StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Using Documents 11 and 19 on Ancient China and Ancient India - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "Using Documents 11 and 19 on Ancient China and Ancient India" discusses that the Bhagavad Gita, which is part of the classic Indian epic the Mahabaratha, records the dialogue between Arjuna, the Pandava warrior prince and Lord Krishna who is also his chariot driver. …
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER98.5% of users find it useful
Using Documents 11 and 19 on Ancient China and Ancient India
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Using Documents 11 and 19 on Ancient China and Ancient India"

Using documents 11 and 19 on ancient China and ancient India; who, according to Han dignitaries and the Bhagavad-Gita made a good ruler and what qualities did they need to possess? The Bhagavad Gita, which is part of the classic Indian epic the Mahabaratha, records the dialogue between Arjuna, the Pandava warrior prince and Lord Krishna who is also his chariot driver. When faced with the prospect of fighting his own cousins in the field of battle, Arjuna is despaired and aggrieved. He communicates his moral dilemma to his mentor and guide Lord Krishna, who in turn offers Arjuna a discourse on Hindu dharma. While the advice is directed to Arjuna, it is also broadly applicable to all human beings in different contexts in their lives. Krishna derives his code of conduct from the ancient Hindu tradition of Varna Dharma, which was an extension of the caste-system followed in India. According to this system, members of each of the four castes have their own social roles to perform1. Striving to fulfill these roles without questioning them is considered a virtue. Arjuna, having born into the Kshatriya caste (the warriors and rulers) is expected to fight the righteous battle, even if his opponents are his own cousins and eventually one of them might be killed. The people across the battlefield, waiting to confront Arjuna2 with swords, arrows and spears are people like Bhishma and Dhronacharya3, the former being his uncle and the latter his teacher. Not only were they elderly and respectable individuals but were also related by blood. The other contenders were the hundred odd sons of King Dhritirashtra, Arjuna’s father’s own brother4. Indeed, the dilemma and confusion that set in Arjuna’s mind were understandable. It is at this juncture that Lord Krishna consoles Arjuna by extolling to him the virtues of performing one’s designated duties. The duty (dharma) for a warrior prince is to defend his side from enemies. If Arjuna did not carry out this noble calling of his caste, then he will neither achieve peace in this lifetime for his own warring cousins will bring about his death, nor will he attain peace in the afterlife due to the digression of not having performed his duty. As per the code of conduct prescribed by Varna Dharma, a Kshatriya (warrior) should not hesitate to kill his own brother if the latter is wrong. Arjuna, the warrior prince is impelled to decimate those forces that are devious and corrupt. In the war of Kurushetra, the devious and corrupt forces have assumed the form of his Kaurava cousin brothers and hence Arjuna should not express such sentimental notions which are unbecoming of his caste. When Arjuna doubts the very necessity of this war, Krishna explains to him the righteousness of the war and how a warrior prince should not be intimidated by the cycle of birth and death, for out of the debris of dutiful destruction emerges divine life5. In other words, a good ruler would participate in the affairs of his kingdom with a sense of detachment and would also exhibit virtues of fortitude and bravery. In the text of ancient Chinese dignitaries of the Han kingdom, the focus of leadership is more toward the economic aspects of a ruler as opposed to interpersonal or social aspects. A good ruler should be able to display effectiveness in handling various situations in war as well as in peace. Emperor +Wu of the Han dynasty exemplified these qualities more than anybody else since in the history of Han Chinese. His foremost virtue is the adoption of “rule by consensus”, wherein the King would have intellectual discussions with ministers and other learned men before declaring his edicts. In spite of possessing supreme command over his subjects, Emperor Wu still carried himself with humility. The other important quality expected of a king was his ability to facilitate efficient production and distribution of essential goods. First under the leadership of Emperor Wu and later under Emperor Zhao, the advanced economic scheme of “equable marketing system” were implemented6. This was a sophisticated system of organizing economic activity by way of eliminating bottlenecks in the distribution system and encouraging innovation in production tools. Not only were the Han dignitaries’ economic system advanced for its time, its implementers were also able to make nuanced observations of human life and its necessities7. As a result, the produce was classified under “essential” and “luxury” categories and the artisans and peasants were monitored to see that luxury commodities do not become surplus at the cost of diminishing essential goods. Even more meritorious is the notion of the balancing standard, wherein “a receiving bureau was established at the capital for all the commodities. Because goods were bought when the prices were low and sold when the prices were high, the government suffered no loss and the merchants could not speculate for profit”. Hence, according to Han dignitaries of the 1st century B.C, a good ruler must have a thorough understanding of economic activity so that he can devise suitable plans for different contexts8. The other admirable quality expected of a Han ruler is ‘integrity’. A Han ruler would dispense justice to all his subjects irrespective of their station or rank. In fact, the standard of judgment is more stringent for the king’s ministers and consuls than common citizens. By imposing such measures, the Han kings discouraged their subjects from the greedy pursuit of wealth and encouraged them to live a balanced life with a focus on more meaningful aspects to life. In other words, “a true King promotes the basic and discourages the secondary. He restrains the people’s desires through the principles of ritual and duty and arranges to have grain exchanged for other goods. In his markets merchants do not circulate worthless goods nor do artisans make worthless implements”. Such wisdom of the ancient Chinese is as applicable today as it was for their time. Read More
Tags
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“A good ruler Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
A good ruler Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551890-a-good-ruler
(A Good Ruler Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
A Good Ruler Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551890-a-good-ruler.
“A Good Ruler Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551890-a-good-ruler.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Using Documents 11 and 19 on Ancient China and Ancient India

