Later Hindu reformers, especially within the Bhakti movements (e.g., Chaitanya, Ramanuja), read verse 5.31 as a :
The original Sanskrit text and its literal meaning are as follows:
"Verse 5.31 is an internal contradiction preserved from different redaction layers. The Manusmriti is not a single coherent moral system but a compilation of Brahminical debates over centuries. That is why it seems to say two opposite things at once."
"For one who eats meat that is permitted to be eaten, no penance is prescribed. But in every edible (meat), the death of a living being is certain."
Later Hindu reformers, especially within the Bhakti movements (e.g., Chaitanya, Ramanuja), read verse 5.31 as a :
The original Sanskrit text and its literal meaning are as follows:
"Verse 5.31 is an internal contradiction preserved from different redaction layers. The Manusmriti is not a single coherent moral system but a compilation of Brahminical debates over centuries. That is why it seems to say two opposite things at once."
"For one who eats meat that is permitted to be eaten, no penance is prescribed. But in every edible (meat), the death of a living being is certain."
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