Public Administration in Ancient India c7.12

c7.12

spiritually-minded, but more practical, Chānakya is different. He is a believer in the human creation of the State. “When the weak,” says he, “began to be oppressed by the strong, the people made Vaivasvata Manu their King, and fixed one-sixth of the produce of the soil and one-tenth of merchandise as his remuneration.”¹ Chānakya adds: “In the absence of a government people behave like fish, the strong devouring the weak, but protected by a government, they flourish.”²