A wife could not be abandoned unjustly, and any violation of that rule merited severe punishment: ‘He who has unjustly forsaken his wife shall put on an ass’s skin, with the, hair turned outside, and beg in seven houses, saying, "Give alms to him who forsook his wife." That shall be his livelihood for six months.’ 94. The punishment assigned to a wife who has neglected her duty to her husband is not very severe, especially when compared to the inhuman punishments prescribed by Manu for similar cases. He says, ‘But, if a wife for sakes her husband, she shall perform the twelve night Kriccha penance for as long a time‘. 95

As regards inheritance, the legal right of a daughter to succeed to the property of her father where there are no sons, as is implied by the term Putrika, is denied here, and a daughter can only inherit the property of her father on failure of sons, Sapindas, the spiritual teacher or his pupil, 96 who could succeed to the property in the above order on the failure of the heir, who took precedence. Ornaments and wealth received from her relations remained with a Wife. 97

Apastamba discards the appropriation of illegal children and sons of Kshetraja origin and admits, as legal heirs, only sons of the first kind of marriage, i.e., between people of equal caste. He quotes here in support of his view the text referred to by Baudhayana as the view of Aupagandhani. Sons of a woman of equal caste who has not belonged to another man, and who has been married legally,’ have a right ‘toinherit the estate‘. 98 ‘If a man approaches a woman who has been married before, or is not legally married to him, or belongs to a different caste, they both commit a sin.