Chanakya

**Chanakya**

Allegiance: Magadhan Empire Rank: Prime Minister Place of birth: Pataliputra, India Chanakya (c.350 - c.275 BC), also known as Kautilya or Vishnugupta, was born in Pataliputra, Magadha (modern Bihar, India), and later moved to Taxila, in Gandhara province (now in Pakistan). He was a professor (acharya) of political science at the Takshashila University and later the Prime Minister of the Emperor Chandragupta Maurya. He is regarded as one of the earliest known political thinkers, economists and king-makers. He was the man to envision the first Indian empire by unification of the then numerous kingdoms in the northern Indian sub-continent. Chanakya is perhaps less well known outside India compared to other social and political philosophers of the world like Confucius and Machiavelli. His foresight and wide knowledge coupled with politics of expediency helped found the mighty Mauryan Empire in India. He compiled his political ideas into the Arthashastra, one of the world's earliest treatises on political thought and social order. His ideas remain popular to this day in India. In Jawaharlal Nehru's Discovery of India, Chanakya has been called the Indian Machiavelli, although he lived and died long before Machiavelli's time.

No complete biography exists and most material about his life is gleaned from legendary material written much after his times. All agree that he brought about the end of the Nandas and was the guide of Chandragupta Maurya. The 9th century AD Sanskrit play by Vishakhadatta, Mudra Rakshasa, is one popular source of Chankaya lore. The important medieval Jain work Parishista-parvan, by Hemachandra from Gujarat also contains a lot of stories related to Chankya, including the one about his death given below.

Origins

Chanakya (also known as Ansul or Anshu or Kautilya or Vishnugupta) was most probably born in a Bhumihar Brahmin family of Magadha (ruled by the Nandas) as the son of acharya Chanak. A South Indian group of Brahmins, Chozhiyas, claim that Chanakya was one of them. Though this may sound very improbable considering the vast distance between present day Tamilnadu in the south and Magadha in Bihar, it finds curious echos in Parishista-parvan, where Hemachandra claims that Chankya was a Dramila (Dramila, being a very common variant of Dravida).

Chanakya enjoyed the best education of the time, in 'Takshashila' (also known in its corrupted form as Taxila).Takshasilâ had established itself as a place of learning and it was there that Panini had written the Sanskrit Grammar. The school had by that time existed for at least five centuries and attracted students from all over the ancient world of Southeast Asia. The new states (in present-day Bihar and Uttar Pradesh) by uttarapatha along the base of the Himalayas maintained contact with Takshasilâ and at the eastern end of the uttarapatha was the kingdom of Magadha with its capital city, Pataliputra (now corrupted to Patna). Chanakya's life was connected to these two cities, Pataliputra and Takshasilâ.

In his early years he was tutored extensively in the Vedas (considered to be the toughest scriptures to study) - Chanakya memorized them completely at a very early age. He was also taught mathematics, geography and science along with religion. Later he travelled to the university, where he studied and then became a professor of political science. 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. Chanakya eventually became a professor of political science at the University. Two of his more famous students were Bhadrabhatt and Purushdutt.

Political turmoil in Western India at that time caused by Greek invasion forced Chanakya to leave the University environment for the city of Pataliputra (presently known as Patna, in the state of Bihar, India), which was ruled by the Nanda king Dhanananda. Although Chanakya initially prospered in his relations with the ruler, being a blunt person he was soon disliked by the Dhanananda. This ended with Chanakya being removed from an official position he enjoyed.

Introduction to Chandragupta

Folklore has it that on his way out of the city after his removal, Chanakya was hurt by a thorny bush. He then bought a pot of milk and poured on the bush so that ants could come and destroy the bush. It is said that at this moment he was observed by a young Chandragupta Maurya, the future Emperor and creator of the Mauryan empire. Chanakya was the kingmaker who actually planned the unification of India for the first time under Chandragupta.

According to Professor Roger Boesche:

"To return to Machiavelli after reading the military writings of Kautilya is a jolt. It becomes readily apparent that Machiavelli is not even trying to tell us something new about warfare, because he believed the ancient Greeks and Romans knew it all - aside from such things as artillery...

"They (Kautilya and Sun Tzu) were also prepared to win in ways Machiavelli would regard as dishonourable and disgraceful-assassination, disinformation, causing quarrels between ministers by bribes or by means of jealousy over a beautiful woman planted as a secret agent, and so on. Machiavelli - who offers no systematic discussion of even guerrilla warfare - would have been easily outmatched by generals reading either Sun Tzu or Kautilya."

