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For other uses, see Chanakya (disambiguation).
Chanakya
Born370 BC
Patliputra (modern day Patna)
Died283 BC (aged 87)
Names
Acharya Vishnugupta

Chānakya (Sanskrit: चाणक्य Cāṇakya) (c. 370–283 BCE) was a teacher to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta (c. 340–293 BCE) - the first emperor in the archaeologically recorded history to rule the complete Indian Subcontinent. Chanakya is generally considered to be the architect of Chandragupta's rise to power at a young age. Traditionally, he is also identified by the names Kautilya and Vishnu Gupta, who authored the ancient Indian political treatise called Arthaśāstra.[1] Chanakya is considered as the pioneer of the field of economics and political science and his work is thought of as an important precursor to Classical Economics.[2][3][4][5] In the Western world, he has been referred to as The Hindu Machiavelli, although Chanakya's works predate Machiavelli's by about 1,800 years..[6] Chanakya was a teacher in Takṣhaśhila, now in Pakistan, an ancient centre of learning, and was responsible for the creation of Mauryan empire, the first of its kind on the Indian subcontinent. His works were lost near the end of the Gupta dynasty and not rediscovered until 1915.[3]

Origin

Birth

Chankay's birthplace is a matter of controversy, and there are multiple theories about his origin.[7] According to some scholars he was born in a family of Brahmin as the son of Acharya Chanak in Patliputra (near present-day Patna), the capital of Magadh.[citation needed] According to Jaina accounts, Chānakya was born in the village of Canaka to Caṇin and Caṇeśvarī, a Brahmin couple. According to the Buddhist text Mahavamsa Tika, his birthplace was Taxila.[8] The Jain scriptures like Adbidhana Chintamani mention his birth place as South India possibly present-day Kerala.[8]

Chanakya enjoyed the best education of the time, in Takshasila. Then he is said to have taught in Takshashila which had established itself as a place of learning. The school had by that time existed for more than five centuries and attracted students from all over the ancient world. The Kingdom of Magadha maintained contact with Takshashilâ. Chanakya's life was connected to these two cities, Pataliputra and Takshasilâ.

Identity

He is generally called Chanakya (derived from his father's name "Chanak")[9] but, in his capacity as author of the Arthaśhāstra, is generally referred to as Kautilya derived from his gotra's name Shakaldweepi. He was a master of the shrewd act of diplomacy. He believed in four ways—Sama, Daama, Danda, Bheda (treating with Equality, Enticement, Punishment or War and Sowing Dissension.)[10] The Arthaśhāstra identifies its author by the name Kautilya,[1] except for one verse which refers to him by the name Vishnugupta.[11] One of the earliest Sanskrit literatures to explicitly identify Chanakya with Vishnugupta was Vishnu Sharma's Panchatantra in the 3rd century BC.[12]

K.C. Ojha puts forward the view that the traditional identification of Vishnugupta with Kautilya was caused by a confusion of editor and originator and suggests that Vishnugupta was a redactor of the original work of Kautilya.[1] Thomas Burrow goes even further and suggests that Chanakya and Kautilya may have been two different people.[13]

Early life

The classical Sanskrit play by Vishakhadatta, Mudrarakshasa, is one popular source of Chanakya lore.

Kauṭilya was educated at Taxila or Takshashila,[14] then present in north-western India and now in present day Pakistan. The new states (in present-day Bihar and Uttar Pradesh) by the northern high road of commerce along the base of the Himalayas maintained contact with Takshashilâ and at the eastern end of the northern high road (uttarapatha) was the kingdom of Magadha with its capital city, Pataliputra, now known as Patna.

In his early years he was tutored extensively in the Vedas - Chanakya memorized them completely at a very early age. He also taught mathematics, geography and science along with dharmic education. Later he traveled to Takshashila, where he became a teacher of politics. Chanakya taught subjects using the best of practical knowledge acquired by the teachers. The age of entering the University was sixteen. The branches of study most sought after around India at that time ranged from law, medicine, warfare and other disciplines. Two of his more famous students were Bhadrabhatta and Purushdutta, who were also disciples of Chanakya.

