1. 1 Let (the defendant) touch the heads of his sons, wife, or friends; or else the (ordeal by) sacred libation (may be performed), whatever the nature of the charge may be.
2. 2 It is on the claimant that the duty of declaring his readiness to take on himself the penalty (to be awarded to the losing party) devolves in every case. Or the ordeal may be performed by either party at pleasure, the other party consenting to give the penalty (to be awarded in case of defeat).
3. 3 To persons suspected by the king, or denounced (as criminals) by (intercourse with) robbers, or intent on their own justification, an ordeal must be administered without binding (an opponent) to give the penalty.
4. 4 (The performance of) an ordeal is ordained in
6. 6 The (ordeal by) sacred libation has been declared by the wise to be applicable to all (castes), and poison (to all castes), excepting the Brahman (caste). (Either the balance is reserved for Brahmans), or the balance may be administered to (members of) every caste.
7. 7 The (ordeal by) sacred libation may be administered in every case. The (ordeal by) balance is admissible in every season.
8. 8 Eunuchs, distressed or feeble persons, the severely afflicted, infants, old men, women, and the blind should be tested by the balance always.
9. 9 (The ordeal by) poison is not destined for
11. Let (the judge) avoid (the ordeal by) fire in the case of lepers, (the ordeal by) water in the case of the asthmatic, and (the ordeal by) poison in the case of bilious or phlegmatic persons.
12. 12 In the season of the rains, let the (ordeal by) fire be administered; also in the cold and chilly seasons. In the summer season, the (ordeal by) water is the proper (kind of ordeal). Poison (is destined) for the cold weather.
13. 13 The chilly, cold, and rainy seasons are declared to be (the proper seasons) for the (ordeal by) fire; the autumn and summer seasons, for the (ordeal by) water; the (ordeal by) poison, (is fit) for the cold and chilly seasons.
14. 14 The months of Kaitra (March-April), Mârgasîrsha (November-December), and Vaisâkha (April-May)
16. 16 The chief judge must superintend the whole of the proceedings at an ordeal, fasting and obeying the king's instructions in the same way as an Adhvaryu (priest officiates) at a sacrifice.
17. 17 The chief judge, who must be a Brahman, thoroughly versed in the Vedas and Vedâṅgas, instructed in sacred learning and of religious conduct, tranquil-minded, unambitious,
18. Fond of veracity, pure, able, delighting in the welfare of all sentient beings, having kept a fast, clad in his moist garments (after a bath), having cleansed his teeth, should worship all deities according to rule.
19. 19 With red perfumes and garlands, as well as
21. When they are performed otherwise (the claimant not giving his consent), he incurs the same guilt as a thief.
22. 22 I will state next the excellent rule regarding the (ordeal by) balance, as the king and the chief judge should administer that ordeal to a man (arraigned in a cause).
23. 23 The two posts supporting the beam of the balance should measure four Hastas above ground, their (entire) length should be six Hastas.
24. 24 The king should cause a wooden beam of the balance to be made, which must be four Hastas long,
28. If the water does not trickle down (from the balance), the balance may be considered as being level.
29. 29 With red perfumes and garlands, as well as with curds, cakes of flour, fried grain and other (offerings, the judge) should first worship the balance, and then show honour to the others.
31. Being used for balancing (dhrita, in this ordeal) discoverest the vicious. Therefore thou art called dhata (balance).'
32. 32 If (the person) remains level (sama), he is considered to be in a middling position (samatâ). If he comes down, he loses his cause. He who goes down is not innocent; he is innocent who goes up.
33. He who remains level is also not acquitted. These are the three possible cases in the (ordeal by) balance. Thus has been declared the never-failing acquittal (obtainable) through the test by balance.
34. 34 When (the scales fixed) at the two extremities of the beam have been moved, when the mark which had been made has come off, when (the balance) is going up and down, being agitated by wind,
35. Or when (the man appointed to hold it) lets it
37. 37 The seven circles are thus declared by persons thoroughly conversant with the art of computation to cover a space of two hundred and twenty-four Aṅgulas.
38. 38 Let the peculiar signs be marked which he has on both hands, both visible and invisible ones, whether caused by a scar or not caused by a scar.
