Brigadier gurmeet kanwal retd is distinguished fellow, institute for defence studies and analyses, new delhi. Kautilyan theory of arthashastra relevant in todays. Kautilya was a professor at taxila university and later the prime minister of the maurya empire. The arthashastra is indias first and premier treatise on the art of politics, diplomacy, war, and national strategy.
The book begins with gautam sens identification of the conceptual. Kautilya and nonwestern ir theory by deepshikha shahi. Release of the books by the guest of honour, shri a. Launch of two books on arthashastra manohar parrikar.
He is credited for playing an influential role in establishment of the maurya empire the first empire to rule most of the indian subcontinent, as per archaeologically recorded history. Please do not be scared by the thickness of the book. The 15 books contained in the arthashastra can be classified in the following manner. The title arthashastra is often translated to the science of politics, but the book arthashastra has a. List of famous books and authors for defence exams ssbcrack. Kautilyas arthashastra is divided into 15 books may be considered as volume with several parts of each book. It is encyclopedic, discussing topics you would find in machiavelli, sun tzu, and maybe a business class run by xaviera hollander it sets the prices to be paid for the purchase of a courtesan, for example. The arthashastra a treatise on statecraft and military. They believe the book, the arthashastra, written more than 2,300 years ago, will give indian. Chanakya, traditionally identified as kautilya or vishnu gupta, was an indian teacher, philosopher, economist, jurist, expert at political science and royal advisor. Unfortunately this book is not much talked about in the indian armed forces. This was written in 150 ce, as advice to a king on how to run his kingdom. Gen vp malik then traverses the domain of defence policy and national security.
The author contends kautilyas arthashastra shows that he was an early. An intellectual portraitclassical roots of modern politics in. The author unambiguously states that kautilyas arthashastra is a classic of ir theory, which provides lasting insights and intellectual stimulus for ir theorising. He is the author of the arthashastra, the celebrated ancient indian work on politice and economics. The arthashastra is apparently one of the first books on political theory and was written in the 3rd century bc. Artha, literally wealth, is one of four supreme aims prescribed by hindu tradition. It is a nice title selected by strategic analyst brig gurmeet kanwal for his book on indias strategical analysis.
A security strategy for india book online at best prices in india on amazon. While it is true that is offers views on how a kingruler shall act in order to overcome obstables it is just so much more. An intellectual portraitclassical roots of modern politics in india, badenbaden, germany, nomos, 2016. In essence, it covers all aspects of land fighting capabilities as known then. The author of the book arthashastra is answers with. Legend has it that he was either a brahmin from kerala or from north india. The arthashastra summary the western world generally assumes that ancient indian literature lacked in strategic thinking. The book itself is doesnt solely focus on political issues, but talks about statecraft, economy, military stragety and other topics. This book is the product of a collaborative effort by the institute for defence studies and analyses, new delhi. The first great political realist and millions of other books are available for amazon.
Arthashastra is an excellent treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy. South asia india defence looks to ancient text bbc news. I was impressed by the range of scholarship reflected in the papers that are being presented here and look forward to reading them. A security strategy for india hardcover 28 october 2016 by gurmeet kanwal author. Arthashastrabook x wikisource, the free online library. I concerning discipline ii the duties of government superintendents iii concerning law iv the removal of thorns v the conduct of courtiers vi the source of sovereign. The absence of a similar doctrine makes indias defence policy look ad hoc and creates the impression that the country is unprepared to realize its global ambitions.
The arthashastra of kautilya is one of the most impressive books that i have read in the recent years. Thank you for asking me to speak at this seminar on developing indigenous concepts and vocabulary. She aims at the reinvention of kautilyas arthashastra p. Kautilyas arthashastra institute for defence studies. The author of famous book second world war winston churchill 64. An extraordinary detailed manual on statecraft and the science of living by one of classical indias greatest minds. The text contains fifteen books which cover numerous topics viz.
The author of famous book rangbhumi was prem chand 67. Chanakyas arthashastra page 3 indian defence forum. Arthashastra speaks extensively of military organisation including the chief of defence and covers each of the constituents of the army, the troops, the organisation into platoons and regiments. The arthashastra is written mainly in prose but also incorporates 380 shlokas. It is a compendium of 15 books comprising 6,000 sanskrit. However, if we carefully examine some of the literature after the second urbanisation emergence of the janapads of the subcontinent we find a lot of material which tells us that ancient indian writers were not devoid of the capability of. The original manuscript of kautilyas arthashastra, one of the oldest books on governance, military strategy, politics, economics, justice, and the. The arthashastra in modis india in modis worldview, bolder than that of his predecessors, india has a bigger place than envisaged before.
Book 1, as a book on fundamentals of management, book 2 dealing with economics, books 3, 4 and 5 on law, books 6, 7, 8 describes foreign policies. Arthasastra is an ancient indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy which identifies its author by the names kautilya 1 and vi. Kautilya, also identified as vishnugupta and chanakya, is traditionally credited as the author of the text. Likely to be the work of several authors over centuries, kautilya, also identified as vishnugupta and chanakya, is traditionally credited as. Roger boesche describes the arthasastra as a book of political realism, a book analysing how the political world does work and not very often stating how it ought to 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. A security strategy for india comprehensively revisits kautilyas arthashastra through perspectives focusing on statecraft and statesmanship, diplomacy, governance, economic and trade policies, and military strategy. Shri saran was speaking at the occasion of the book launch of kautilyas arthashastra. Arthashastra is one of the oldest books with immense historical significance written by kautilya or arya chanakya as he was popularly known. It talks of the infantry, cavalry, the chariots and the elephants. The new arthashastra is a pathbreaking attempt to recommend a national security strategy for india. Vice admiral mp muralidharan was the first commandant of indian navy academy at ezhimala. Indeed, shahi pursues an unusual line of thought to bring kautilya into the ir discourse. Launch of two books on arthashastra manohar parrikar institute for.
Consonant with this, the prime ministers foreign policy mirrors the arthashastra s emphasis on pragmatic and intelligent use of power, informed by knowledge and the larger cause of the people. Arthashastra by kautilya, the 4th century b c indian strategist always fascinated me. The arthashastra is an ancient indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy, written in sanskrit. This book examines in detail the strategic relevance of the arthashastra. The book itself is a very dry read, at least it was to me.
This book is one of the most effective books ever written on the art of statecraft and the science of everyday living. Arthasastra manohar parrikar institute for defence studies and. Relevance of arthashastra in the 21st century indian defence. Buy arthashastra book online at low prices in india. A lost treasure arthashastra is a comprehensive manual for a ruler or king to administer his state. The text contains fifteen books which cover numerous topics viz the king. Once you get through the first few pages it literally impossible to put it down.
Pakistanchina collusion, the author reiterates the need for a strategy based on a strong. This is indeed a welcome initiative that the idsa is carrying forward. War and peace are explored as issues inseparable from social welfare and society more broadly. List of famous books and authors for defence exams current affairs by ssbcrack. The arthashastra totally contains 5363 sutras, 15 books, 150 chapters, and 180 sections. Comparing kautilya with sunzi, nizam almulk, barani and machiavelli, new delhi, idsa.
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