When was arthashastra written by kautilya

Krishnaiah and other scholars say the original should be saved even if there are copies. Raghuram is a Mangaluru-based journalist who was assigned by Mint to report this story.

Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now!! It'll just take a moment. Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image. You are now subscribed to our newsletters. Premium Premium India to issue policy on defining eligibility criteria Kautilya was a political adviser in the service of Chandragupta, the founder of the Mauryan empire which stretched across the north of the Indian subcontinent.

The Arthashastra describes the means by which a state should be established and maintained in the face of the threat of competing powers and an inherent danger of social instability. The role of the king is to enhance the prosperity of his people, increasing the power of the state, and expanding the territory through conquest.

The prosperity of the people is enhanced through the promotion of trade, the development of infrastructure such as dams and communications , and the strict enforcement of a system of law and order.

A comprehensive list of crime and punishment is set down, ranging from being publicly smeared with dung for minor theft to being boiled alive for sleeping with a queen.

The issue of territorial protection and conquest is the basis of Kautilya's most incisive political thought, and can be taken to be an early guide to the field of international relations. Here he deals with a wide variety of strategies, which can be used independently or in combination, to deal with different situations according to the relative strengths of the opposition.

These strategies include conciliation through flattery, bribery, or other inducements , sowing dissent amongst the opposition, forming coalitions with other rulers, consolidation, and the use of hostility and force. Kautilya has been compared to Machiavelli in the breadth of his statecraft, and also for his willingness to use deceit and intrigue, not just against opponents but also to bolster the king's reputation with his people.

The book Arthashastra is a book which literally translates to the art of money or science of economics. The book covers the requirements that need to be satisfied to ensure the continuous prosperity and growth of a kingdom. It does so by doubling as a philosophical work and an administrative manual. The book further delves into the qualities required for several key positions in the cabinet of the King, spending pages to ensure that they are loyal and capable of serving their people and kingdom.

And all of this is done keeping the King at the centre of these subjects, since his ultimate objective through providing his knowledge is to ensure that a King becomes the Samrat Chakravartin, ie the ruler of the world. All who follow what is laid in this book along with the principles of Dharma will not need to fear the outcome of any war.

The book was written at a time when the Magadha state was on the ascendence in Northern India. It is thus written with such a scenario in mind wherein the new power is on the rise and should therefore follow these principles to ensure its dominance on the world stage. It also covers the same subject matter from different perspectives, such as a weak king or an oligarchy, showing its universality. The translation of Rangarajan is well structured and flows in a much more logical way, aiming to bring it to a modern audience, even if it is ultimately different from the original text.

My thoughts To put it simply, I was overwhelmed. The sheer amount of wisdom and knowledge in the book coming from one man is quite astonishing. The fact that the book goes beyond usually philosophical texts and lists way to put those ideas in practice was something new for me. Often philosophers tend to speak in nebulous concepts leading to the scenarios where we have numerous interpretations of the same text.

This however was not the case with this work. Chanakya not only provides methods to implement his ideas, which itself were derived from earlier thinkers, but also provides ways to counter them and also counter these counters! His meticulousness when it comes to creating a schedule for the king, developing a penal code for punishments is simply and elaborating on both a local as well as central governments is mindboggling.

But he not only provides his own opinions, but also compares ideas from different schools. While it might seem that he did this with the intention of putting them down in order to prop his ideas forward, he instead analyses them carefully, agreeing or disagreeing with them based on the subject dealt.

His strategic sense was a thing of beauty, wherein he listed several techniques to ensure the dominance of one King over the entire world.

The people will be content and hardworking contributing to the stability and continuity of the kingdom. On the one hand, we have a sagacious and kind teacher espousing the need for the king to look after his citizens like his own children. The world of Chanakya was also the world of the caste system and therefore grossly unequal, wherein the lower castes were to work under the dominance of higher castes and not go against them.

This is best reflected in the disproportionate punishment system. For the same crime, members of the lower caste most certainly were the worst of the lot, often losing limbs where the higher castes had monetary fines. Ministers of the King and other higher officials were often tested for signs of disloyalty.

Since the ultimate objective of the book is for the King to conquer the world, his foreign policy envisages a state of perpetual warfare, wherein the king in question is to prepare for war of conquests whenever opportune moments arise. And while he does provide with ways to pacify and govern new conquests, it should therefore come as no surprise that the Mauryans collapsed as rapidly as they rose.

The book, or at least the version I read does not provide too many details on how communication and transportation between two regions would occur, leading to cases of administrative inefficiency. Lastly, how much of this would have been put into practice is not exactly known.

The work creates an illusion of bureaucratic efficiency which might have not really been the case. The sheer size of it would have intimidated and awed the average individual into submission and funnily enough can be seen to have continued to this day, in the Indian constitution.

Closing thoughts I can say with confidence that The Arthashastra is one of the finest texts on statecraft in the history of man. I personally am glad to have finally completed it and am as eager as I was back in , to further my knowledge and understanding of Ancient Indian texts and history. It's quite humbling to write my thoughts on this book and I think I still haven't done a good job in expressing my thoughts on the book.

I will therefore be writing a more comprehensive analysis on the work, provided I have time. Do let me know if you are interested, since I will mostly be mailing the word file directly :D View all 5 comments. Aug 01, Vidur Kapur rated it it was amazing Shelves: history , politics , philosophy , indian-history. A fascinating read. The Arthashastra is one of the earliest works of political realism to have been written, along with Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War and is perhaps the most elaborate of these.

Elaborate is an apt description, given that the treatise describes all sorts of weird and wonderful ways in which seditious ministers can be identified, and enemies can be toppled and weakened. Many of these involve some quite inventive uses of spies. For Kautil A fascinating read. For Kautilya, "the king, the minister, the country, the fort, the treasury, the army and the friend are the elements of sovereignty. Hence a king shall always endeavor to augment his own power and elevate his happiness.

