Dharma-shastraArticle Free Pass Dharma-shastra, ( Sanskrit:
“righteousness science”) ancient Indian body of jurisprudence
that is still fundamentally the family law of Hindus living in
territories outside India (e.g., Pakistan, Malaysia, East
Africa) and is in force, subject to legislative modification, in
India. Dharma-shastra is not primarily concerned with legal
administration, though courts and their procedures are dealt
with comprehensively, but with the right course of conduct in
every dilemma. Some basic principles of Dharma-shastra are known
to most Hindus brought up in a traditional environment. These
include the propositions that duties are more significant than
rights, that women are under perpetual guardianship of their
closest male relatives, and that the king (i.e., the state) must
protect the subjects from all harm, moral as well as material.
The Dharma-shastra literature, which is written in Sanskrit,
exceeds 5,000 titles. It can be divided into three categories:
(1) sutras (terse maxims); (2)