The History of Arthashastra - Term Paper Example

?Arthashastra Outline Introduction The History of Arthashastra Its translation The books of Arthashastra The king Analysis of the contents of the Arthashastra and their relevance today Conclusion Introduction It refers to an old treatise from India on economic policy and military strategy. Its authorship is mainly attributed to Kautilya, an ancient scholar at Takshashilla and the teacher and guardian of Emperor Chandragupta Maurya, the man behind the founding of Mauryan Empire. Wise men say that nothing vindicates belief better than reality. That is why, over two thousand four hundred years ago, Kautilya authored this historic publication. Through the authorship of the Arthashastra, he enabled the inception of the Gupta Dynasty. Since then, the Arthashastra has stood the test of time and has passed the test of credibility. This man, through his writing, demonstrated vision and foresight. If we share from the wisdom that Kautilya embodied, we will be enriching ourselves. This paper is going to address the following issues concerning the Arthashastra, they are, the authorship, translation of the title, books of Arthashastra, the Rajarshi, maintenance of law and order, wildlife and forests and finally the economic ideas in the Arthashastra. The History of Arthashastra Its origin It is believed that the Arthashastra was written in the period around 2nd century BC. This is according to R.P. Kangle on his writing about the Kautilya Arthashastra. However, the current content that we know may have been edited and condensed in the 2nd century A.D. This explains why some affinities and references in it may be anachronistic for the fourth century BC. Other scholars hold the belief that it was authored in the 7th century BC. There had been claims that the Arthashastra had been authored by two different people, namely, Kautilya and Chanukah.1 However, these claims tend to de disapproved by the fact that the treatise ends with the following words. “This Sastra has been made by him from whom intolerance (of misrule) quickly rescued the scriptures and the science of weapons and the earth which had passed to the Nanda ‘king.” From that statement by Thomas R. Trautmann, it can easily be deduced that Kautilya and Chanukah are the same person, because Chanukah was mandated with mentorship to Chandragupta Maurya. This however did not eliminate the controversy over Kautilya’s sole authorship of the Arthashastra. In a nut shell, as regards its authorship, most scholars agree that it happened between the 7th century BC and 4th century AD. However, it became influential in the 12th century when it became influential, when it disappeared. It was then discovered in 1904 and published in 1909. The first English translation was published nearly a hundred years ago. Its translation The Arthashastra has had different translations done by various scholars including A.L. Basham, D.D. Katsambis, G.P. Singh and Roger Boesche. Each of these has accorded the publication a different title although with closely related meaning. According to Boesche, the Arthashastra is “a book of political realism, analyzing how the political world does work and not very often stating how it should work, a book that frequently discloses to a king what calculating and sometimes brutal measures he must carry out to preserve the state and the common good.” One reason why this scholar defined this publication in such a manner was because of the argument in it that described how an efficient and solid economy can be managed. In it, the ethics of economics and the duties and obligations of a king are clearly stipulated. The Arthashastra dealt with a wide range of issues regarding the running of a kingdom. It laid out the policies of administration, the redistribution of wealth, handling of the natural resources, taking good care of animals, medicine and the important of medicine on society. The books of Arthashastra According to Rangareajan, the Arthashastra is divided into 15 books. They are named as follows: concerning the Discipline, The Duties of Government Superintendents, Concerning the Law, The Removal of Thorns, The Conduct of Courtiers, The Source of Sovereign States, The End of the Six-Fold Policy, Concerning Vices and Calamities, The Work of an Invader, Relating to War, The conduct of Corporations, Concerning a Powerful Enemy, Strategic Means to Capture a Fortress, Secret Means, The Plan of a Treatise.2 The king The qualities of a king The king was also known as the Rajarshi in the Gupta Dynasty, a symbolic term that used to depict the character of wisdom and virtue. Katilya was of the view that a king was one who could put the interest of his subjects before his personal interests. In order to achieve this, the Rajarshi had to be self –controlled, having overcome the dreadful temptations of emotions. He was also to cultivate intellect by association with elders. It was also highly recommended that the king keep his eyes open through his spies. The responsibility of protecting and guarding the citizenry solely lay on the hands of the king. This was clearly demonstrated from Rangarajan. The King was also charged with the responsibility to ensure that people observe their dharma both by authority and example. Since information is power, the king was expected to improve his own discipline by learning in all branches of knowledge. Finally, the Rajarshi was to maintain a good rapport with the people by enriching them and doing well to them. The king was also to carry himself in a modest manner, not to covet a neighbor’s wife, property, be violent on nobody and in general avoid all kinds of malicious practices. The duties of a king An exhaustive and