The body of the recorded or remembered law, the ceremonial and legal institutes of the Hindus. [Wilson’s Glossary]

The smriti is one of the sources of Hindu Law. The smriti means what was remembered and is believed to contain the precepts of God, but not in the language they had been delivered. The language is of human origin, but the rules are divine. The authors do not arrogate to themselves the position of the legislators, but profess to compile the traditions handed down to them by those to whom the divine commands had been communicated. The Smrities are the principal sources of lawyer’s law, but they also contain matters other than positive law. The complete Codes of Manu and Yajnavalkya deal with religious rites, positive law, penance, true knowledge and liberation. There are some that deal with positive law alone, such as the Code of Narada. Many others contain nothing of positive law. [Mitra’s Legal & Commercial Dictionary]