https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Medh%C4%81tithiMedhātithi - Revision history2026-07-31T12:16:35ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Medh%C4%81tithi&diff=50667&oldid=prev>Anna Roy at 01:44, 23 February 20212021-02-23T01:44:58Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{short description|One of the oldest and most famous commentators on the Manusmṛti}}<br />
{{For|the son of Kanva|Kanva}}<br />
'''Medhātithi''' is one of the oldest and most famous [[Commentary (philology)|commentators]] on the {{IAST|[[Manusmṛti]]}}, more commonly known as the [[Laws of Manu]]. The {{IAST|Manusmṛti}} text is a part of the Hindu [[Dharmaśāstra]] tradition, which attempts to record the laws of [[dharma]].<br />
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==Location==<br />
There is some debate over the exact location in which Medhātithi composed his commentary, but there is significant evidence which places him in [[Kashmir]]. [[Julius Jolly (Indologist)|Julius Jolly]] argues that he was an inhabitant of Southern India, while [[Georg Bühler]] argues (and [[P. V. Kane]] tends to agree) that he was a Kashmirian, or at least an inhabitant of Northern India.<ref>Kane, P. V., ''History of Dharmaśāstra'', (Poona: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 1975), Volume I, Part II, 575.</ref> [[Robert Lingat]] does not acknowledge a debate about Medhātithi's origin, stating explicitly "one knows nothing about him save that he lived in Kashmir."<ref>Lingat, Robert, ''The Classical Law of India'', (New York: Oxford UP, 1973), 112.</ref> Clearly, the exact origin is unknown and may never be known, but there seems to be a tendency to place him at least in the northern part of India, if not in Kashmir or in Nepal, if not in from India.<br />
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==Dating and historical context==<br />
As with most ancient texts, the exact date that Medhātithi's commentary was written is unknown. Kane argues that, because Medhātithi names several other commentators that are dated earlier than he is, and because the author of the [[Mitākṣarā]] (a commentary on the [[Yajnavalkya Smriti]]) considers him as authoritative, he has to be writing later than 820 CE and before 1050 CE.<ref>Kane, P. V., ''History of Dharmaśāstra'', (Poona: [[Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute]], 1975), Volume I, Part II, 583.</ref> Lingat places him in the ninth century or in the early tenth century at the latest.<ref>Lingat, Robert, ''The Classical Law of India'', (New York: [[Oxford University Press]], 1973), 112.</ref> David Brick, in his 2010 review of historical literature on [[sati (practice)|widow burning]], places him about 1000 CE.<ref>Brick, David (April–June 2010). "The Dharmasastric Debate on Widow Burning". Journal of the American Oriental Society 130 (2): 203–223</ref><br />
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==Notes==<br />
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==References==<br />
*{{cite book |last=Jha |first=Ganganath |title=Manusmṛti with the Manubhāṣya of Medhātithi |url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/manusmriti-with-the-commentary-of-medhatithi |year=1920 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers |isbn=81-208-1155-0}}<br />
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[[Category:Indian Sanskrit scholars]]<br />
[[Category:11th-century Indian scholars]]<br />
[[Category:Indian legal scholars]]<br />
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{{Hindu-bio-stub}}</div>>Anna Roy