illustrative description of the duties of a king is given by Kautilya. The duties included political administration, defense matters, legal and criminal issues and other tasks that regarded the governing of a kingdom. It was the duty of the king to oversee defense activities in his army, inspect the management of the revenue and expenditure of the economy, appoint ministers and other high officials and assign tasks to them, receive information from spies and act accordingly among other stipulated duties. These tasks were daunting and therefore they needed zeal and proper time management for successful undertaking. That being the case, the king’s schedule was clearly stipulated in the Arthashastra so that he would not miss to do any. It was a great requirement for the king to always carry out duties with vigor and vitality. In the modern society, we find Kautilya’s leadership principles still relevant to a great extent. Those charge with governing responsibilities today also need to be very good in the principles of administration. Analysis of the contents of the Arthashastra and their relevance today Kautilya emphasized the importance of good governance and administration if the objectives of the state are to be fulfilled and realized. According to him a good government should avoid extreme actions and extreme decisions. Soft actions and harsh actions should be taken accordingly. The kings with his ministers were supposed to observe strict discipline and this would be achieved through a strict code of conduct for them all. The problem of corruption was deeply covered with forty ways of embezzling government funds being outlined. This code of conduct is useful and applicable to modern executives. Kautilya emphasized on capping at a quarter of the revenue, the salaries of the king and his officials. The leaders were to be considered as servants of the people for the sake of good governance. Good governance and stability are inextricably linked. If rulers are responsive, accountable, removable, recallable, there is stability. The opposite is the case if these qualities are absent. In the sphere of economic administration, there is a lot to be learned from the Arthashastra. There has been great neglect of the rural villages and status quo has taken precedence. The Arthashastra had laid out ways of ensuring that the agriculture, textile, and other local sectors were upgraded but these remained just as they were.3 Profit was a must in Kautilya’s scheme of running a country’s administration. In the modern day, especially in India where the Arthashastra 4was drafted, the president is really seen or heard from, yet during those times, he would be available to the people for a minimum of one and a half hours per day. Some of the ground rules and measures suggested in Arthashastra , particularly those pertaining to matters relating to budget, accounts, and audit, are applicable to the present day India. Those with high political importance are rarely convicted even though they are caught up in corruption cases and proven guilty of committing certain offenses. In the fourth chapter of his book, Kautilya distinguished six of different kinds of interests which were; compound interest, periodical interest, stipulated interest, daily interest and the use of a pledged article. This was indeed the origin of expressing interest as a percentage. Therefore, through Kautilyan, concept of interest seemed elaborate and modern. It is applicable up to date in the formulation of wage formulation with a great consideration of the current economic, social and political factors. The emerging policy must be just, and must be consistent with the interest of the state. The policy suggested attempts to strike a balance between the delicate interests of the parties involved. Kautilya indicated that even if the state is at advantaged position as a monopolist, it should co-operate with the private sector for proper utilization of resources. This is because the stronger the private sector is, the stronger the state. This is because the private sector determines where that state goes in terms of development. Still. Kautilya outlined several ways in which a state can intervene in order to facilitate the economic life of the country. They included: The superintendent of slaughterhouse The superintendent of prostitutes The superintendent of ships The superintendent of passports The office of the city superintendent. One thing that comes out clearly was his idea of passports. It very much corresponds to the modern version of the document that facilitates the movement of people across borders. Again, he noted that the state was to ensure that commercial activities did not interfere with laws or harm the consumer. If anyone violated any of these stipulated laws, they were liable for charges in the court of law. A heavy fine would be imposed on them. Conclusion In a nut shell, the Arthashastra is a very ancient document, at one point in history. Determined scholars sort for it and discovered where it was. Issues still remain about its authorship but the majority agrees that it was written by Kautilya. The document contains a wealth of wisdom about good governance which is still applicable up to date. It was originally used in India. The concepts embedded in the document should apply in those countries that have the determination to develop. Works Cited Boesche, Roger. The First Political Realist: kautilya and His Arthashastra. Lanham: Lexington Books, 2002. Kautilya. Arthashastra. New Delhi: Laurier Books, 1997. Sen, R.K. and Basu, R.L. Economics in Arthastra. New Delhi: Deep & Deep Publications, 2006. William, J. Duiker. The Essential World History. Pennsylvania: Cengage Learning, 2010. Read More