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InHinduism,Śāstra pramāṇam refers tothe authority of the scriptures (śruti,Vedas) with regard topuruṣārtha, the objects of human pursuit, namelydharma (right conduct),artha (means of life),kāma (pleasure) andmokṣa (liberation).[1] Together withsmṛti ("that which is remembered, tradition":Dharmaśāstra,Hindu Epics,Puranas),ācāra (good custom), andātmatuṣṭi ("what is pleasing to oneself"), it providespramana (means of knowledge) andsources of dharma, as expressed inClassical Hindu law, philosophy, rituals and customs.
The first two are undisputed epistemic sources (pramāṇa), whereśruti holds the ultimate or supreme authority asŚāstra pramāṇam, while there is difference of opinion forācāra andātmatuṣṭi.
Pramāṇa literally means "proof" and is also a concept and field of Indian philosophy. The concept is derived from the Sanskrit roots,pra (प्र), a preposition meaning "outward" or "forth", andmā (मा) which means "measurement".Pramā means "correct notion, true knowledge, basis, foundation, understand", with pramāṇa being a further nominalization of the word.[2][3] Thus, the conceptPramāṇa implies that which is a "means of acquiringprama or certain, correct, true knowledge".[4]
Shastra commonly refers to a treatise or text on a specific field of knowledge. In earlyVedic literature, the word referred to any precept, rule, teaching, ritual instruction or direction.[5] In late and post Vedic literature ofHinduism,Shastra referred to any treatise, book or instrument of teaching, any manual or compendium on any subject in any field of knowledge, including religious.[5] It is often a suffix, added to the subject of the treatise, such asYoga-Shastra,Nyaya-Shastra,Dharma-Shastra, Koka- orKama-Shastra,[6]Moksha-Shastra,Artha-Shastra, Alamkara-Shastra (rhetoric), Kavya-Shastra (poetics),Sangita-Shastra (music),Natya-Shastra (theatre & dance) and others.[5][7]
With regard tosāstra pramāṇam is refers to the authority to the Vedic scriptures, as expressed inBhagavadgita chapter 16, verse 24, where Krishna commands Arjuna to follow the authority of the scriptures:[8][9]
tasmāt śāstraṁ pramāṇam te kāryākārya vyavasthitau
jñātvā śāstravidhānoktam karma kartumihārhasi
Therefore, let the (vedic) scriptures (śāstraṁ) be your authority (pramāṇam) in determining what should be done and what should not be done.
Understand the scriptural injunctions and teachings, and then perform your actions in this world accordingly.[10][note 1]
Sruti,smriti,ācāra andātmatuṣṭi are also the foursources of dharma inclassical Hindu law, as expressed inBhavishya Purana, Brahmaparva, Adhyaya 7:
vedaḥ smṛtiḥ sadācāraḥ svasya ca priyamātmanaḥ
etaccaturvidhaṃ prāhuḥ sākshāddharmasya lakshaṇam
Vedas, smritis, good (approved) tradition and what is agreeable to one's soul (conscience),
the wise have declared to be the four direct evidences of dharma.[11][note 2]
The explanation of that sloka has been given in the digest (nibandha),bāla nibandhādarśa: there in dharma, vedas are the only chief pramāna. Smritis dissect (analyze) the essence of vedas only. Both of them support Sadācāra. Ātmasantuṣṭi that is favourable to all these is (then) dharma pramāna.[12][note 3]
Shruti (Sanskrit:श्रुति,IAST:Śruti,IPA:[ɕɽʊtɪ]) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" and refers to the body of most authoritative, ancientreligious texts comprising the central canon ofHinduism.[13] They are theultimate epistemic authority ormūla pramāṇa (or prathama pramāṇa).Manusmriti states thatŚrutistu vedo vigneyah (Sanskrit: श्रुतिस्तु वेदो विज्ञेय:, lit. means "Know that Vedas are Śruti"). Thus, it includes the fourVedas including its four types of embedded texts—theSamhitas, theBrāhmaṇas, theAraṇyakas and theUpaniṣads.[14][15]Bhagavad Gita is also referred asGitopaniṣad, thereby according it the status of Upanishad (i.e. Śruti), even though it is originally part of smṛti.[16][17][18]
Vedic Sages such as Baudhayana, Parāśara, Vedavyāsa, Gautama,[note 4] Vaśiṣṭha,[note 5] Āpastamba,[note 6] Manu,[note 7] and Yājñavalkya have adhered this view in their works.
