Kautilya's Arthashastra is the most important work on politics and administration although its name indicates that it is a treaties on economics.
The reasons for its great importance are :
(1) His Arthashastra is the collection or substance of all the preceding Arthashastras;
(2) Kautilya was truly a realist and he has dealt with the problems which are faced by men in this world;
(3) Among all the great writers on politics, he is the only one who has written independently on the subject, i.e., on politics separated from religion; and
(4) He gave to the country a strong and centralized administration, as had not been known to Indians before.
The Arthashastra is truly an anthology of political wisdom and theory and art of statecraft, scattered in pre- Kautiliyan writings, streamlined and re-interpreted by Kautilya in his attempt to construct a separate and distinct science of statescraft. "The Arthashastra is more a manual for the administrator than a theoretical work on polity discussing the philosophy and fundamental principles of administration or of political science. It mainly deals with the practical problems of government and describes its machinery and functions, both in peace and war, with an exhaustiveness not seen in any later work, with the possible exception of the Shukraniti.
Subject Matter of Arthashastra
The Arthashastra is a comprehensive and up-to-date text having 15 books or parts (Adhikarans), 32 divisions, and 150 chapters, 180 topics and about 6000 shlokas. Of these, the first five deal with what is called tantra or the internal administration of the state, the next eight deal with abapa or its relations with neighbouring states, while the last two are miscellaneous in character.The following subjects are discussed and described in Arthshastra :
1. Vinayadhikaran (about king) – Book one deals with the equipment of the king for the performance of his duties as a ruler. It discusses such topics such as the training of the king, the appointment of ministers and other officers of the state, the daily routine to be normally followed by the ruler and so on.
2. Anyakshaprachar (Administrative officers) - It principally describes the duties of the various executive officers of the state. It gives a fairly full picture of state activity in various fields. It also includes a discussion on such questions as settlement on unoccupied land, building a fort, laying out the capital and so on.
3. Dharamasthiya (judicial procedure) - It is concerned with law and its administraton, reproduces a complete code of law.
4. A Kantakshodhan (provision of punishment to anti-social elements) - It deals with suppression of crime. It shows how to track and punish thieves, murderers, dacoits and other criminals.
5. Yogavritta (duties of loyal officials) miscellaneous in character. It dwells on measures that may be necessary in emergencies, describes the steps to be taken against seditious persons and lays down scales of salaries for the different categories of state servants. It also explains how a candidate for a high office in the state should endeavour to secure and retain it. Finally it gives advice to the Chief Minister on ensuring continuity of rule on the demise of the ruling monarch.
6. Mandal Yoni (control of enemy states) – Book six, which is very short, enumerates the qualities which make each of the seven prakritis or constituents of the state ideal, it also describes the rajmandal or circle of kings as a preliminary to a discussion on the state's relation with its neighbours.
7. Shadguna (repelling enemies) exhaustive discussion on the way in w hich each of the six gunas or measures of foreign policy may be used in the various situations that are likely to arise. The ultimate goal set before the ruler is the conquest of the world. Consequently, we have a description of the various ways in which rivals may be outwitted by stratagem or overcome by force.
8. Vyasanadhikarak (state calamities) - It is concerned with calamities, short comings or weaknesses effecting the various prakritis. It is necessary to overcome the calamities before any aggressive activity can be undertaken.
9. Abhiyartkarma (Prior considerations before launching attack) - Book nine deals with preparations for war and describes the kinds of troops that should be mobilized for an expedition, the proper seasons for starting on an expedition, the precaution to be taken and the dangers to be guarded against before starting.
10. Sangramik ( rules of war for victory) - It is concerned with fighting and describes the camping of the army, ite march, various modes of fighting, types of battle- arra and other topics.
11. Sanghavritta (devices to create division in federal states) the vijigishu or would be conqueror should subjugate samghas or independent oligarchial principalities.
12. Avaliyas (ways to deal with powerful kings) - This shows how a weak king, when threatened by a stronger king, should frustrate the latter's designs and ultimately This contains a single chapter, explains how overcome him.
13. Durglambhopaya (a victory over enemy forts) – It is mainly concerned with the conquest of the enemy's fortified capital by subterfuge or by fighting. It also describes how the conquered territories should be ruled by the vijigishu.
14. Aupanishadika (applying poison, magic, etc. on enemies) - This describes various secret remedies and occult practices useful for getting rid of enemies or traitors.
15. Adhikaran (discussion on meaning of Artha) - It defines and illustrates from itself the thirty-two tantrayuktis or methods of treating a subject.
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