CHANAKYA

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CHANAKYA

Source: Free Press Journal

 

Chanakya or Kautilya is famous for his intellect and tact in Indian

history. He with the help of Chandragupta Maurya established the

Mauryan Dynasty after defeating the Nanda kings. There are many tales

associated with Chanakya displaying his will and determination. One

day Chanakya was hurriedly walking to some place, it was a grassy

place and he stumbled on one patch of grass. But how could a lowly

grass defeat him, he sat down there and started uprooting the grass

and when he had taken his revenge he proceeded on to his work, this

incident highlights the determination of Chanakya.

 

Chanakya was educated at the Takhshila or Taxila. He was a very

able student, he mastered all the arts of politics, governance,

scriptures and war fare at the University. Chanakya was a very

brilliant person. He was full of determination in achieving any

objective. He was a master in the four methods - of persuasion,

enticement, sowing dissension, and punishment or war. He was mature

in the strategy of war, and very intelligent. None could makeup what

was going on his mind. So secretive was he in his method, and far-

sighted. In any challenge, his calculations never went wrong and he

never missed his aim. He was at the same time very religious and

given to strict discipline. Apparently of a harsh nature, he could

employ various methods carefully at the right time to destroy

enemies. There was no branch of knowledge, which he had not mastered.

He was widely experienced in the world. There seemed to be nothing,

which he did not know.

 

Apparently his wisdom also gave him a feeling of being invincible and

he was an egoist too. He was very straight forward and rude and did

not fear and king or prince. One day, after taking his bath and sat

on the throne that was reserved for the king. When the king Navandas

reached there and saw that an ugly priest was sitting on the throne

he got furious and asked his soldiers to throw him out. Chanakya was

very angry and while the soldiers were pushing him, the knot of his

hair was opened, he took an oath that he will never tie the knot of

the hair till the Nanda dynasty was destroyed. After the incident his

was going to a place and saw a field where some children were

playing. He saw that one child was sitting on a stone and playing the

king, the rest of the children were bringing their problems and he

was giving the solutions. Chanakya was greatly impressed by the lad

and decided to groom him to be the future king of Magadha empire, the

boy was none other than Chandragupta Maurya.

 

For seven or eight years Chandragupta with teachers selected by

Chanakya. The art of warfare and the art of government were mastered

by him equally well. But faith had other thing in store for them. The

country was invaded by a Greek lad named Alexander, the great.

Chanakya decided that they will fight the Greek forces, he is also

supposed to have met Alexander and once the he left the country.

Chandragupta with help of some local princes removed the generals of

Alexander, like Selecus Nicator.

 

Chandragupta finally attacked the Magadha kingdom and defeated the

Nanda kings thanks to the cunning of Chanakya, he even recruited the

prime minister of king Navandas,i.e. Amatya Rakhasa as the Prime

minister of Chandragupta. The only survivor was Sarvartha- siddhi,

the father of the Nandas. He was very old. "I do not want anything. I

will go to the forest for meditation. Please permit me," he begged.

Chanakya and Chandragupta agreed.

 

The old king and his wife retired to the forests. It is said that

after some days Chanakya had the old king and his wife killed,

because he thought that if Amatya Rakshasa made them take a son by

the rites of adoption, then there would be claimants to the throne:

he wanted that the lineage of the Nandas should be totally

eliminated. But personal revenge was not the aim of Chanakya. He

wanted that the kingdom should be secure and that the administration

should go on smoothly, bringing happiness to the people. Once his

oath is fulfilled, Chanakya got down to the administration of the

huge Magadha empire. He wrote the treatise on politics and how to run

administration known as ~Artha-Shashtra', this book has been

translated into many European and Indian languages. After

establishing Chandragupta on the throne, Chanakya retreated Shravana-

Belugola in Karnataka, where he met his end.

 

Chanakya has become an immortal role model for most of the

administrators of the nation, he proves that with strong

determination and sharp intelligence a man can achieve anything and

everything.