Mearsheimer's 'offensive realism'. Who are the "friends" that Kautilya writes of? As it happens, the concept "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" originated in The Arthashastra : The king who, being possessed of good character and best-fitted elements of sovereignty, is the fountain of policy, is termed the conqueror.

The king who is situated anywhere immediately on the circumference of the conqueror's territory is termed the enemy. The king who is likewise situated close to the enemy, but separated from the conqueror only by the enemy, is termed the friend of the conqueror … In front of the conqueror and close to his enemy, there happen to be situated kings such as the conqueror's friend, next to him, the enemy's friend, and next to the last, the conqueror's friend's friend, and next, the enemy's friend's friend.

It is important to note here that Kautilya was describing a 'pre-Westphalian' state of affairs in India circa BC. Though, given the United States' support for militant groups in nearby Afghanistan, the logic of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" doesn't always work out so well.

Some also see elements of Kautilyan political strategy being deployed by the Republic of India even today; friendships with Afghanistan and Japan are cultivated, as they are seen as allies against Pakistan and China respectively. In other domains, India maintains its famed stance of 'non-alignment', in keeping with Kautilya's advocacy of "neutrality" in certain circumstances.

Meanwhile, Kautilya does not advocate for the Mauryan Empire of which he was part to expand out of South Asia. Again, this is in keeping with an India which has rarely expanded beyond its frontiers excepting the Cholas' expansion into an already Indianized Southeast Asia in the 11th Century AD.

Morality does not really enter into the equation in The Arthashastra , except in some rare instances, demonstrating that the preservation of the State is not an end in itself. As Kautilya writes: "in the happiness of his [the King's] subjects lies his happiness; in their welfare his welfare; whatever pleases himself he shall not consider as good, but whatever pleases his subjects he shall consider as good. In the presence of governance, the weak resists the strong. Jul 12, Rohit Harip rated it it was amazing.

His thoughts about foreign policy,administration,economic reforms and policies are completely well articulated and relevant even today. Indians dont need to look at any kisinger or western thinker like aristotal or Socrates about guidelines of polity.

Exhaustive and exhausting. Apr 15, Ashok Krishna rated it really liked it. Arthashastra - a book that I had wanted to read ever since I read 'The Art of War' and learnt this to be a similar treatise but on political details. Gifted to me by a friend during September '10, it has taken me almost 5 years to finish reading this book. A worthy reference material for anyone who wants to have a glimpse into how things were in the past. An exhaustive treatise of politics, diplomacy and war, this proves that the past was neither golden as we think with an assumed nostalgia, nei Arthashastra - a book that I had wanted to read ever since I read 'The Art of War' and learnt this to be a similar treatise but on political details.

An exhaustive treatise of politics, diplomacy and war, this proves that the past was neither golden as we think with an assumed nostalgia, neither were the people so backward in science and technology as we perceive them to be. Past is a mixed bag. Ideal laws, contradictory realities, preferential and protective treatment for the upper-castes, Brahmins especially, looking down upon women on every areas, government running brothels and liquor shops, kings striving to be just and ethical, cruel methods to get rid of one's enemies, pleasant ways to rule one's subjects - you will get to learn in all in this book.

Read it if you want to peek into the past through the eyes and ideals of Kautilya! Shelves: own. Other than providing a perspective on governing a petty kingdom in the Subcontinent between BC and AD, there is hardly anything worthwhile to say about this book. Kautilya has recently been promoted to a semi-Machiavellian status. This is undeserved. Some of his advise is laughable: Making seige of a city? How do you assure its fall?

Why, simply infiltrate your troops with the defenders! I guess Kautilya's novelty will wear off and he will be relegated to the dustbin of history. I only w Other than providing a perspective on governing a petty kingdom in the Subcontinent between BC and AD, there is hardly anything worthwhile to say about this book.

I only wish I had the time back that I had wasted reading him. View all 8 comments. Aug 21, Paden rated it really liked it. Don't think I'd do justice by reviewing it. Think would recommend it to read for yourself. May 07, Aditya Kulkarni rated it it was amazing Shelves: indian-history , politics , indian-military-history. It took me more than 2 years to finish this book.

This is because it is not just a book but rather it is an encyclopedia. It is an encyclopedia of politics, statecraft, foreign policy, diplomacy, economics, administration, defence, spycraft, war, among several other things. It is astonishing that this book, written thousands of years ago still remains vastly relevant even to this day. Although many translations have come into existence ever since the Rudrapatna Shamasastry discovered this long-l It took me more than 2 years to finish this book.

Although many translations have come into existence ever since the Rudrapatna Shamasastry discovered this long-lost manuscript in Mysore, what differentiates this version is that it is written by a former IFS Officer.

Written by a former diplomat, it is not merely a translation but rather Ambassador Rangarajan has rearranged the verses and made it easier for the reader to follow. Many IFS officers like Shyam Saran, Shivshankar Menon, Arvind Gupta, and army officers have stressed on including the study of the Arthashastra as a part of officers' training on statecraft, foreign policy, etc. It is sad that as a result of our colonial past, many of the early practitioners of foreign policy hadn't been exposed to the Arthashastra.

Interestingly, in Pakistan though, many officers were taught this masterpiece. However; it has a much wider significance and the material well-being of individuals is just a part of it. In accordance with this; Kautilya's Arthashastra maintains that the state or government of a country has a vital role to play in maintaining the material status of both the nation and its people.

Therefore; a significant part of the Arthashastra has to do with the science of economics. When it deals with the science of politics; the Arthashastra describes in detail the art of government in its widest sense-the maintenance of law and order as also of an efficient administrative machinery.

Imprint Penguin Modern Classics.