Studies in Hindu Law and Dharmaśstra

Foreword by Richard W. Lariviere; Preface; Abbreviations; Note on the Edition; Introduction; Part One. The Nature of Hindu Law; Hindu Conceptions of Law; The Historical Foundations of Ancient Indian Law; Hindu Law and Religion: Where to Draw the Line; Law Books in an Oral Culture: The Indian Dharmaśāstras; Schools of Hindu Law; Changing Patterns of Diversification in Hindu Law; Part Two. General Topics of Hindu Law; Ancient Hindu Criminal Law; Hindu Law of Succession: From the ‘Śāstras’ to Modern Law; Caste and Occupation in Classical India: The Normative Texts; Megasthenes on Indian Lawbooks; The “Ambassador” in Ancient India; The Status of Minors according to Classical Hindu Law; ‘Quandoque bonus dormitat’ Jīmūtavāhanas;  Notes on Mixed Castes in Classical India; Inheritance and ‘Śrāddha’: The Principle of “Spiritual Benefit”; The Theory of Matrimonial Causes According to the ‘Dharmaśāstra’; Jīmūtavāhana’s ‘Dāyabhāga’ and the Maxim ‘Factum Valet’; The Divinity of Royal Power in Ancient India according to Dharmaśāstra; A Few Considerations on Monocracy in Ancient India; Part Three. Hindu Legal Procedure; The Theory of Proof in Ancient Hindu Law; The Problem of the Mixed Reply in Ancient Hindu Law; The Reply in Hindu Legal Procedure: Mitra Miśra’s Criticism of the ‘Vyavahāra-Cintāmaṇi’; “Lawyers” in Classical Hindu Law; Anumāna in the ‘Bṛhaspatismṛti’; Part Four. Technical Studies of Hindu Law; Possession Held for Three Generations by Persons Related to the Owner; The ‘Vīramitrodaya’ on the Right of Private Defence; The Technical Term ‘Anubandha’ in Sanskrit Legal Literature; The ‘Kāmasūtra’: Vātsyāyana’s Attitude toward ‘Dharma’ and Dharmaśāstra; In Defense of Jīmūtavāhana; ‘Dāsadāsī’; The Definition of ‘Vākparuṣya’; ‘Janmasvatvavāda’ and ‘Uparamasvatvavāda’: The First Chapters on Inheritance in the ‘Mitākṣarā’ and ‘Dāyabhāga’; Karma and Rebirth in the Dharmaśāstra; Notes on the Technical Term ‘Sāhasa’ “Fine, Pecuniary Penalty”; ‘Avyāvahārika’ Debts and Kauṭilya 3.1.1–11; The ‘Sūtras’ and ‘Śāstras’ on the Eight Types of Marriage; ‘Caritraṃ Pustakaraṇe’; The Terms ‘Niyukta’, ‘Aniyukta’, and ‘Niyoga’ in Sanskrit Legal Literature; The ‘Aurasa’ Son; The Introduction of the ‘Gautamadharmasūtra’; Part Five. Anglo-Hindu and Customary Law; Indian Response to Anglo-Hindu Law; Can a Murderer Inherit his Victim’s Estate? British Responses to Troublesome Questions in Hindu Law; Reinterpreting Texts: When Revealed Sanskrit Texts Become Modern Law Books; Father Bouchet’s Letter on the Administration of Hindu Law; Jacob Mossel’s Treatise on the Customary Laws of the Veḷḷāla Cheṭṭiyārs; Bibliography; Index

‘Donald Davis, Jr. and the Anthem Press are to be applauded for undertaking this massive project. Indologists who already know Rocher’s work will deeply appreciate that a ready means of accessing it now exists. For those unfamiliar with Rocher’s work, this volume provides a significant counterbalance for the general study of the Indian tradition, standing as a corrective for a field that has long been dominated by a one-sided focus on religion.’ —Herman Tull, ‘Journal of Hindu Studies’