According to the Kashmiri version of his legend, Chāṇakya, there is an anecdote which says a thorn had pricked his foot once. After that instead of uprooting the tree, he poured buttermilk (in Hindi called "Mattha" )on the tree so that the ants will gather around tree and finish the tree to its last pieces.

Literary work

Two books are attributed to Chanakya: Arthashastra and Neetishastra which is also known as Chanakya Niti. The Arthashastra discusses monetary and fiscal policies, welfare, international relations, and war strategies in detail. Neetishastra is a treatise on the ideal way of life, and shows Chanakya's deep study of the Indian way of life. Chanakya also developed Neeti-Sutras (aphorisms - pithy sentences) that tell people how they should behave. Of these well-known 455 sutras, about 216 refer to raaja-neeti (the do's and don'ts of running a kingdom). Apparently, Chanakya used these sutras to groom Chandragupta and other selected disciples in the art of ruling a kingdom.

He was a highly educated man. He also knew vedic astrology. His thoughts about vedic astrology can be found in the text called saravali.

Career

Silver punch mark coin of the Mauryan empire, with symbols of wheel and elephant. 3rd century BCE.

Thomas R. Trautmann lists the following elements as common to different forms of the Chanakya legend:[15]

  • Chanakya was born with a complete set of teeth, a sign that he would become king, which is inappropriate for a Brahmin like Chanakya. Chāṇakya's teeth were therefore broken and it was prophesied that he will rule through another.
  • The Nanda King throws Chānakya out of his court, prompting Chānakya to swear revenge.
  • Chānakya searches for one worthy for him to rule through. Chānakya encounters a young Chandragupta Maurya who is a born leader even as a child. Chanakya established monarchial system in ancient historical times in India. He may be main architect to groom a child, but his means to reach power were manipulative and secretive.
  • Chānakya's initial attempt to overthrow Nanda fails, whereupon he comes across a mother scolding her child for burning himself by eating from the middle of a bun or bowl of porridge rather than the cooler edge. Chāṇakya realizes his initial strategic error and, instead of attacking the heart of Nanda territory, slowly chips away at its edges.
  • Chānakya changed his alliance with the mountain king Parvata due to his obstinacy and non-adherence to the principles of the treaty as agreed.
  • Chānakya enlists the services of a fanatical weaver to rid the kingdom of rebels.
  • Chānakya adds poison to the food eaten by Chandragupta Maurya, now king, in order to make him immune.[16] [citation needed] Unaware, Chandragupta feeds some of his food to his queen, who is in her ninth month of pregnancy. In order to save the heir to the throne, Chānakya cuts the queen open and extracts the foetus, who is named Bindusara because he was touched by a drop (bindu) of blood having poison. [citation needed] [17]

Chanakya was a shrewd observer of nature. Once, it is said that Mauryan forces had to hide in a cave. There was no food, and the soldiers were starving.They could not come out of the cave either, as there was a threat to their lives. Chanakya saw an ant taking a grain of rice, whereas, there was no sign of food or grain anywhere. Moreover, the rice grain was cooked. He ordered the soldiers to search and they found that their enemies had been dining under the cave. Indeed, they were eating at the ground floor. As soon as they saw this, they escaped and were thus saved.

Death

When Bindusara was in his youth, Chandragupta gave up the throne and followed the Jain saint Bhadrabahu to present day Karnataka and settled in the place of Shravana Belagola. He lived as an ascetic for some years and died of voluntary starvation according to Jain tradition.

