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Hindu Administrative Institutions c7.s7: (vi) Duties and Rights of Kings

Hindu Administrative Institutions c7.s7

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(vi) Duties and Rights of Kings

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We now proceed to examine the duties and rights of kings as realized in ancient India. The *Arthaśāstra* which follows entirely the code of laws established from very remote times has certain sane recommendations as to the duties of the king. The day and night are divided into eight periods respectively when the king is expected to fulfil the respective functions marked out.¹

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¹ Cf. Yājñavalkya, i. 327-33; Manu, viii. 145-6; also 219-25; *Mbh.*, Sabhā Parvan, vv. 89-90.

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DAY

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| 6 to 7.30 a.m. | Supervising receipts and expenditure. |
| 7.30 to 9 a.m. | Affairs of citizens and people. |
| 9 to 10.30 a.m. | Bathing, Vedic chanting and eating. |
| 10.30 to 12 noon. | Affairs of the officers of the state. |
| 12 to 1.30 p.m. | Council with ministers and confidential agents. |
| 1.30 to 3 p.m. | Rest and amusement. |
| 3 to 4.30 p.m. | Supervising the army. |
| 4.30 to 6 p.m. | Regarding enemies and military operations. |

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NIGHT

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| 6 to 7.30 p.m. | Receiving intelligence officers and others. |
| 7.30 to 9 p.m. | Bathing, eating and prayers. |
| 9 to 1.30 a.m. | Music and sleep. |
| 1.30 to 3 a.m. | Again music and thoughts of the morrow. |
| 3 to 4.30 a.m. | Other state business pondered over. |
| 4.30 to 6 a.m. | Blessings of the *ṛtvik*, *ācārya*, *purohita*, etc. |

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books we can take it that it was never meant to be performed. We are given a mere theoretical scheme towards the completion of the sacrificial system. S. B. E., vol. xliv, Intro, p. xli.

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But this programme was not in any manner rigid and inelastic. It was subject to modification if necessity demanded.¹ Such a heavy programme could not have been realized in practice if the king lacked in the quality of उत्थान (activity).² That the king must, therefore, possess this in an eminent degree is repeated by Kauṭalya in several places. In the later Mughal empire we are told that Aurangazeb the great emperor was ever active and hardly found time even to sleep for a few hours continuously.

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¹ *Arthaśāstra*, Bk. i, Sec. 19.

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² तस्मान्नित्योत्थितोराजा कुर्यादर्थानुशासनम् । अर्थस्य मूलमुत्थानमनर्थस्य विपर्ययः ॥ अनुत्थाने ध्रुवो नाशः प्राप्तस्यानागतस्य च । प्राप्यते फलमुत्थानाल्लभते चार्थसम्पदम् ॥ (*Ibid.*)

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Besides the duties chalked out in this programme the *Arthaśāstra* mentions a number of other functions which he was expected to discharge. In the court he was expected to bestow personal and immediate attention to affairs involving temples, heretics, śrotriyas, women, cattle, places of pilgrimage, the young, the aged, the diseased and the helpless. Justice was to be rendered impartially by bestowing equal attention to all irrespective of social status. For the end of justice is to make the people feel happy.³

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³ *Ibid.*

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More or less the same time-table is furnished by Śukrāchārya.⁴ He divides the day and night as follows:—

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⁴ i, ll. 551-69. Cf. *Bārhaspatya*, i. 59-66.

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DAY 3 to 4.30 a.m. Supervising accounts. 4.30 to 7.30 a.m. Bath and prayers, physical exercises. 7.30 to 11.15 a.m. Official business.

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11.15 to 12.45 noon. Dinner, rest and reading. 12.45 to 2.15 p.m. Justice and council. 2.15 to 3.45 p.m. Hunting, etc. 3.45 to 4.30 p.m. Parade and army muster. 4.30 to 6 p.m. Evening prayer and meals. 6 to 7.30 p.m. Reports of spies. 7.30 to 3 p.m. Rest and sleep.