39. 39 After having first marked in this way the hands of the person accused, he should offer clarified butter in fire according to rule, as a propitiatory rite, reciting Mantras (at the same time).
46. 46 (Then the man) should take a smooth ball of red-hot iron, fifty Palas in weight, in both hands, and step gradually across the seven circles.
47. 47 When a man has carefully stepped through
49. When a bloodshot round stain or any other sore caused by fire is seen, the man has to be considered as guilty, because truth and virtue are not found in him.
50. 50 I will proclaim next the excellent rule regarding the (ordeal by) water. Let a king who is desirous of establishing perfect truth refrain from administering (this ordeal) in winter.
51. 51 With perfumes, garlands, sweet-smelling substances, honey, milk, clarified butter, and the like, let (the judge) perform the worship of Varuna (the deity of water) first of all.
52. 52 Let (the judge) cause this ordeal to be performed
54. 54 A strong bow should be known to have seven hundred; one not particularly strong, six hundred; a weak bow, five hundred. Thus has the rule regarding the bow been declared.
55. 55 From a bow of a middling quality let a skilful (archer) discharge three arrows, after having made a target one hundred and fifty Hastas distant.
56. 56 (The archer) is blameable if the arrows discharged by him fall short of or go beyond the target. (The person accused) obtains acquittal if his body continues immersed in water after the middling arrow has been (discharged and) brought back.
58. 58 Let a strong man, who may be a Brahman, Kshatriya or Vaisya, and must be free from affection and hatred, be placed in water reaching his navel, (standing erect) like a pillar.
59. 59 (The accused), thoroughly controlled in mind, shall seize the thighs of that man under water, and stand in it composed all the time till the (runner) appointed to fetch (the arrow) has returned.
60. 60 Then let men strictly devoted to veracity and virtue, acquainted with the application of legal rules, and free from affection and hatred, see that everything is fair.
61. 61 An intelligent, pious-minded man should descend into the water and duly address (the deity of water) with the following auspicious texts.
61 b. The sacred prayer (runs as follows). ‘Om, adoration to Justice.
62. 62 ‘Thou, O lord of waters, who art so pleasantly
64. 64 ‘Thou, O deity, alone knowest what mortals do not understand. This man, being arraigned in a cause, is going to dive in thee. Therefore deign to deliver him lawfully from this perplexity.’
65. 65 Then (the accused) should submerge all his limbs in water so as to become invisible.
66. 66 A prudent man should leave the water, after having seen the arrow brought back, and should approach the king and all the assessors of the court, after saluting them reverentially.
67. 67 Though only his ear, eye, mouth or nose should become visible while he is in water, he cannot be acquitted. If he remains invisible, he obtains acquittal.
69. 69 Let him give the poison in the presence of (images of) the deities and Brahmans, after having kept a fast and worshipped Mahesvara with incense, offerings, and sacred texts.
70. 70 (The judge) should give the poison with fixed attention, facing the north or the east, in the presence of Brahmans, (while the accused) is facing the south.
71. 71 Let seven Yavas be given, as a test of innocence, without doubt, of poison from the Sriṅga tree or Vatsanâbha (poison) or Himaga poison.
72. 72 In the morning and in a cool place let the poison be given to all persons, after it has been finely ground, and mixed with clarified butter thirty times the quantity.
73. 73 He must not give poison to infants, disabled or superannuated persons, or to those who have committed a very light offence only, or to a madman, to one severely afflicted, to a cripple, or to ascetics.
74. 74 If the person (examined) undergoes no change
76. 76 ‘Thou, O deity, knowest the sacred ordinances and the conduct of men, both good and evil actions, (in short) whatever men do not comprehend.
77. 77 ‘This man being arraigned in a cause, wishes to obtain acquittal. Therefore deign to deliver him lawfully from this perplexity.’
78. 78 This prayer should be pronounced according to rule, while the poison is being swallowed (by the person).
79. 79 The king having known the man to be innocent should honourably dismiss him, and proclaim him (innocent) with a loud voice. Thus has the law been laid down.
