Table of Contents

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 Dharmasastras; 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 'Sastras' 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' Jimutavahanas; Notes on Mixed Castes in Classical India; Inheritance and 'Sraddha': The Principle of "Spiritual Benefit"; The Theory of Matrimonial Causes According to the 'Dharmasastra'; Jimutavahana's 'Dayabhaga' and the Maxim 'Factum Valet'; The Divinity of Royal Power in Ancient India according to Dharmasastra; 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 Misra's Criticism of the 'Vyavahara-Cintamani'; "Lawyers" in Classical Hindu Law; Anumana in the 'Brhaspatismrti'; Part Four. Technical Studies of Hindu Law; Possession Held for Three Generations by Persons Related to the Owner; The 'Viramitrodaya' on the Right of Private Defence; The Technical Term 'Anubandha' in Sanskrit Legal Literature; The 'Kamasutra': Vatsyayana's Attitude toward 'Dharma' and Dharmasastra; In Defense of Jimutavahana; 'Dasadasi'; The Definition of 'Vakparusya'; 'Janmasvatvavada' and 'Uparamasvatvavada': The First Chapters on Inheritance in the 'Mitaksara' and 'Dayabhaga'; Karma and Rebirth in the Dharmasastra; Notes on the Technical Term 'Sahasa' "Fine, Pecuniary Penalty"; 'Avyavaharika' Debts and Kautilya 3.1.1-11; The 'Sutras' and 'Sastras' on the Eight Types of Marriage; 'Caritram Pustakarane'; The Terms 'Niyukta', 'Aniyukta', and 'Niyoga' in Sanskrit Legal Literature; The 'Aurasa' Son; The Introduction of the 'Gautamadharmasutra'; 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 Vellala Chettiyars; Bibliography; Index

Promotional Information

An invaluable introduction to the pioneering Indologist Ludo Rocher through a collection of his most important essays.

About the Author

Ludo Rocher is W. Norman Brown Professor Emeritus of South Asia Regional Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. Donald R. Davis, Jr. is associate professor of South Asian religions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Reviews

'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'