The Contribution Made by UN Convention on the Trans-Boundary Movement of Hazardous Waste

This essay "The Contribution Made by UN Convention on the Trans-Boundary Movement of Hazardous Waste" focuses on the convention that only regulates the hazardous waste trade.... The convention does not seek to impose an absolute ban on the movement across international borders.... .... ... ... Performance of the Convention cannot be accurately measured in the absence of data on legal and illegal transboundary movements of hazardous waste....
16 Pages (4000 words) Essay

ITALIAN WINE IN CHINA: Understand Chinese wine market and consumers

In order to tap opportunities of growth, the organizations all over the world are turning their focus on countries of the Asia Pacific region especially to that of india and China.... In discussing about the origin of wine in china, the researcher needs to open the pages of history books that providing a very in-depth overview of Chinese literature and culture that was existent in the early times.... This particular project is intended to discuss and understand about the demand of Italian wine among the consumers present in the urban markets of china, especially in the cities of Beijing and Shanghai....
18 Pages (4500 words) Literature review

Which Ethnic Groups Claimed to Have Discovered the New World

People as diverse as the Phoenicians, the Scandinavians, the Irish, the Welsh, the Chinese, the Romans, the Greeks, the Celts, the Basques, the Ainu, the Egyptians, the Norse, the Arabs, the ancient powers of india, the Polynesians, and every other sea-faring culture before that most certainly got to North and South America were actually in the New World, in some cases, way before 1492.... The term Phoenician refers to the inhabitants of the ancient cities of Tyre and Sidon and also included the Israelite tribes of Dan, Asher, and Zebulon who resided near these cities along the eastern Mediterranean shore....
9 Pages (2250 words) Essay

Trade relations between India and China from the beginning to 1500 AD

Puskalavati is considered to be the first gateway of ancient india and was the most significant commercial mart because it contributed actively in commercial transaction between India and China in the first century A.... Other important trade links between china and India included Ping-Yang and Kwi-Yang.... For that reason, india and China share an inherent sense as the greatest and flourishing civilizations.... Indian The aim of this research paper is to investigate the history of india-China trade relations from ancient times till sixteenth century....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Shipping Sector and Second-hand LNG Ships

In this research essay, the reporter deliberates why second-hand LNG ships should be acquired by evaluating its technical and economical strategies in detail.... here are about 346 LNG carriers presently involved in LNG business on the international level.... .... ... ... The majority component of LNG is Methane and natural gas is chilled to minus 2600 F and kept in a fluid state at approximately three and halt psig in isolated tanks....
19 Pages (4750 words) Essay

Ethnic Groups Claimed to Have Discovered the New World

People as diverse as the Phoenicians, the Scandinavians, the Irish, the Welsh, the Chinese, the Romans, the Greeks, the Celts, the Basques, the Ainu, the Egyptians, the Norse, the Arabs, the ancient powers of india, the Polynesians, and every other sea-faring culture before that most certainly got to North and South America were actually in the New World, in some cases, way before 1492.... The ancient sailors and explorers under the influence of the currents and prevailing winds, and at the mercy of the mighty seas in the long voyages....
9 Pages (2250 words) Term Paper

Connection of China and Italian Wine

The paper "Connection of china and Italian Wine" is an outstanding example of a marketing case study.... The paper "Connection of china and Italian Wine" is an outstanding example of a marketing case study.... The paper "Connection of china and Italian Wine" is an outstanding example of a marketing case study....
22 Pages (5500 words) Case Study

Development of CERES Principles

The company was not willing to disseminate information using other locations and different methods.... The essay "Development of CERES Principles" focuses on the critical analysis of the major issues in the principles of Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES), an investor environmental alliance did sprang from the Exxon Valdez disaster, that took occurred in 1989....
9 Pages (2250 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us