The main schools of Indian philosophy that reject the (epistemic authority of)Vedas were regarded asNāstika, i.e. heterodox in the tradition.[21]
Smriti (Sanskrit:स्मृति,IAST:Smṛti) is considered as thepenultimate epistemic authority ordvitīya pramāṇa. Smriti literally means "that which is remembered" and it a body ofHindu texts usually attributed to an author, traditionally written down, in contrast toŚrutis (the Vedic literature) considered authorless, that were transmitted verbally across the generations and fixed.[14]Smriti is a derivative secondary work and is considered less authoritative thanSruti in Hinduism, except in theMimamsa school ofHindu philosophy.[13][22][23] The authority ofsmriti accepted by orthodox schools, is derived from that ofshruti, on which it is based.[24][25]
The Smrti literature is a corpus of diverse varied texts.[13] This corpus includes, but is not limited to the sixVedāngas (the auxiliary sciences in the Vedas), theItihasas (i.e. theMahābhārata andRāmāyana), theDharmasūtras andDharmaśāstras (or Smritiśāstras), the Arthasaśāstras, thePurānas, the Kāvya or poetical literature, extensiveBhasyas (reviews and commentaries onShrutis and non-Shruti texts), and numerousNibandhas (digests) covering politics, ethics (Nitisastras),[26] culture, arts and society.[27][28]
Each Smriti text exists in many versions, with many different readings.[14] Smritis were considered fluid and freely rewritten by anyone in ancient and medieval Hindu tradition.[14][22]
The authors of 18 smritis are namely, Atri, Viṣṇu, Hārīta, Auśanasī, Āngirasa, Yama, Āpastamba, Samvartta, Kātyāyana, Bṛhaspati, Parāśara, Vyāsa, Śaṅkha, Likhita,[note 8] Dakṣa, Gautama, Śātātapa and Vaśiṣṭha.[29] Yājñavalkya gives the list of total 20 by adding two more Smritis, namely, Yājñavalkya and Manu.[30][31][note 9] Parāśara whose name appears in this list, enumerates also twenty authors, but instead of Samvartta, Bṛhaspati, and Vyāsa, he gives the names of Kaśyapa, Bhṛgu and Prachetas.
Āpastamba and Vyasa considers thepurāṇas asantepenultimate epistemic authority ortṛtīya pramāṇa. In Āpastambasmṛti, it has been mentioned as[note 10]
yat adṛṣṭam hi vedeṣu tat draṣṭavyaṃ smṛtau kila
ubhābhyāṃ yat adṛṣṭastu tat purāṇeṣu paṭhyate
Whenever there is no reference in vedas then smṛtis are to be referred.
