' (, , ), also spelled ' or ', is a body of Hindu texts representing the remembered, written tradition in Hinduism, rooted in or inspired by the Vedas. works are generally attributed to a named author and were transmitted through manuscripts, in contrast to Vedic or literature, which is based on a fixed text with no specific author, and preserved through oral transmission. are derivative, secondary works and considered less authoritative than in Hinduism, except in the MëmÃÂmsa school of Hindu philosophy. The authority of accepted by orthodox schools is derived from that of , on which it is based.
The literature is a corpus of varied texts that includes: the six (the auxiliary sciences in the Vedas), the epics (the and ), the and (or ), the , the , the or poetical literature, extensive (reviews and commentaries on and non- texts), and numerous (digests) covering politics, ethics (), culture, arts and society.
Each text exists in many versions, with many different readings. works were considered fluid and freely rewritten by anyone in ancient and medieval Hindu tradition.
' is a Sanskrit word, from the root âÂÂsmá¹ (à ¤¸à ¥Âà ¤®à ¥Â), which means the act of remembering. The word is found in ancient Vaidika literature, such as in section 7.13 of the Chandogya Upanishad. In later and modern scholarly usage, the term refers to tradition, memory, as well as a vast post-Vedic canon of "tradition that is remembered". David Brick states that the original meaning of smriti was simply tradition, and not texts.
Smá¹Âti is also a symbolic synonym for number 18, from the 18 scholars who are credited in Indian tradition for writing dharma-related Smá¹Âti texts (most have been lost). These 18 Smá¹Âtis are namely,
YÃÂjñavalkya gives the list of total 20 by adding two more Smá¹Âtis, namely, YÃÂjñavalkyasmá¹Âti and Manusmá¹Âti. ParÃÂà Âara whose name appears in this list, enumerates also twenty authors, but instead of Samvartta, Bá¹Âhaspati, and VyÃÂsa, he gives the names of Kaà Âyapa, Bhá¹Âgu and Prachetas.
The Vedic sage Shandilya is also credited for a Smriti text called as Shandilya Smriti. The modern scholar Brahma Dutt Shastri had compiled the text Shandilya Smriti in his six volumes series work Smriti Sandarbha.
In linguistic traditions, Smá¹Âti is the name of a type of verse meter. In Hindu mythology, Smá¹Âti is the name of the daughter of Dharma () and Medha ().
Smá¹Âtis represent the remembered, written tradition in Hinduism. The Smrti literature is a vast corpus of derivative work. All Smá¹Âti texts are regarded to ultimately be rooted in or inspired by Shruti.
The Smá¹Âti corpus includes, but is not limited to:
The Smá¹Âti texts structurally branched, over time, from so-called the "limbs of the Vedas", or auxiliary sciences for perfecting grammar and pronunciation (part of VedÃÂngas). For example, the attempt to perfect the art of rituals led to the science of Kalpa, which branched into three Kalpa-sà «tras: Srauta-sà «tras, Grhya-sà «tras, and Dharma-sà «tras (estimated to have been composed between 600-200 BCE). The Srauta-sutras became texts describing the perfect performance of public ceremonies (solemn community yajnas), the Grhya-sutras described perfect performance of home ceremonies and domestic rites of passage, and Dharma-sutras described jurisprudence, rights and duties of individuals in four Ashrama stages of life, and social ethics. The Dharma-sà «tras themselves became the foundations for a large canon of texts, and branched off as numerous Dharma-sastra texts.
Jan Gonda states that the initial stages of Smá¹Âti texts structurally developed in the form of a new prose genre named Sà «tras, that is "aphorism, highly compact precise expression that captured the essence of a fact, principle, instruction or idea". This brevity in expression, states Gonda, was likely necessitated by the fact that writing technology had not developed yet or was not in vogue, in order to store a growing mass of knowledge, and all sorts of knowledge was transferred from one generation to the next through the process of memorization, verbal recitation and listening in the 1st millennium BCE. Compressed content allowed more essential, densely structured knowledge to be memorized and verbally transferred to the next generation in ancient India.
Smá¹Âtis contribute to exposition of the Hindu Dharma but are considered less authoritative than à Ârutis (the Vedic corpus that includes early Upanishads).
The root texts of ancient Hindu jurisprudence and law are the Dharma-sà «tras. These express that Shruti, Smá¹Âti and Acara are sources of jurisprudence and law. The precedence of these sources is declared in the opening verses of each of the known, surviving Dharma-sà «tras. For example,
The Smá¹Âtis, such as Manusmá¹Âti, Naradasmá¹Âti, YÃÂjñavalkyasmá¹Âti and Paraà Âarasmá¹Âti, expanded this definition, as follows,
The Yajnavalkya Smá¹Âti includes four Vedas, six Vedangas, Purana, Nyaya, Mimamsa and other sastras, in addition to the ethical conduct of the wise, as sources of knowledge and through which sacred law can be known. It explains the scope of the Dharma as follows,
Levinson states that the role of Shruti and Smá¹Âti in Hindu law is as a source of guidance, and its tradition cultivates the principle that "the facts and circumstances of any particular case determine what is good or bad". The later Hindu texts include fourfold sources of Dharma, states Levinson, which include Atmanastushti (satisfaction of one's conscience), Sadacara (local norms of virtuous individuals), Smriti and Sruti.
Medhatithi's philosophical analysis of and commentary on criminal, civil and family law in Dharmaà ÂÃÂstras, particularly of Manusmriti, using Nyaya and Mimamsa theories, is the oldest and the most widely studied tertiary Smá¹Âti.
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