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His duties towards the harem were significant. The harem was located in a place which was fire-proof and poison-proof. Parrots, heron and other birds were reared in it to detect poisons. There is evidence in the Rāmāyaṇa that Daśaratha’s harem contained such birds, and Kauśalya is said to speak to the parrots.

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He must again guard himself from his own queens. Kauṭalya gives some traditional names of queens who have misbehaved in such a manner and whose misbehaviour cost them their lives often. Hence precautions are carefully laid down by the author of the Arthaśāstra, with regard to the harem. Armed women generally guarded the palace.¹

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¹ Cf. Kāma, vii. 40-41, 45-54.

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The king could enter it if he was personally satisfied of the queen’s purity, for there have been cases like Bhadrasena killed by his brother, Kaṃsa by his son and Kāśirāja by his own queen.²

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² There is a parallel passage quoted by Kullūkabhaṭṭa in his commentary on v. 153 of chap. vii, which runs as follows:—

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Hence it was necessary to wean her from the undue influence of ascetics, buffoons and public women outside.³

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³ Arthaśāstra, Bk. i, Sec. 20.

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शस्त्रेण वेणोर्विनिगृहितेन विदूरथं वै महिषो जघान ।
विषप्रदिग्धेन च नूपुरेण देवी विरक्ता किल काशिराजं ॥ इति

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See also Harṣacharita, ch. vi, pp. 222-3.

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His duties towards his sons, the princes, were also to be noted. These are compared to crabs who devour their own parents.¹ If a king has more than one son the unruly prince might be banished from the kingdom. But if there is only one son, and if he were to give provocation to his father, he could be placed under restraint by imprisonment. Or he could be got rid of by having him sent on dangerous expeditions. He could be conciliated by promise of sovereignty. Failing these methods, if the turbulent prince proved a danger to the welfare of the state, even the penalty of death was not regarded too much.² A misbehaviour in a prince was regarded a disqualification for succeeding to the throne. A well-behaved one was invariably made a commander-in-chief or consecrated as *yuvarāja*, the crown-prince or the heir-apparent.³ To shoulder such responsibilities the king must possess qualities of a high order. Dr. Nag gives⁴ a veritable catalogue of royal virtues collected from the *Arthaśāstra*: (*a*) the *abhigāmika guṇāḥ* or the qualities pertaining to noble birth—luck, intelligence, heroism, piety, sincerity, taking counsel with the aged, gratefulness, magnanimity, energy, discipline, resolution, etc.; (*b*) *prajña guṇāḥ* or the qualities of intellect, such as curiosity, attention, assimilation, memory, discernment, discretion and passion for truth; (*c*) *utsāhaguṇāḥ*: signs of activity including courage, pride, promptitude and skill; (*d*) *ātmasampat* or the qualities of person such as prudence, good memory, vigorous intelligence, imposing bearing, self-control, mastery of various arts, impartial justice, far-sightedness, expertness to discover weak points of the adversary; control of emotions, freedom from passions, from irritability, greed, arrogance, indolence, inconstancy, impatience and cruelty.¹

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¹ *Arthaśāstra*, Bk. i, Sec. 17.

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² *Ibid.*, Bk. ix, Sec. 3.

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³ *Ibid.*; cf. *Kāmandaka*, xiii. 51-58.

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⁴ *Les Theories diplomatiques*, pp. 66-67.

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¹ Cf. Yājñavalkya, i. 309-11.

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By thus regulating his conduct he endears himself to the people at large (*lokapriyatva*). The king who feels happy in the happiness of his subjects and feels sorry in their sorrow, gains fame in this world and earns eternal life in heaven after death.²

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² प्रजासुखे सुखोराजा तद्दुःखे यश्च दुःखितः । सकीर्तियुक्तो लोकेऽस्मिन् प्रेत्य स्वर्गेमहीयते ॥ (Viṣṇu Sam., iii. 70.) प्रजासुखे सुखं राज्ञः प्रजानां च हिते हितम् । नात्मप्रियं हितंराज्ञः प्रजानां तु प्रियं हितम् । (Arthaśāstra, Bk. i, Sec. 19.)

