Abstract
According to Ancient and Medieval Indian Law, the ordeals (Skt. divya) are part of the Indian judicial procedure (vyavahāra). Specifically, they are considered a “divine proof” and, in the absence of human proofs (witnesses, documents, and possessions), are undergone by the accused (śodhya, ‘to be purified’) during the third canonical phase of the judicial procedure, called kriyāpāda (‘part on proofs’). The ordeals are described in the Smṛti (i.e., Sanskrit legal works, part of Dharmaśāstra) and the chapters dedicated to vyavahāra of the Purāṇas (i.e., Sanskrit encyclopedic works). Apart from the hints of the Dharmasūtras (ĀpDh II, 11, 3 and II, 29, 6; GDh XIII, 12), an ordalic procedure is distinctively described only starting from the time of Manu (MDh VIII, 114-116), whose work speaks of two ordeals. The number of ordeals and information about them increases over time: five ordeals are described by Yājñavalkya, Nārada and Viṣṇu (YSm II, 98-117; NSm XX, 1-48; VSm IX-XIV), seven are described by Kātyāyana (KSm 411-463), while nine ordeals are described by Bṛhaspati and Pitāmaha (BSm I, 8, 1-92; PSm 28-189). Within the Purāṇic tradition, a description of eight ordeals is instead present in the chapter dedicated to them in the Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa (VDhPu III, 328), later taken up again in the Kumārikākhaṇḍa (KuKh 44). This study reconstructs the history of Indian ordalic procedures by establishing the chronological relationship between Sanskrit texts describing them. It also compares Indian ordalic procedures with those of other civilizations (in particular, Greek and Iranian).
Presenters
Alessandro GiudicePhD Student, Department of Literatures, Language and Cultural Heritage, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2023 Special Focus—Religion in the Public Sphere: From the Ancient Years to the Post-Modern Era
KEYWORDS
Ordeal, Ordalic procedure, Brahmanism, Sanskrit, Indian Law, Classical India
