Dhammasattha in the History of Myanmar’s (Burma’s) Legal Tradition

Traditional Burmese law, profoundly influenced by Hindu and Buddhist legal traditions, materialized in a constellation of legal sources. These sources, along with a formalized judicial system and legal profession, had coalesced in Burma by the 12th century. Preeminent and unique among these traditional Burmese legal sources is the Dhammasattha (also spelled Dhammathat), which defies precise categorization within established European legal tradition frameworks. However, it exhibits qualitative characteristics akin to virtually all constituent elements thereof. This corpus primarily governed civil law matters, encompassing familial relations and inheritance regulations. While Burmese monarchs retained the prerogative to amend extant provisions and promulgate novellae, they conventionally emphasized the immutable and sacrosanct nature of these legal texts. Moreover, they actively encouraged judicial officers to study and employ them as authoritative guides in adjudicating specific disputes. The modern law system of Myanmar acknowledges the Dhammasattha as a source of customary law and permits its application in regulating delimited areas of private law. This continued relevance underscores the deeply entrenched nature of this legal source in the Burmese legal culture.