Chanakya meanwhile stayed as the administrator of Bindusara. Bindusara also had a minister named Subandhu who did not like Chanakya. One day he told Bindusara that Chanakya was responsible for the murder of his mother. Bindusara asked the nurses who confirmed this story and he became very angry with Chanakya. But, he then came to know why the great soul did so. The real cause of Chanakya's death is unknown and disputed. But it is mentioned at various places that he died out of his own wish(ichamrityu literally- icha meaning wish mrityu meaning death)

Legacy

Chanakya is not only considered a great thinker and diplomat, but also one of the earliest people who envisaged the united India spanning the entire subcontinent. A great nation divided into many small princely states and kingdoms but there was a strong cultural thread and history, geography and commerce which united the Indian peninsula.

The diplomatic enclave in New Delhi is named Chanakyapuri in honour of Chanakya.

Media

  • The story of Chanakya and Chandragupta was taken as film in Telugu language in 1977 entitled Chanakya Chandragupta. Akkineni Nageswara Rao played the role of Chanakya, while N. T. Rama Rao portrayed as Chandragupta.[18]
  • Television series Chanakya is archetypal account of the life and times of Chanakya, based on the play "Mudra Rakshasa" (The Signet Ring of "Rakshasa")
  • A Television series on Imagine TV available as "Chandragupta Maurya" (The serial is based on the life of Indian ruler "Chandragupta Maurya" and "Chanakya")[19]
  • A book has been published in English titled 'Chanakya on Management"{18} in which each of the 216 sutras on raja-neeti has been translated and commented upon. Clearly, the entire system of thought propounded by Chanakya is based on following good ethical principles.
  • In his Arthasastra, Chanakya has discussed widely various economic issues. A book written by Ratan Lal Basu & Rajkumar Sen has dealt exhaustively with these economic concepts of Chanakya and their relevance for the modern world.[20]
  • Many eminent Kauṭilya experts from all over the world had discussed various aspects of Kauṭilya's thought in an International Conference held in 2009 at Oriental Research Institute, Mysore, India to celebrate the Centenary of discovery of the manuscript of the Arthashastra by R. Shamasastry. Most of the papers presented in the Conference have been compiled in an edited volume by Raj Kumar Sen and Ratan Lal Basu.[21][22]
  • Chanakya's Chant by Ashwin Sanghi is a fictional retelling of the life of Chanakya a political strategist of ancient India. The novel relates two stories in parallel, the first of Chanakya and his machinations to bring Chandragupta Maurya to the throne of Magadha; the second, that of a modern-day character called Gangasagar Mishra who makes it his ambition to position a slum child as the Prime Minister of India.
  • A popular Hindi channel started a Biographical series on the life of Chandragupta Maurya and his teacher, Chanakya. The series is named Chandragupta Maurya.[23]
  • The song "Make My" by The Roots from their 2011 album Undun features a quote attributed to Chanakya: "A man is born alone and dies alone; he experiences the good and the bad and the consequences of his karma alone; and he goes alone to hell or the Supreme Abode"
  • Kautilya's role in the formation of the Mauryan Empire is the essence of a historical/spiritual novel The Courtesan and the Sadhu by Dr. Mysore N. Prakash.[24]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Mabbett, I. W. (1964). "The Date of the Arthaśāstra". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 84 (2). American Oriental Society: 162–169. doi:10.2307/597102. JSTOR 597102. ISSN 0003-0279.
  2. ^ L. K. Jha, K. N. Jha (1998). "Chanakya: the pioneer economist of the world", International Journal of Social Economics 25 (2-4), p. 267–282.
  3. ^ a b Waldauer, C., Zahka, W.J. and Pal, S. 1996. Kauṭilya's Arthashastra: A neglected precursor to classical economics. Indian Economic Review, Vol. XXXI, No. 1, pp. 101-108.