80. 80 (Let the ordeal by sacred libation be administered) to one who consents to it and puts faith (in
82. 82 After having worshipped that deity (to which the accused is devoted, the judge) should wash (the image of that deity) with water, proclaim his crime, and cause him to swallow the three handsful of water.
83. 83 When some one drinks consecrated water of his own accord, after having been charged with a crime, and does not confess his guilt, actuated by avarice, such a wicked man will become a leper (in a future birth).
84. 84 When a man tells a lie knowingly and intentionally, after having drunk consecrated water, he is born as a poor, sick, or foolish person in seven (successive) existences.
85. When a man administers the (ordeal by) sacred libation by force to procure some advantage to himself, it will destroy himself, nor will his affairs prosper.
86. 86 When a man has been convicted (by this
247:1 VI, 1. Vîram. p. 226; M. Macn. X, 1, 5 (uncertain). 247:2 Vîram. p. 228. 247:3 V. T.; M. Macn. X, 1,5 a (uncertain). The Mitâksharâ explains the term sirah or sîrsha, which has been translated by 'penalty' in this paragraph and in the preceding text, as denoting the head, i.e. the fourth or principal division of a lawsuit, which involves defeat or success, and results in the awarding of a punishment or fine to the losing party. It appears more probable, however, that siras, 'head,' is an equivalent for 'life,' the accuser having to declare his readiness to risk his life, i.e. a heavy punishment, in case of defeat. 247:4 Smritik. kârane mahati proktam divyam vâdârthinâm nrinâm | sirovartî yadâ na syât tadâ divyam na dîyate || This is apparently the 101, 102). 248:5 M. Macn. X, 1, 7. In actions for debt and the like, though witnesses possessing the required qualifications (such as veracity, &c.) should have been adduced by the plaintiff, an ordeal may be administered, if the defendant proposes an ordeal and promises to give the fine or other penalty to be inflicted in case of his being defeated, because witnesses are subject to the fault of partiality, whereas an ordeal shows the true state of the case, as no fault can be found with it, and is an emblem of justice. M. 248:6 Vîram. p. 235. This text comes after Nârada I, 24, 335 (above, p. 117). 248:7 May. p. 18 (text). 248:8 8, 9. Vîram. p. 235. In the third Pâda of 8, I read bâlavriddhâstriyo
249:10 10, 11. Minor Nârada I, 5, 116, 118 (p. 46). For the Sanskrit, see Nârada-smriti, p. 112, note. Nearly identical with a text usually attributed to Pitâmaha, Vîram. p. 237.
249:12 Vîram. pp. 239, 240. Nearly identical with Nârada I, 19, 254 (p. 101) and Minor Nârada I, 5, 113, 114 (p. 46).
249:13 13, 14 a. V. T.; M. Macn. X, 1, 10 (uncertain). These two texts are elsewhere attributed to Pitâmaha, and it is certainly difficult to reconcile them with 12.
249:14 14 b. Vîram. p. 240. In the quotations, this text comes after 102). 'The prohibition to administer an ordeal at noon has reference to ordeals other than the ordeal by water.' Vîram.
250:15 Vîram. p. 241; May. p. 18 (text). I read bahirvâsakritâni in the second Pâda (bahirvâdikritâni, May.), and vyabhikâram sadartheshu in the third Pâda (vyabhikâre sadartheshu, Vîram.). 'At a distance from human habitations,' in solitude. Vîram.
250:16 M. Macn. X, 1, 8 a; 'Pitâmaha,' elsewhere.
250:17 17, 18. Vîram. p. 245; M. Macn. X, 2, 18 ('Pitâmaha'). I read kuryâd in 18, as in Mitâksharâ, Vivâdatândava, &c. (kritvâ, Vîram.). These texts, although generally quoted in the section on the ordeal by balance, seem to contain a rule applicable to every ordeal.
