Arthashastra (Treatise on Statecraft)
- Language:
- English
- Translation:
- R. Shamasastry
- Status:
- Complete work
- Authorship:
- Written by the author
- Condition of the text:
- Clean text
- Extent:
- ~210,000 words · 995 passages
Cite this work
- APAKautilya. (n.d.). Arthashastra (Treatise on Statecraft). SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/kautilya/arthashastra-treatise-on-statecraft
- MLAKautilya. "Arthashastra (Treatise on Statecraft)." SigPhi, https://sigphiai.com/en/works/kautilya/arthashastra-treatise-on-statecraft.
- ChicagoKautilya. Arthashastra (Treatise on Statecraft). SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/kautilya/arthashastra-treatise-on-statecraft.
What it is about
The manual of government attributed to Kautilya: administration, revenue, law, agriculture, mines, espionage, diplomacy and war, all with the coldness of a man writing for whoever rules.
Context and history
This text was lost for centuries and known only by name. In 1905 a pandit handed a palm-leaf manuscript to the Oriental Library at Mysore, and R. Shamasastry identified and edited it: until then nobody in modern times had read it. The attribution to Kautilya, the minister of Chandragupta Maurya, is traditional, but specialists date the text as we have it considerably later and regard it as an accumulated work.
Editorial context, not a citable source: unlike the passages of the work itself, these statements cannot be checked against the corpus.
Book II, "The Duties of Government Superintendents" 60 Book III, "Concerning Law" 213 Book IV, "The Removal of Thorns" 285 BookV, "The Conduct of Courtiers" 336 Book VI: The Source of Sovereign States 362 Book VII, "The End of the Six-Fold Policy" 370 Book VIM: Concerning Vices and Calamities 467 Book IX, "The Work of an Invader" 490 Book X, "Relating to War" 521 Book XI, "The Conduct of Corporations" 541 Book XII, "Concerning a Powerful Enemy" 547 Book XIII, "Strategic Means to Capture a Fortress" 563 Book XIV, "Secret Means" 584 Book XV, "The Plan of a Treatise" 607 Kautilya's Arthashastra Book I, "Concerning Discipline" CHAPTER I. THE LIFE OF A KING Salutation to Sukra and Brihaspati. This Arthasdstra is made as a compendium of almost all the Arthasdstras, which, in view of acquisition and maintenance of the earth, have been composed by ancient teachers. Of this work, the following are the contents by sections and books: BOOK I. Concerning Discipline. The end of Sciences; association with the aged; restraint of the organs of sense; the creation of ministers; the creation of councillors and priests; ascertaining by temptations purity or impurity in the character of ministers; the institution of spies. Protection of parties for or against one's own cause in one's own state; winning over the factions for or against an enemy's cause in an enemy's state; the business of council meeting; the mission of envoys; protection of princes; the conduct of a prince kept under restraint; treatment of a prince kept under restraint; the duties of a king; duty towards the harem
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