Smṛtis

śraddadhānaḥ śubhāṁ vidyām ādadītāvarād api

śraddadhānaḥ śubhāṁ vidyām ādadītāvarād api |
antyād api paraṁ dharmaṁ strī-ratnaṁ duṣkulād api ||
viṣād apy amṛtaṁ grāhyaṁ bālād api subhāṣitam |
amitrād api sad-vṛttam amedhyād api kāñcanam ||
striyo ratnāny atho vidyā dharmaḥ śaucaṁ subhāṣitam |
vividhāni ca śīlpāni samādeyāni sarvataḥ ||
abrāhmaṇād adhyāyanam āpat-kāle vidhīyate |
anuvrajyā ca śuśrūṣā yāvad adhyāyanaṁ guroḥ ||
(Manu-smṛti: 2.238–241)

“One possessed of śraddhā may accept conducive knowledge [e.g., knowledge of logic, poetry, drama, medicine, etc.] even from an inferior [i.e., a member of a lower caste], other (para) dharma [i.e., knowledge of local laws and the like; alt., knowledge of the supreme (para) dharma, i.e., knowledge of the Self (Ātmā)] even from the lowest [i.e., someone who has no varṇa], and a wife or a jewel even from a low family. Nectar can be accepted even from poison, a fine statement even from a boy, good conduct even from a foe, and gold even from an impure substance. Wives, jewels, knowledge, dharma, uprightness, fine statements, and various arts can be accepted from everywhere. [A brāhmaṇa’s] Studying [the Veda] from a non-brāhmaṇa [i.e., a kṣatriya or vaiśya] is enjoined in a time of difficulty, as is following and serving the [non-brāhmaṇa] guru while studying.”

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pratyakṣaṁ cānumānaṁ ca śāstraṁ ca vividhāgamam

pratyakṣaṁ cānumānaṁ ca śāstraṁ ca vividhāgamam |
trayaṁ suviditaṁ kāryaṁ dharma-śuddhim abhīpsatā ||
ārṣaṁ dharmopadeśaṁ ca veda-śāstrāvirodhinā |
yas tarkeṇānusandhatte sa dharmaṁ veda naitaraḥ ||
(Manu-smṛti: 12.105–106)

“(1) Perception (pratayakṣa), (2) inference (anumāna), and (3) the śāstra—various sacred knowledges [i.e., those coming from the Śruti and Smṛti]—accurate understanding of these three is to be gathered by one desirous of veracity in dharma. One who inquires into the seers’ teaching of the dharma [i.e., Vedic dharma] with reasoning (tarka) that is not contrary to Vedic śāstras understands dharma, and not another [i.e., and not someone who fails to inquire or reason inappropriately while doing so].”

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brāhmaṇaḥ kṣatriyo vaiśyas trayo varṇā dvijātayaḥ

brāhmaṇaḥ kṣatriyo vaiśyas trayo varṇā dvijātayaḥ |
caturtha eka-jātis tu śūdro nāsti tu pañcamaḥ ||
(Manu Smṛti: 10.4)

“Brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, and vaiśya—these three varṇas become the twice-born (dvijas). The fourth, the śūdra [-varṇa] is a caste (jāti), and there is no fifth [varṇa].”

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brahmahā madyapaḥ stenas tathaiva guru-talpagaḥ

brahmahā madyapaḥ stenas tathaiva guru-talpagaḥ |
ete mahāpātakino yaś ca taiḥ saha saṁvaset ||
(Yājñavalkya Smṛti: 3.227)

“A brāhmaṇa-killer, a wine-drinker, a thief, and a goer to the guru’s bed—they are great sinners, as is one who shall associate with them.”

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mātur yad agre jāyante dvitīyaṁ mauñji-bandhanāt

mātur yad agre jāyante dvitīyaṁ mauñji-bandhanāt |
brāhmaṇa-kṣatriya-viśas tasmād ete dvijāḥ smṛtāḥ ||
(Yājñavalkya Smṛti: 1.39)

“Since they are born first from a mother [i.e., by way of seminal birth] and second by the tying of mauñji [i.e., the upanayana-saṁskāra, which involves a ritual in which mauñji, a type of cane grass, is tied as a girdle around the initiate’s waist], these brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, and vaiśyas are known as the twice-born (dvijas).”

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mātur agre’dhi-jananaṁ dvitīyaṁ mauñji-bandhane

mātur agre’dhi-jananaṁ dvitīyaṁ mauñji-bandhane |
tṛtīyaṁ yajña-dīkṣāyāṁ dvijasya śruti-codanāt ||
(Manu Smṛti: 2.169)

“As per the precept of the Śruti, a twice-born’s birth is first from a mother, second by the tying of mauñji [i.e., the upanayana-saṁskāra, which involves a ritual in which mauñji, a type of cane grass, is tied as a girdle around the initiate’s waist], and the third by yajña-dīkṣā [i.e., initiation into performance of Vedic sacrifice].”

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janmanā brāhmaṇo jñeyaḥ saṁskārair dvija ucyate

janmanā brāhmaṇo jñeyaḥ saṁskārair dvija ucyate |
vidyayā yāti vipratvaṁ tribhiḥ śrotriya-lakṣaṇam ||
(Yājñavalkya; cited in Laghu Vaiṣṇava-toṣaṇī-ṭīkā and Vaiṣṇavānandinī-ṭīkā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.16.2)

“One is to be known as a brāhmaṇa by birth. One is called a twice-born by saṁskāras. One attains vipratva [i.e., the status of being a vipra, a learned person] by learning. The characteristic of a śrotriya [i.e., one who is conversant in the Veda] is by these three [i.e., one who is born in a brāhmaṇa family, receives the necessary saṁskāras, and attains the necessary learning is accepted as being śrotriya, that is, conversant in the Vedas].”

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na tena vṛddho bhavati yenāsya palitaṁ śiraḥ

na tena vṛddho bhavati yenāsya palitaṁ śiraḥ |
yo vai yuvāpy adhīyānaḥ taṁ devās sthaviram viduḥ ||
(Manu-smṛti: 2.156)

“One does not become wise [i.e., venerable, lit., ‘an elder’] just because one has grey hair on one’s head. The devas recognize as an elder one who, although young, remains engaged in studying.”

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na hāyanair na palitair na vittena na bandhubhiḥ

na hāyanair na palitair na vittena na bandhubhiḥ |
ṛṣayaś cakrire dharmaṁ yo’nūcānaḥ sa no mahān ||
(Mahābhārata: 9.50.47; Manu-smṛti: 2.154)

“[The youthful Sārasvata Muni says to an assembly of elder ṛṣis who had requested him to teach them the Vedas after they had neglected to study them for many years during a prolonged famine and thus forgotten how to recite the Vedas in full and proper completion:] Neither by years, nor by grey hairs, nor by wealth, nor by relations have ṛṣis performed dharma. One who is devoted to learning [i.e., one who is well-versed in the śāstra so as to be able to read, repeat, and teach it to others] is the great one amongst us [i.e., a ṛṣi’s performance of dharma is constituted principally of learning, understanding, and teaching the śāstra].”

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