In case references are absent in them both, then purāṇas are to be consulted.[note 11]
Vyāsasmṛti (verse 1.5) state that
śrutismṛtipurāṇokta dharmayogyāstu netare
The sayings of Vedas, smṛtis and puranas are deemed to be dharma and not others.[note 12]
Ācāra (Sanskrit:आचार), alsosiṣṭāchāra orsadāchara, is a concept used in the context ofClassical Hindu law that refers to thecustomary laws or community norms of a particular social group.[34] These community norms are delineated and put into practice by people who have earned the respect of those within each individual group, such as a community leader or elder. Although inDharmaśāstra the ideal person who defines the ācāra of a particular place is dictated as one who knows theVedas or is “learned”, in actual practice this role is often deferred to group leaders along with Vedic scholars.[35] Ācāra is theologically important in classical Hindu law because it is considered, along with the Vedas (Śruti), andSmriti (traditional texts such as the Dharmaśāstra literature), to be one of the sources ofdharma.[36] Particular regional ācāra is believed to be canonized in Dharmaśāstra texts; however scholars differ on the source for the actual accounts found within these texts.[37]
TheAnuśāsana-parva of theMahabharata states:
dharmaṃ jijñāsamānānāṃ pramāṇaṃ prathamaṃ śrutiḥ
dvitīyaṃ dharmaśāstraṃ tu tṛtīyo lokasangrahaḥ
Those who have the 'desire to know dharma' (dharma jijñāsa), the first pramāṇa is śruti.
The second pramāṇa are the dharmaśāstras (i.e. the dharma part of smṛti). The third reference is as per the custom of the people.[note 13]
To Parāśara[note 14],Manu,Yājñavalkya, Vaśiṣṭha andBaudhayana, the virtuous conduct ofŚiṣṭas (virtuous learned men) and practice of good men,Sadāchara is theantepenultimate epistemic authority ortṛtīya pramāṇa after Śrutis and Smṛtis.[38] Vaśiṣṭhasmṛti verse 1.4 quotes,tadalabhe śiṣṭāchārah pramāṇam, i.e. only if the relevant references are absent in those both, then Śiṣṭa Āchāra can be considered as Antepenultimate pramāṇa. According to the sageVaśiṣṭha, Śruti and Smṛti are more important sources than others.[39] ThePadma Purana also prescribes as similar view.[note 15]
While citingŚiṣṭāgama[note 16] (lit. that which has come down from Śiṣṭas) as the antepenultimate authority after Vedas and smirtis byBaudhayana in his smriti (verse 1.5), theŚiṣṭas are defined thus:-Sistas (indeed are those) who are free from envy (vigatamatsarāḥ), free from pride (nirahankārāḥ), contented with a store of grain sufficient for ten days (kumbhīdhānyāḥ), free from covetousness (alolupāḥ), and free from hypocrisy (damba), arrogance (darpa), greed (lobha), perplexity (confusion) and anger (krodha).[42]
Kumarila Bhatta, prominentMīmāṃsā scholar from earlymedieval India states in hisTantravartika:
If the practices of good men (Sadāchāra) are not in conflict with what is taught in theveda andsmṛti, such practices can be regarded as authoritative in matters relating todharma, but when there is the least thing repugnant to the teaching of the Veda, then, as there would be a conflict of authorities, the practices cannot be regarded as any authority at all.[43]
Ātmaṣtuṭi is usually translated into English as being "what is pleasing to oneself."[44] The first three sources of law are rooted in the vedas, whereas Ātmatuṣṭi is not. It is because of this that Ātmatuṣṭi, as a fourth source (i.e.caturtha pramāṇa), is not recognized by most scholars due to the lack of legitimacy. Only Manu and Yājñavalkya refer to Ātmatuṣṭi as the fourth source ofdharma within theHindu Law tradition. Textual accounts of Manu's and Yajnavalkya's placement of Ātmatuṣṭi as a fourth source of dharma can be found inThe Law Code of Manu 2.6 andThe Law Code of Yajnavalkya 1.7. Also, Ātmatuṣṭi does not share the same authority assruti,smriti, andacara. Ātmatuṣṭi differs significantly from the other three sources of dharma in that it is not based on an "authority exterior to man"; in other words, an individual is able to create their own authority for any issue not covered under sruti, smriti, and acara.[45]
