The conditions necessary for a valid Hindu Marriage are stated by Yajnavalkya in the chapter dealing with Marriage. The commentators have treated some of the conditions mentioned in this text as mandatory and some as recommendatory.
The following conditions prescribed by this text are regarded as mandatory: — (1) the bride should not be a Sapinda of the bridegroom (2) she should be separated by seven degrees on the father’s side and five degrees on the mother’s side (3) she should not have the same gotra or Pravara as the bridegroom. (4) She should not have been married to another earlier.
The other conditions are treated as recommendatory only. They are (1) She should be good looking (2) She should be younger in years (shorter in stature). (3) She should be healthy (4) She should have brothers.
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The Shastric conditions mentioned in Yajnavalkya Smriti has been modified considerably by the Act of 1955.
Firstly, modifications have taken the form of dispensing with conditions prescribed by Yajnavalkya. According to Yajnavalkya:
(1) The bride should be (Ananya Purvika).
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So a widow marriage is not sanctioned. This condition is not specified in s. 5 of the Act of 1955. So there is now no prohibition of widow’s remarriage.
(2) The bride and the bridegroom should not be of the same gotra or Pravara. This condition also does not find a place in s. 5 except through the degrees of prohibited relationships.
Secondly the modification of the pre-existing law has been effected by laying down conditions not prescribed by Yajnavalkya. Thus:
1. At the Time of the Marriage, Neither Party:
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(a) Is incapable of giving a valid consent, to it in consequence of unsoundness of mind; or
(b) Though capable of giving a valid consent, has been suffering from mental disorder of such a kind or to such an extent as to be unfit for marriage and the procreation of children; or
(c) Has been subject to recurrent attacks of insanity or epilepsy;
2. The bridegroom should have completed 21 years of age and the bride 18 years at the time of the marriage.
3. Neither party should have a spouse living at the time of the marriage. This entails a prohibition of Polygamy not found in Yajnavalkya. Of course, it also forbids, Polyandry which was also hit by Yagnayalkya’s rule that the bride should be Ananya Purvika.
Thirdly the modifications have taken the form of relaxing the conditions prescribed by Yajnavalkya. Thus:-
The Act of 1955 as well as Yajnavalkya prohibits marriages between Sapindas. But according to Yajnavalkya, Sapinda relationship extend upto 7 degrees on the father’s side and 5 degrees on the mother’s side. The Act lowers these limits to 5 degrees on the father’s side and 3 degrees on the mother’s side.