  4. ^ Tisdell, C. 2003. A Western perspective of Kauṭilya's Arthasastra: does it provide a basis for economic science? Economic Theory, Applications and Issues Working Paper No. 18. Brisbane: School of Economics, The University of Queensland.
  5. ^ Sihag, B.S. 2007. Kauṭilya on institutions, governance, knowledge, ethics and prosperity. Humanomics 23 (1): 5-28.
  6. ^ Herbert H. Gowen (1929). "The Indian Machiavelli" and in a much more conventional world.or Political Theory in India Two Thousand Years Ago, Political Science Quarterly 44 (2), p. 173–192.
  7. ^ Maxims of Chanakya: Kautilya. Abhinav Publications by V. K. Subramanian (1980). Page 2. ISBN 978-0-8364-0616-0. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  8. ^ a b The Indian Encyclopaedia by Subodh Kapoor (2002). Cosmo Publications. Page 1372. ISBN 978-81-7755-257-7. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  9. ^ Trautmann, Thomas R. (1971). Kautilya and the Arthaśhāstra: A Statistical Investigation of the Authorship and Evolution of the Text. Leiden: E.J. Brill. p. 10.
  10. ^ Trautmann 1971:10 "while in his character as author of an arthaśhāstra he is generally referred to by his gotra name, Kautilya."
  11. ^ Mabbett 1964
    Trautmann 1971:5 "the very last verse of the work...is the unique instance of the personal name Vishnugupta rather than the gotra name Kautilya in the Arthaśhāstra.
  12. ^ Mabbett 1964: "References to the work in other Sanskrit literature attribute it variously to Vishnugupta, Chanakya and Kautilya. The same individual is meant in each case. The Pańcatantra explicitly identifies Chanakya with Vishnugupta."
  13. ^ Trautmann 1971:67 'T. Burrow ("Cāṇakya and Kauṭalya", Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 48–49 1968, p. 17 ff.) has now shown that Cāṇakya is also a gotra name, which in conjunction with other evidence makes it clear that we are dealing with two distinct persons, the minister Cāṇakya of legend and Kauṭilya the compiler of the Arthaśāstra. Furthermore, this throws the balance of evidence in favor of the view that the second name was originally spelt Kauṭalya and that after the compiler of the Arth. came to be identified with the Mauryan minister it was altered to Kautilya (as it appears in Āryaśūra, Viśākhadatta and Bāna) for the sake of the pun. We must then assume that the later spelling subsequently replaced the earlier in the gotra lists and elsewhere.'
  14. ^ Chanakya-Niti
  15. ^ Trautmann 1971:"The Chāṇakya-Chandragupt-Kathā"
  16. ^ Bibliotheca Indica, Volume 96, Issue 5. Asiatic Society (Calcutta, India). Baptist Mission Press, 1891.
  17. ^ Jainism in South India by P. M. Joseph. International School of Dravidian Linguistics, 1997. ISBN 978-81-85692-23-4.
  18. ^ Chanakya Chandragupta, 1977 Telugu film at IMDb.
  19. ^ TV, Imagine. "Channel". TV Channel.
  20. ^ Ratan Lal Basu & Rajkumar Sen: Ancient Indian Economic Thought, Relevance for Today, ISBN 81-316-0125-0, Rawat Publications, New Delhi, 2008
  21. ^ Raj Kumar Sen & Ratan Lal Basu (eds): Economics in Arthasastra, ISBN 81-7629-819-0, Deep& Deep Publications Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 2006
  22. ^ Srinivasaraju, Sugata (27 July 2009). "Year of the Guru". Outlook India. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
  23. ^ "Chandragupta Maurya". www.tvbasti.com, Retrieved 11 January 2012
  24. ^ The Courtesan and the Sadhu, A Novel about Maya, Dharma, and God, October 2008, Dharma Vision LLC.,ISBN 978-0-9818237-0-6, Library of Congress Control Number: 2008934274

References

  • Iyengar, P. T. Srinivasa (1929). History of the Tamils from the Earliest Times to the Present Day. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Thurston, Edgar (1909). Castes and Tribes of Southern India Volume I - A and B. Madras: Government Press. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
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