The Naradasmrti

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The Naradasmrti is the most comprehensive basic text on procedure in ancient India. The present publication represents the only critical edition of a metrical smrti published to date. The critical edition is based on the evidence of 47 manuscripts from libraries in India, Nepal, Germany, France, United States, and United Kingdom. In addition to the critical edition of the text of the Naradasmrti, Prof. Lariviere has critically edited and translated the incomplete but extremely important commentary of Asahaya. He also provides the reader with summaries of the commentary of Bhavasvamin.

This is the most comprehensive and though examination of any of the basic texts of the Indian legal tradition. It establishes a new standard for the scholarly editing of these texts. A standard which, it is hoped, will be taken up by the subsequent scholarship on the rich tradition of the dharmasastra.

The first edition of this work was awarded the prestigious CESMEO (Centro Piemontese de Studi sul Medioed Estremo Oriente, Torino) prize in 1990 as the best book on South Asia.

Richard Lariviere is the Ralph B. Thomas Regents Professor of Asian Studies, the Judson Neff Fellow in the IC2 Institute, the Dean of Liberal Arts at the University of Texas at Austin. He is an expert on Indian legal history.

In addition his academic work, Prof. Lariviere is involved in many aspects of the business world. He is a corporate specializing in advisory services for companies doing business in India and serves on the Boards of the Dutch company HCL / Perot Systems NV and on the Board of eMr America. He is a founder member of the Society for Design and Progress Science.

Prof. Lariviere, born in Chicago in 1950, has his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and has been on the faculty of University of Pennsylvania, the University of Iowa, and, since 1982, the University of Texas where he served as the Director Asian Studies for eight years and Associate Vice President for International Programs for four years before assuming his present as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce this new Devangari version of Richard Larivere’s award winning critical edition and translation of the Narada Smrti. Originally published in 1988 it was the first critical edition of a metrical Smrti acclaimed for the vast number of manuscripts collated and for the critical acumen of the editor. It produced the first trustworthy edition of a metrical law book and reopened many questions regarding this important literary tradition including the dating of texts as central as the Manava Dharmasastra and the Yajnavalkya Smrti.

In 1992 Lariviere’s Naradasmrit was awarded the prestigious Cesmeo (centro Piemontese de studi sul Medio ed Estremo Oriente) Prize for 1990. it has received superlative reviews in scholarly journals. As the general Editor. I feel extremely fortunate and honored to include this work in this series. Together with my own Dharmasutras published as the first volume of the series the publication of the Narada Smrti takes us substantially forward in fulfilling the goal of this series which is to bring out fresh editions and translations of all the ancient Dharmasutras and Dharmasastras as well as those of major commentaries and Nibandhas of medieval India.

Because the original edition was published by the Department of South Asia Regional Studies of the University of Pennsylvania and because that edition was in transliterated Roman Script it did not receive the publicity or the circulation it deserved especially within India. Many Indian Scholars have continued to use Jolly’s edition when it was superseded by Lariviere’s work over a decade ago. The cost of the original edition also kept it form most Indian libraries. Our hope is that this new edition will make this work which should be on the bookshelf of every scholar India more widely available worldwide but especially with the Indian subcontinent.

I want to express my gratitude once again to Motilal Banarsidass and in particular to Mr. N.P. Jain for the care and speed with which they have brought out the volumes in this series.