When considering the law of Ancient India, the Laws of Manu are the first thing they pay attention to. This collection is the most famous and publicly accessible monument of the ancient Indian legal culture. He enjoyed authority both in antiquity and in the Middle Ages. According to the traditions of the Hindus, its author is the progenitor of people - Manu.
History of creation
In fact, the laws of Manu are not so ancient. Over the course of 6-5 centuries BC , more and more large states with a slave system appeared in India. Powers developed, changes occurred both in ideology and in tribal institutions. And ordinary oral law, which existed before that, could no longer correspond to the level of development of states, could not satisfy their needs. Then came the dharmasutras - collections of written rules that were based on the Vedas. The first mention of the Dharmasutra Manu dates back to the 9th century BC. Modern researchers have come to the conclusion that the laws of Manu, such as they came to us, developed in the 2nd century BC. Moreover, according to the prominent Sanskritologist G. Buhler, a certain dharmasutra i, which was the basis of the collection, has not survived to our time.
Ancient Indian Laws of Manu
The text of the Laws of Manu is twelve chapters. The collection consists of 2685 articles, which are couplets.
Only chapters VIII and IX contain directly legal norms, while the rest explain the caste system of Ancient India. She is here in the foreground. According to the Laws of Manu, in
ancient India there was an estate-bar division of society. People are divided into brahmanas, ksatriyas, vaisas, sudras and untouchables.
The laws of Manu have a certain logic of presentation of the material, but they do not yet provide for the division of law into branches. Also, the rules of law in the collection are very closely intertwined with religious postulates.
The laws pay great attention to the protection of the right of ownership of movable property. So, there are rules governing the contract of gift, sale, loan and others. Guarantees of fulfillment of obligations are also provided - pledge and surety. The loan agreement has already been developed in detail, but still not suck legally competent. This fact indicates a high level and heyday of usury.
The laws of Manu despise wage labor and support slavery.
As for family relations, here the woman is in a subordinate position, polygamy is allowed and mixing of varn is prohibited.
Dharmasutras were, rather, codes of practice, teachings and recommendations, rather than current legislation. In such a collection as the Laws of Manu, there is a rather interesting basis and philosophical meaning. Many recommendations became the basic rules that were used in the study of tactics of warfare and in the development of strategies. For example, the duty of a ruler, according to the Laws of Manu, was to be brave in battle, to always protect his subjects, to be ready for war every day. Also, the king had to hide his secrets, but be able to discover the weaknesses of enemies.