūtra tradition ended around the beginning of the common era and was followed by the simple verse style called the śloka.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxv The period of epics and Purāṇas were composed in this style. The legal texts of Dharmaśāstras are also composed in sloka style of which Manu smṛti is an earliest representation.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxv
The age of Smṛtis that ended approximately around the second half of the first millennium CE was followed by that of commentaries around the ninth century called nibandha. This legal tradition consisted of commentaries on earlier Dharmasūtras and Smṛtis.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxv
====Authorship and Dates====
Although the four Dharmasūtras carry the names of their authors it is still difficult to determine who these real authors were.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxv The Dharmasūtra of Āpastamba and Baudhayana form a part of the Kalpasūtra but it is not easy to establish whether they were historical authors of these texts or whether these texts were composed within certain institutions attributed to their names.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxv Moreover, Gautama and Vasiṣṭha are ancient sages related to specific vedic schools and therefore it is hard to say whether they were historical authors of these texts.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxvi The issue of authorship is further complicated by the fact that apart from Āpastamba the other Dharmasūtras have various alterations made at later times.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxvi 
There is uncertainty regarding the dates of these documents due to lack of evidence concerning these documents. Although Kane has given some approximate dates but they are just guesses. Gautama 600 to 400, Āpastamba 450 to 350, Baudhāyana 500 to 200, and Vasiṣṭha 300 to100, all BCE.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxi
There is confusion regarding the geographical provenance of these documents. According to Bühler and Kane Āpastamba came from South India probably from Andhra.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxvii Baudhāyana also came from south although evidence regarding this is weaker than that of Āpastamba.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxvii Gautama may have belonged to north-western region to which Pāṇini belonged. This assumption is formed on the basis of certain terms that Gautama used which were also referred to by Pāṇini. Nothing can be said about Vasiṣṭha due to lack of any evidence.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxviii
Scholars have varied opinions about the chronology of these documents. Regarding the age of Āpastamba and Gautama there are opposite conclusions. According to Bühler and Lingat Āpastamba is younger than Baudhāyana. Vasiṣṭha is surely a later text.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxviii 
====Literary structure====
The structure of these Dharmasūtras primarily addresses the Brahmins both in subject matter and the audience.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxiv The Brahmins are the creators and primary consumers of these texts.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxiv The subject matter of Dharmasūtras is dharma. The central focus of these texts is how a Brahmin male should conduct himself during his lifetime.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxiv The text of Āpastamba which is best preserved has a total of 1,364 sūtras out of which 1,206 (88 per cent) are devoted to the Brahmin, whereas only 158 (12 per cent) deals with topics of general nature.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxv The structure of the Dharmasūtras begin with the vedic initiation of a young boy followed by entry into adulthood, marriage and responsibilities of adult life that includes adoption, inheritance, death rituals and ancestral offerings. According to Olivelle, the reason for this kind of structure is to prepare an individual towards the performance of dharma at his initiation, which is viewed as his second birth making him a ‘twice born’ man.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxv 
The structure of Dharmasūtra of Āpastamba is simple and straightforward it begins with the duties of the student and ends with administration of the king. This forms the early structure of the Dharma texts. However, in the Dharmasūtras of Gautama, Baudhāyana and Vasiṣṭha separate sections are devoted to inheritance and penance. Ollivelle suggests that these changes show chronological development.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxvi
====The meaning and sources of Dharma====
Dharma is a concept which is central not only in Hinduism but also in Jainism and Buddhism. This reason gives it a wide scope of interpretation. The fundamental meaning of Dharma is right behavior within ritual, moral or social spears.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxviii Dharma provides the guidelines for proper and productive living in society. 
The source of dharma is in the Vedas. It is believed that like the Vedas, dharma is not of human origin and therefore its existence is intangible. At the same time, dharma operates in practical ways beyond mere meaning. Some dharmas are based in the customs of different social groups for example deśadharma, dharma of different regions, jātidharma, dharma of different social groups, and kuladharma, dharma of different families.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxix The sources of these dharmas are not found in the Vedic texts. This leads to incongruity between theology and nature of dharma and the reality of rules as mentioned in the Dharmasutras.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.xxxix
Āpastamba made an attempt to resolve this issue of dissonance. He placed the importance of Veda second and that of accepted customs of practice first. He also had realistic views about the difficulty of right judgment in dharma due to its indefinable nature. He further gives the theory of the ‘lost Veda’ and says that originally all the rules of dharma were contained in the Vedas, but now parts of those Vedas are lost.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.x1i
The sources of dharma according to Gautama are smṛti, the tradition, acāra, the practice and those who know the Veda. These three sources are commonly referred to in literature.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.x1i He also stated that when there is conflict between smṛti, the tradition and the Vedas the rules of the higher authority apply. On the other hand, according to Baudhāyana smṛti is the second source and śiṣṭa which is practice of cultured people the third source.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.x1i 
However, the Brahmanical tradition still maintains the theological ideal that the Dharmasūtras are based on vedic texts irrespective of whether it is clearly expressed or implied. 
