State and Government in Ancient India c8.s1.14

c8.s1.14

Arthaśāstra is the next term for the science of politics which we have now to consider. The usual meaning of the term Artha is money or wealth and so the term Arthaśāstra should connote the science of wealth or economics, and not the science of government. While conceding that Artha denotes the avocations of men, Kauṭilya contends that the term also can denote the territory where the people live together. Arthaśāstra, therefore, says Kauṭilya, is the science which deals with the acquisition and protection or governance of territory.² This explanation to justify the use of the term Arthaśāstra for the science of politics appears to be rather forced and far-fetched. But posterity has acquiesced in the term primarily because the most important book on the science of politics is known as Arthaśāstra. Thus the *Śukranītisāra* states that the *Arthaśāstra* discusses instructions about the government along with the acquisition of wealth (IV. 5. 56.). A perusal of the opening chapter of Kauṭilya's *Arthaśāstra* would show that the author had originally intended to christian his book as a Daṇḍanīti; later on he seems to have changed his mind and decided to call it as Arthaśāstra. The explanation and justification of the term Arthaśāstra occurs only in the last chapter of the work. In its colophon the work is called simply as Śāstra; it can be an abbreviation of Arthaśāstra as well as of Daṇḍanītiśāstra. It is interesting to note that the work was known to Daṇḍin as Daṇḍanīti¹ and not as Arthaśāstra. The *Amarakosha* also equates Daṇḍanīti with Arthaśāstra as also the *Mitāksharā* on Yājñayalkya I, 311 and 313.