Manu Smriti or Manu Samhita, one of the eighteen smritis, is an important Sanskrit code of law. The book was written by the legendary author, Manu. Manu Smriti belongs to a period later than that of Vedas.
Manu Smriti has 2,694 stanzas in 12 chapters, composed with the typical Indian juridical theory. The topics include cosmogony, definitions of dharma, the sacraments, initiation and Vedic study. The text also deals with forms of marriage, hospitality and funerary rites, dietary laws, pollution and purification, rules for women and wives, royal law, many sorts of juridical matters.
Religious matters including donations, rites, the doctrine of karma ("giving-back"), the soul, and punishment in many sorts of hells are also discussed in Manu Smriti.