The nature of Dharmasūtras is normative and this reason makes room for a scholarly debate. Some scholars argue that that these sources are unreliable and worthless for historical purposes instead to use archaeological, inscriptional, and art historical materials. Olivelle argues that the dismissal of normative texts is unwise and betrays the spirit of these documents.Patrick Olivelle, Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, (Oxford World Classics, 1999), p.x1ii
 
*Apastamba (450-350 BCE) this Dharmasūtra forms a part of the larger Kalpasūtra of Apastamba. 
*Gautama's Dharmasutra (600-400 BCE) although this Dharmasūtra comes down as an independent treatise it may have once formed a part of the Kalpasūtra.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt Ltd, 1993), p.19 
*Baudhāyana (500-200 BCE) this Dharmasūtra like that of Apastamba also forms a part of the larger Kalpasūtra. 
*Vāsiṣṭha (300-100 BCE) this Dharmasūtra forms an independent treatise and bears no relationship to the Kalpasūtra.
==The Dharmaśāstras==
Written after the Dharmasūtras, these texts use a metered verse and are much more elaborate in their scope. Scholars have postulated that these texts are actually compilations of common gnomic verses of the times, known by the . Such verses were regularly cited as legitimation for legal judgments and advice. At some point these verses were gathered together into complete texts under the name of particular sages. These texts are said to have been edited and updated with additions of verses which had not previously been included.Lariviere 1989: xi However, there is an ongoing debate amongst scholars regarding this matter. Other scholars refute the multiple authorship idea, claiming that the major texts were written by a single author at a particular time in history and remained relatively unedited as time went by.Olivelle, “Literary History”: 25 Regardless, by attributing their authorship to that of well known sages like Nārada, the text takes on a superior authority. The most influential texts are listed below, along with their approximate dates:
*The (200BC-200CE) is the most important and earliest metrical work of the Dharmaśāstra textual tradition of Hinduism.See Flood 1996: 56 and Olivelle 2005.
*The (200-500CE) has been called the "best composed" and "most homogeneous"Lingat 1973: 98 text of the Dharmaśāstra tradition, with its superior vocabulary and level of sophistication.
*The (100BC-400CE) has been called the “juridical text par excellence” and represents the only Dharmaśāstra text which deals solely with juridical matters and ignoring those of righteous conduct and penance.Lariviere 1989: ix 
*The (700-1000CE) is one of the latest books of the Dharmaśāstra tradition in Hinduism and also the only one which does not deal directly with the means of knowing dharma, focusing instead on the bhakti tradition.Olivelle 2007: 149-150.
*The (200-400CE) is a modern reconstruction of a text that has not yet been found and may never have been recorded in written form. The attempt to author this lost Dharmaśāstra has been made based on a gathering of all verses attributed to the sage but pays full tribute to Manu as the ultimate authority on dharma.Olivelle, "Literary History": 20, 26
*The (300-600CE) is another modern reconstruction similar to that of , specializing in vyavahāra.Olivelle, "Literary History": 27
==Commentaries and Digests==
The commentaries (Bhashya) on the Dharmaśāstras were generally devoted to one particular text, or . The commentators saw themselves as interpreters of the texts, concerning themselves with explaining the meaning of the texts they were commenting on.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (New York: Oxford UP, 1973), 107. The digests (nibandhas) were arranged by topic, more or less, and drew upon many different for their source material. For example, an author of a digest might focus on the topic of inheritance, and then discuss how several different address the issue. In many cases it is difficult to tell the difference between a commentary and a digest because many commentaries draw upon several outside sources to legitimate the claims they make about a specific and to attempt to reconcile any disagreements between the texts.
===Principal Commentaries===
====Commentaries on the ====
* Bhāruci (600CE-1050CE) is the oldest known commentator on the and talks mostly about the duties of the king.
* Medhātithi (820CE-1050CE) is the most extensive commentary on Manu that we have today.
* Manvartha-muktavali by Kullūka (1200CE-1300CE) is the most famous commentary on Manu and is very concise and to the point.
* Govindarāja
* 
* Raghavananda
* Nandana
====Commentaries on the ====
* by Viśvarupa (750CE-1000CE) is very voluminous and compares to the , and the author quotes profusely from Vedic works.
* by Vijñāneśvara (1050CE-1126CE) is a legal commentary best known for its discussion of "inheritance by birth", and for its popularity within the British Law courts in all of India with the exception of Bengal and Assam.
