Dharmasutra Parallels: Containing the Dharmasutras of Apastamba, Gautama, Baudhayana and Vasistha

Dharmasutra Parallels: Containing the Dharmasutras of Apastamba, Gautama, Baudhayana and Vasistha

The Dharmasutra Parallels provide a synoptic presentation of the passages that may be found in the four Dharmasutras of Apastamba. The teachings of Gautama, Baudhayana, and Vasistha all focus on the same concepts. The Dharmasutras are the earliest complete legal code from ancient India that has survived to the current day. An in-depth examination of these early legal treatises is required if we are to have any hope of comprehending not only the legal history of the three or four centuries prior to the common era, but also the cultural and religious history of that time period. This was the time when many of the characteristics that are typically associated with Indian civilization began to take shape during that era.

Author

Patrick Olivelle