Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c11.s2.2

c11.s2.2

The real date and authenticity of the *Arthaśāstra* of Kauṭilya has been the subject of a long debate, which, while clearing up many issues, has led to no general consensus of opinion, though the balance is clearly in favour of the bulk of the work being accepted as a genuine picture of the conditions prevailing in the Mauryan epoch. In our view the book has stood the test of criticism and must now be accepted, with reservations, as the work of Kauṭilya, who shares with Chandragupta, the credit for the establishment of the empire and laying down the foundations of its administrative system. The position is set out in detail in an excursus at the end of this chapter.