Ātmatuṣṭi is also known asHṛdayānujña (free will) is mentioned also by Manu, Yājñavalkya and Vishnu distinctly mention this as a or source of moral and religion knowledge.[46] Yājñavalkya goes further step addinggood intent (samyaksaṃkalpa) as additional fifth source of Dharma:
śrutiḥ smṛtiḥ sadācāraḥ svasya ca priyam ātmanaḥ
samyaksaṃkalpajaḥ kāmo dharmamūlaṃ idaṃ smṛtam
The source of dharma is declared to be fivefold: 1) śrutiḥ; 2) smṛtiḥ; sadācāraḥ (right conduct); svasya ca priyam ātmanaḥ (one's own benefit) and
5) desire born of purposeful intention (samyaksaṃkalpajaḥ kāmaḥ).[47][note 17]
Later,samyaksaṃkalpa (Pali: sammā saṅkappa) was included among theNoble Eightfold Path (āryāṣṭāṅgamārga) putforth byGautama Buddha.[49]
Conflict between different epistemic sources, generally termed asvirodha. When there is an instance of conflict between the smriti and the śruti, the śruti shall prevail.[50][note 18]Similarly, Whenever there is conflict between different epistemic sources in general, then as per Āpastamba, it is advised to refer more preceding epistemic sources as they hold more authority. In Āpastambasmṛti, it is mentioned as
śrutismṛtipurāṇeṣu viruddheṣu parasparam
pūrvaṃ pūrvaṃ balīyam syāditi nyāyavido viduḥ
Whenever there is mutual conflict between vedas, smṛtis and purāṇas, then the ones well-versed in nyāya suggest that
more preceding epistemic source holds higher weightage (than the later epistemic one)[note 19]
Vedavyasa also holds a similar view in his vyāsasmṛti, verse 1.4
śruti smṛti purāṇām virodho yatra driśyate tatra śrotam pramāṇāstu tayordhvyadhe smṛtirvarā
In cases where conflicts are apparent among veda, smriti and Purana, Veda is the valid authority; and where remaining two (Smriti and Purana) are in conflict, Smriti is the valid authority[51][note 20]
ThePrasthanatrayi (Sanskrit: प्रस्थानत्रयी, IAST: Prasthānatrayī) are the three canonical texts of Hindu theology having epistemic authority, especially of theVedanta schools, namely theUpanishads, theBrahma Sutras, and theBhagavad Gita. Prasthanatrayi can viewed as subset of Hindu epistemic sources. Vedanta is also known asUttara Mīmāṃsā is one of the six (āstika) schools of Hindu philosophy. These six schools are traditionally referred asshad-darśanas as they give their own points of view on the Hindu scriptures. Vedānta school is based onBrahma Sūtras (Sanskrit: ब्रह्म सूत्र) ofBādarāyana.Adi Sankara who propagatedAdvaita has established the concept ofPrasthanatrayi, the epistemic references based on Śāstra pramāṇam in Hinduism. Along with Brahma sutras,upanishads are considered from Vedas andBhagavad gita is chosen from Mahabharata, which isItihasa (i.e. part of smriti).[53] The same has been accepted by all other acharyas of other vedanta schools such asRamanuja,Madhwa, etc.
Śāstra pramāṇam has been used by social reformers for 19th century fromBengal such asIshwar Chandra Vidyasagar.[54] He was the most prominent campaigner for widow remarriage and was supported in this by many wise and elite gentlemen of the society and the first signatory on his application to the then Governor General was Shri Kasinath Dutta, belonging to the Hatkhola Dutta lineage. He petitioned in legislative council and was responsible forHindu Widows' Remarriage Act, 1856.[55] In the same century, Similar effort from south India was carried by social reformers such asKandukuri Veeresalingam pantulu[note 21] andGurazada Apparao to eradicate social evils.
Baba SahebAmbedkar has criticized the rigidity of śāstra pramāṇam in Hinduism in his workAnnihilation of Caste by attacking especially onManusmriti.[56] In order to prevent child marriages among Hindus,The Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed in 1929. Śāstra pramāṇam was considered by Hindu pandits appointed by theage of consent committee to fix the age of marriage of girl child and then it was fixed to be 14 later bySarda Act.[57]