Text 37
satrājito ’napatyatvād
gṛhṇīyur duhituḥ sutāḥ
dāyaṁ ninīyāpaḥ piṇḍān
vimucyarṇaṁ ca śeṣitam
satrājitaḥ — of Satrājit; anapatyatvāt — because of not having sons; gṛhṇīyuḥ — they should take; duhituḥ — of his daughter; sutāḥ — the sons; dāyam — the inheritance; ninīya — after presenting; āpaḥ — water; piṇḍān — and memorial offerings; vimucya — after clearing; ṛṇam — debts; ca — and; śeṣitam — remaining.
“Since Satrājit had no sons, his daughter’s sons should receive his inheritance. They should pay for memorial offerings of water and piṇḍa, clear their grandfather’s outstanding debts and keep the remainder of the inheritance for themselves.
Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī quotes the following smṛti injunction regarding inheritance: patnī duhitaraś caiva pitaro bhrātaras tathā/tat-sutā gotra-jā bandhuḥ śiṣyāḥ sa-brahmacāriṇaḥ. “The inheritance goes first to the wife, then [if the wife has passed away] to the daughters, then to the parents, then to the brothers, then to the brothers’ sons, then to family members of the same gotra as the deceased, and then to his disciples, including brahmacārīs.”
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī adds that since Satrājit had no sons, since his wives were killed together with him, and since his daughter Satyabhāmā was not interested in the Syamantaka jewel, which constituted the inheritance, it rightfully belonged to her sons.
In Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrīla Prabhupāda explains: “Lord Kṛṣṇa indicated by this statement that Satyabhāmā was already pregnant and that her son would be the real claimant of the jewel and would certainly take the jewel from Akrūra.”