Parashar Smruti Part 02

Author(s): Madhavacharya, Chandrakant Tarkalankar
Publisher: Asiatic Society

Page 7

PRE FACE
The Paräśara-Madhava or the Paräsara-Smrti with the gloss of Mādhavächārya, the celebrated scholar of the Southern school in the fourteenth century, was edited by Pandit Chandrakanta Tarkāla ikära and published by the Asiatic Society in three volumes between the years 1890 and 1892.
Madhavacharya, also known as Vidyaranya was the kulaguru (adviser in temporal and spiritual matters) to the first three kings of Vijayanagara, viz., Harihara I, Bukka I and Harihara II. It was at the instance of Bukka I that Madhavachārya undertook to compose fresh commentaries on Dharmaśāstra texts and re-interpret the old social and religious laws in accordance with the spirit of the age. During his long career of scholastic activities (century 1300-1380 A. D.), Mädhava produced numerous treatises on varied subjects including Kavya and Darsana, besides Smrti, and Jyotișa, of which the Parásara-Màdhava is the most outstanding work.
In spite of the wide currency of the Manusmrti, the well known theory "Kalau Pārāśarah Smrtah" and the spirit of accomodation with the changing times, without sacrificing traditional values, running through the text, might have encouraged Madhava to choose the Parāśara-Smộti as the basis for his exposition. But, not content with explaining the scope and significance of laws as laid down by Parāśara Mādhavāchārya in his commentary dwelt extensively on the principles of administration of justice (vyavahāra) in regard to civil disputes as well as transgression of the limits of law, on which the extant text had but little.
Naturally therefore, the Digest of Civil and religious law of Madhava came to be held as an authority on Hindu Law in Southern and Western India for a long time. Scholars on Dharmasastra in other regions including Bengal, evinced keen