A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar c10.5

c10.5

The *Arthaśāstra* of Kautilya gives some information of value about the trade between the North and the South in the age of the early Mauryan empire. ‘Among land routes,’ says Kautilya, ‘my teacher considers that leading to the Himalaya superior to the one leading to Dakshiṇāpatha, because of the elephants, horses, spices, ivory, hides, silver and gold articles, all very valuable (to be had there).’ He then expounds his own quite different view as follows: ‘No,’ says Kautilya. ‘Although it is deficient in woollen cloth, hides and horses, the Dakshiṇāpatha abounds in conch-shells, diamonds, precious stones of other kinds, pearls, and articles of gold. Moreover, the southern trade route across Dakshiṇāpatha traverses a territory rich in mines and valuable merchandise, is frequented by many (traders) and easy to travel by. That is the superior route.’ This passage almost brings before our eyes the large-scale opening-up of trade with the South which the foundation of the Nanda and Mauryan empires brought about. The view represented by Kautilya’s teacher (*āchārya*) was becoming rapidly out of date as a result of new conditions, and the pupil affirms that there were in his day more wealth and larger possibilities of trade in the South than ever before. The mention of gold, diamonds and other precious stones and pearls, and of the easy conditions of travel along the much frequented routes, deserves to be particularly noted. Again, in his account of the articles that entered the royal treasury, Kautilya includes varieties of pearls from the Tambraparni river in the Pāndyan country, from Pāndyakavāta (which is explained in the commentary as the Malayakōti mountain in the same area), and from the Chūrnā river in Kerala. He also mentions fine cotton fabrics from Madura, as well as *vaiḍūrya* (beryl) of various colours, and varieties of sandalwood which must also have come from South India.