Legend has it that Chanakya was insulted by the Nanda rulers, and vowed to destroy their kingdom. Travelling through the forest, he came across a boy who had a regal bearing, and obvious leadership qualities. The way he played 'king' with his friends and conducted himself as one impressed Chankaya. He picked him up and trained him to be Chandragupta Maurya.

According to all the legendary material, Chanakya used to his advantage every chink in Nanda's kingdom, every weakness in his empire, defeated him and finally had Chandragupta as king of Magadha.

Death of Chanakya

Background: Chanakya lived to ripe old age and died around 283 BC and was cremated by his grandson/disciple Radhagupta who succeeded Rakshasa Katyayan as Prime Minister of the Mauryan Empire and was instrumental in backing Ashoka to the throne. There were three non-traditional belief paths in society those days, Jaina, Buddhist and Ajivaka. Ajivaka practising Chankaya brought about downfall of Jaina Nandas and their coterie of Jaina ministers. (Chanakya 's uncle was Jain too and a group of Jains backed Chanakya in his political machinations). Later on, Chandragupta Maurya took Jainism on abdicating throne which passed to his Son Bindusara who was an Ajivaka. Even Ashoka was practising Ajivaka who before accession to throne became Buddhist. Bindusara was born before his father ever became Emperor so below legend is definitely not true. Ashoka's daughter was married in 265 BC and his son Kunala was 18 years of age in 269 BC which means that even if the princes married early, Ashoka was born 310 BC and Bindusara around 330 BC. Bindu does not mean drop in Sanskrit and specifically in 300 BC it denoted the new mathematical term Zero. Bindusara means one who encompasses all that is need to be known.

Later on, Ajivikism which was official religion of empire from Kalinga war 261 BC for 14 years afterwards declined and merged into traditional Hinduism. What has been left are mish mash of contradictory Buddhist and jaina legends which are even rejected by Sinhalese chronicles.

According to a legend which is later jaina invention, while Chanakya served as the Prime Minister of Chandragupta Maurya, he started adding small amounts of poison in Chandragupta's food so that he would get used to it. The aim of this was to prevent the Emperor from being poisoned by enemies. One day the queen, Durdha, shared the food with the Emperor while she was pregnant. Since she was not used to eating poisoned food, she died. Chanakya decided that the baby should not die; hence he cut open the belly of the queen and took out the baby. A drop (bindu in Sanskrit) of poison had passed to the baby's head, and hence Chanakya named him Bindusara. Bindusara would go on to become a great king and to father the greatest Mauryan Emperor since Chandragupta - Asoka.

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

Chanakya meanwhile stayed as the Prime Minister 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.

It is said that Chanakya, on hearing that the Emperor was angry with him, thought that anyway he was at the end of his life. He donated all his wealth to the poor, widows and orphans and sat on a dung heap, prepared to die by total abstinence from food and drink. Bindusara meanwhile heard the full story of his birth from the nurses and rushed to beg forgiveness of Chanakya. But Chanakya would not relent. Bindusara went back and vent his fury on Subandhu, who asked for time to beg for forgiveness from Chanakya.

Subandhu, who still hated Chanakya, wanted to make sure that Chanakya did not return to the city. So he arranged for a ceremony of respect, but unnoticed by anyone, slipped a smoldering charcoal ember inside the dung heap. Aided by the wind, the dung heap swiftly caught fire, and the man behind the Mauryan Empire and the author of Arthashastra was burned to death.

His main philosophy was "A debt should be paid off till the last penny; An enemy should be destroyed without a trace".

Works

Three books are attributed to Chanakya: Arthashastra, Nitishastra and Chanakya Niti. Arthashastra (literally 'the Science of Material Gain' in Sanskrit) is arguably the first systematic book on economics. It discusses monetary and fiscal policies, welfare, international relations, and war strategies in details. Many of his nitis or policies have been compiled under the book title Chanakya Niti. Nitishastra is a treatise on the ideal way of life, and shows Chanakya's in depth study of the Indian way of life.

Quotes

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Chanakya

Trivia

The diplomatic enclave in New Delhi has been named as Chanakyapuri to honor Chanakya.

An Indian restaurant in Düsseldorf, Germany is named after Chanakya and has a brief historical summary on him printed in the menu card.

External links

Indian people | Kautilja | Чанакья | Chanakya | 考底利耶

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