250:19 M. Macn. X, 2, 17, &c. This text is supposed to apply to
251:22 Minor Nârada I, 5, 119 (p. 46). atah param pravakshyâmi dhatasya vidhim uttamam | râgâ ka prâdvivâkas ka yathâ tam kârayen naram ||
251:23 Nepalese Nârada. katurhastau tulâpâdâv ukkhrayena prakîrtitau | shaddhastam tu tayor bhavet pramânam parimânatah || The Minor Nârada has the following text instead of this: dhatasya pâdâv (pâdâd) ûrdhvam tu katurhastau prakîrtitau | pañkahastâ tulâ kâryâ dvihastâ kârgalâ smritâ || Under this reading, the beam of the balance would have to be five Hastas long, whereas the following text (24) states its length at four Hastas.
251:24 24-26. Minor Nârada I, 5, 121, 122 (p. 47 and Addenda, pp. xxxii, xxxiii). kârayeta katurhastâm samâm lakshanalakshitâm |
252:29 M. Macn. X, 2, 17. 'The injunction contained in this text concerns a judge who is about to administer the ordeal by balance to one arraigned in a cause. The others,' i.e. Indra and the other deities. Vîram. p. 251. See 19.
253:30 30, 31. Vîram. p. 251; M. Macn. X, 2, 23 (uncertain).
253:32 32, 33. Nepalese Nârada. samena samatâm eti hîyamânas tu hîyate | adhogatir na sudhyeta sudhyetordhvagatis tathâ || samo107, 108) that an equal result of the first and second weighing was not considered as a proof of innocence. According to others, such a result proves the person balanced to be guilty in some degree; or the proceeding has to be repeated.
253:34 34, 35. Vîram. p. 254; Smritik.; V. T. I read with Smritik.
254:37 Nepalese Nârada; Minor Nârada I, 6, 3 (p. 49). I read: saptabhir mandalair evam aṅgulânâm satadvayam | sakaturvimsati proktam samkhyâtattvârthadarsibhih || The quotations agree with Nârada I, 21, 286 in referring to eight, instead of seven, circles.
254:38 Vîram. p. 259. The marking of the hands serves the purpose of marking the difference between the previously extant sores and those eventually caused by the hot iron ball.
254:39 39-45. Smritik. kritvaivam abhisastasya prathamam hastalakshanam | sântyartham guhuyân mantrair ghritam agnau yathâvidhi || tarpiteshv atha deveshu lokapâleshu kaiva hi | âdityâbhimukho bhûtvâ imam mantram udîrayet || tvam agne sarvadevânâm antas karasi pâvakah | havyam vahasi devânâm antahsântim prayakkhasi || prakkhanâni manushyânâm pâpâni sukritâni ka | tvam eva 109, 110); Minor Nârada I, 6, 10, 11 (p. 41).
255:45 M. Macn. X, 3, 2.
255:46 Minor Nârada I, 6, 6, 7 (p. 49). hutâsataptalohasya pañkâsatpalikam samam | hastâbhyâm pindam âdâya mandalâni sanair vraget ||
255:47 Nepalese Nârada. tîrtvânena vidhânena mandalâni samâhitah |
50. Nepalese Nârada. atah param pravakshyâmi toyasya vidhim uttamam | hemante vargayed râgâ ya ikkhek khuddhim uttamâm ||
256:51 M. Macn. X, 4, 3 (uncertain); Vîram. p. 269.
256:52 Minor Nârada I, 7, 2 (p. 50). svakkhe gale susîtale galaukahpaṅkavargite | vipule nâtigâdhe ka kuryâd divyasya nirnayam ||
257:53 M. Macn. X, 4, 13.
257:54 Nepalese Nârada. krûram dhanuh saptasatam nâtikrûram tu shatsatam | mandam pañkasatam gñeyam esha prokto dhanurvidhih || Nearly identical with Minor Nârada I, 7, 4 (p. 50); Nârada I, 22, 307 (above, p. 112); Vîram. p. 268, &c. The translation of this text is based on the interpretation given in Tod. 'That bow which bends sufficiently to admit of discharging an arrow from it, when a weight of seven hundred Palas is fastened by the string, is said to have seven hundred. The terms "six hundred" and "five hundred" have to be understood in the same way.' See too, above, p. 112, 307 note.
257:55 55, 56 a. M. Macn. X, 4, 15. The rule regarding the distance of the target, which renders the arrows entirely superfluous, seems to belong to a more recent period than the other rules. See Prof. Stenzler's Essay on Indian Ordeals.
