India as Known to Panini: A Study of the Cultural Material in the Ashtadhyayi c12.s1.33
India as Known to Pāṇini: A Study of the Cultural Material in the Ashṭādhyāyī c12.s1.33
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c12.s1.33
*GOVERNMENT*—The king was at the head of government in a monarchical or *Ekarāja* State. He was assisted in his work by a ministerial council or *Parishad*, and also possessed a larger body called *Sabhā* as we have already seen. The number of ministers comprising the *Parishad* is not known from Pāṇini, but, as Kauṭilya states, it must have depended on the needs of administration. The Chief Minister (*Ārya-Brāhmaṇa*), the Chief priest (*Purohita*), the Crown-Prince (*Āryakumāra*, same as *Ārya-putra* of the Minor Rock Edict at Brahmagiri), and the Commander of the Army (*Senāpati*) have received mention in the *Ashṭādhyāyī*, being important officers represented in the language through special terms.