* Aparārka's (1100CE-1200CE) commentary is really in the nature of a digest and is much more voluminous than the . 
* Dīpakalikā by (1365CE-1460CE)
* Vīramitrodaya by Mitramiśra
====Commentaries on the ====
* Asahāya (500CE-750CE) commented on the , but much of his commentary was added to or revised by .
====Commentaries on the ====
* Vaijayantī by 
===Principal Digests===
====Early Digests====
* Krtyakalpatara by (1104-1154 A.D.) had significant influence until the 16th century. One of the largest digests, second only to the Vīramitrodaya.
* by (1200 A.D.) gained large influence throughout North and South India. It is composed of three , or divisions, entitled āhnika, vyavahāra and śrāddhu. The text includes numerous citations and quotations which are critiqued by .
====Digests on Inheritance====
* Dāyabhāga by Jīmūtavāhana
* Dayā-Tattva by Raghundanda
====Digests on Religious Rites and Rituals====
* Caturvagacintāmani (The Philosophers' Stone for the Four Classes) by Hemādri
* Nirnaya-sindhu by Kamalākara-bhatta (1612)
====Digests on the Role of the King====
* Rāja-nīti-ratnākara by 
* by (16th century) translates to The Joy of , and covers the duties of the king as a judge, as well as the timing of marriage and gifts.
====Digests on Litigation and Judicial Procedure====
* Vivāda-ratnākara by (Early 14th century) describes the 18 titles of litigation.
* Vivāda-cintāmani by (Early 14th century) involved the 18 titles of litigation.
* by Kamalākara-bhatta (1612) 
* Vyavahāra-mayūkha by (Early 17th century) is the most known part of his text, Bhagavanta-bhāskara. In 1827, the work was translated into English and later translated by Kāne.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (New York: Oxford UP, 1973), 118.
* Vīramitrodaya by Mitra-miśra (Early 17th century) is a digest covering every aspect of dharma The text was written for , the king of Orccha from 1605-1627. Considered to be the most extended text on the topic of judicial procedure. 
* Vyavahāra-cintāmani by 
====Digests on Dharma====
* Sarasvati-vilāsa by Pratāparuda-deva (Early 1500s) was intended to cover every aspect of Dharma in order to save future commentators argument and make all future commentaries unnecessary. The work was ordered by Pratāparudra-deva, a king of Orissa of the Gajapati dynasty.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (New York: Oxford UP, 1973), 116.
* Bhagavanta-bhāskara by (1600-1650)
* by Dalpati (Early 16th century) is divided into 12 sāras which cover dharma in its entirety.
====Digests on Adoption====
* Dattaka-mīmāmsā by (Late 16th - Early 17th Century) was mistakenly assumed to be a classical work on the topic of adoption and subsequently used by the British authorities as Hindu law. The digest was translated by Sutherland in 1821.Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (New York: Oxford UP, 1973), 117.
== Major English Translations ==
=== 1. Best for beginners ===
*Olivelle, Patrick. 2004. The Law Code of Manu. New York: Oxford UP.
*Olivelle, Patrick. 1999. Dharmasūtras: The Law Codes of Āpastamba, Gautama, Baudhāyana, and . New York: Oxford UP.
=== 2. Other major translations ===
*Kane, P.V. (ed. and trans.) 1933. on Vyavahāra (Law and Procedure). Poona: Oriental Book Agency.
*Lariviere, Richard W. 2003. . 2nd rev. ed. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
*Rocher, Ludo. 1956. Vyavahāracintāmani: a digest on Hindu legal procedure. Gent.
=== 3. Early translations with full-text online ===
*Bühler, Georg (trans.), The Laws of Manu, SBE Vol. 25, 1886.
*Bühler, Georg (trans.), The Sacred Laws of the Āryas, SBE Vol. 2, 1879 [Part 1: Āpastamba and Gautama]
*Bühler, Georg (trans.), The Sacred Laws of the Āryas, SBE Vol. 14, 1882 [Part 2: and Baudhāyana]
*Jolly, Julius (trans.), The Institutes of , SBE Vol. 7, 1880.
*Jolly, Julius (trans.), The Minor Law-Books, SBE Vol. 33. Oxford, 1889. [contains both and ]
== See also ==
* Dhammasattha
== Notes ==
==References==
* 
*
*Olivelle, Patrick. "Dharmasastra: A Literary History"
*
*
*
== External links ==
*The Cooperative Annotated Bibliography of Hindu Law and Dharmaśāstra
*Alois Payer's Dharmaśāstra Site (in German, with copious extracts in English)
*"Maharishi University of Management - Vedic Literature Collection" An excellent, authentic Sanskrit reference to the texts of all 18 Smritis.
Category:Hindu law