257:56 Tod. ânîte madhyame vâne magnâṅgah sukitâm iyât |
258:57 M. Macn. X, 4, 12.
258:58 Vîram. p. 269.
258:59 Nepalese Nârada. toyam adho manushyasya grihîtvorû susamyatah | tâvat tishtheta niyato yâvat prâptah samâpakî ||
258:60 Minor Nârada I, 7, 8 (p. 51). dharmasthânam tatah kuryuh satyadharmaparâyanâh | dharmasâstravidhânagñâ râgadveshavivargitâh ||
258:61 Nepalese Nârada. avatîrya gale vidvân snâtah prayatamânasah | srâvayeta yathânyâyam ebhir mantrapadaih subhaih || The correctness of this reading seems doubtful. According to the other authorities, the prayer is to be recited by the judge or by the accused.
61 b. Nepalese Nârada. dhatmamantrah | om namo dharmâya |
258:62 Nepalese Nârada. yonis tvam asi (yatas tvam asti MS.) bhûtânam galesa sukhasîtala | trâyasvainam naram pâpât pasyasi tvam subhâsubham ||
259:63 63 a occurs in the Minor Nârada and Nepalese Nârada (Minor Nârada I, 7, 15 a). âdidevo
259:66 Nepalese Nârada. prâptam tu sâyakam drishtvâ galâd uttîrya buddhimân | pranipatya nripam gakkhet sarvâms kaiva sabhâsadah ||
259:67 Minor Nârada I, 7, 12. karnâkshimukhanâsânâm yasya toye vyavasthitam | drisyate na visuddhah syâd adrisyah suddhim âpnuyât ||
260:68 Minor Nârada I, 8, 1 (p. 52). atah param pravakshyâmi vishasya vidhim uttamam | yathâ dadyâd visham râgâ sodhanam paramam nrinâm ||
260:69 M. Macn. X, 5, 4.
260:70 M. Macn. X, 5, 6.
260:71 Tod.; Vîram. p. 273 ('Pitâmaha'). Himaga poison is no doubt the poison elsewhere called Haimavata, 'coming from the Himalayas.'
260:72 Vîram. p. 275; M. Macn. X, 5, 13 ('Kâtyâyana').
260:73 Nepalese Nârada. na bâlâturavriddheshu naiva svalpâparâdhishu | nonmattârte tathâ vyaṅge na ka dadyât tapasvishu ||
260:74 M. Macn. X, 5, 16.
261:75 Minor Nârada I, 8, 7. vishatvâd vishamatvâk ka krûram tvam sarvadehinâm | subhâsubhavivekârtham niyukto hyasi sâkshivat || The first half is identical with Vishnu XIII, 6 a.
261:76 Minor Nârada I, 8, 8. dharmâni karitam pumsâm asubhâni subhâni ka | tvam eva deva gânîshe na vidur yâni mânavâh ||
76 b is identical with Vishnu XIII, 6 b.
261:77 Identical with Vishnu XIII, 7.
261:78 Nepalese Nârada. iti mantram pathet tatra vidhinâ vishabhakshane (vibhakshane MS.).
261:79 Tod. tam visuddham iti gñâtvâ râgâ satkritya mokayet | ukkaih prakâsayek kainam esha dharmo vyavasthitah ||
261:80 Vîram. p. 278, where this text is preceded by two texts identical with Nârada I, 24, 327, 328 (above, p. 116).
262:81 M. Macn. X, 6, 8 (uncertain); V. T. The circle has to be made with cowdung. M.
262:82 Vîram. p. 279.
262:83 Vîram. p. 279; Smritik. I read, with the latter work, yah kaskid dûshito narah, 'after having been charged with a crime,' instead of na kvakid dûshito narah, 'without having been charged with a crime' (Vîram.).
262:84 84, 85. Ibid.
262:86 Minor Nârada I, 9, 5. vibhâvitam sadâpyah syâd dhaninâ tu svayam dhanam | rinâk ka dvigunam dandam râgâ dharmena dâpayet ||