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According to the quality which dominates in a king he is a *sātvika*, *rājasa*, or *tāmasa* king respectively.³ Thus three kinds of kings are enumerated.

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³ Śukra, i. 28-35.

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But Hindu political literature lays down a great principle राज्यं रक्षति रक्षितः ।⁴ meaning that he who is protected protects the realm. If we begin analysing this pregnant statement we find that a king may possess qualities of soul and mind and even of body, but still, if adverse elements preponderate in the realm, he must be quite sure to quell these. This is the self-protection⁵ which is incessantly referred to in our political and legal literature. This personal safety must be from his own sons, wives and from enemies.⁶

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⁴ Cf. Arthaśāstra, i, 17.

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⁵ Arthaśāstra, Bk. v, Sec. 4.

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⁶ अन्यत्र प्राणाबाधक प्रकृतिकोपपातकेभ्यः ।

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He must also shelter himself from his own servants. Sometimes these would be bribed by the enemies of the king. He must be careful with regard to his food and drink. They must be put to physical and chemical tests before they are actually taken.¹ Even his toilet and dress must be subjected to a careful examination before use. He should ride on chariots or animals only after they have been mounted and tried by his hereditary driver. Even in his interview with ascetics and saintly persons he must have by his side his body-guard. So also in receiving foreign envoys. Whenever he goes out of the capital or comes into it, the roads must be properly policed by staff-bearers and the leaders of ten communities.²

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¹ *Kāmandaka*, vii. 9-27.

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² यात्रासमाजोत्सवप्रवहणानिच दशवर्गिकाधिष्ठितानि गच्छेत् । *Arthaśāstra*. Bk. i. 21. The *Śrīmūlam* Commentary on the word ‘दशवर्गिक’ ‘दशभटनायक’ (vol. i, p. 108.)

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Lastly he must protect himself from the enemies of his kingdom. For this he must maintain a well-disciplined army and navy under the supervision of an efficient military department. Spies and envoys formed a regular feature of the military administration. Fortresses were also a feature of the defences of the kingdom against foreign enemies. Thus the importance and value of the king's person were recognized at all times and in all places in ancient India. It is further said that he must never trust any one too readily and must evoke confidence from all.³ It is again enjoined on monarchs as a class that they must abstain from certain evil habits which, if indulged in, would become regular vices, the so-called *vyasanās* of the king. It would be interesting and perhaps instructive to learn what these are. Vices are due to *kāma*, *krodha*, *lobha*, *moha*, *mada* and *mātsarya*. Manu lays down as a principle¹ that the king must avoid the ten evils arising from *kāma* and the eight from *krodha*. Too much indulgence of *kāma* could only be at the cost of *dharma* and *artha*, and that of *krodha* leads to the ultimate destruction of personal safety.

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³ *Kāmandaka*, v. 89-90.

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¹ दशकामसमुत्थानि तथाष्टौ क्रोधजानि च । व्यसनानि दुरन्तानि प्रयतेन विवर्जयेत् ॥ कामजेषु प्रसक्तो हि व्यसनेषु महीपतिः । वियुज्यतेऽर्थधर्माभ्यां क्रोधजेष्वात्मनैव तु ॥ (Manu, vii. 45-46.)

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The ten of² *kāma* are given in a categorical list, hunting, gambling, sleeping in the day, speaking ill of others, sexual indulgence, spirituous liquor, dancing, music, and idleness. The eight of *krodha* are backbiting, criminal violence, hatred, envy, jealousy, wasteful expenditure, reprimand and reproach.

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² मृगयाक्षो दिवास्वप्नः परिवादः स्त्रियो मदः । तौर्यत्रिकं वृथाज्या च कामजो दशको गणः ॥ पैशुन्यं साहसं द्रोहः ईर्ष्यासूर्यार्थदूषणं । वाग्दण्डजं च पारुष्यं क्रोधजोऽपि गणोऽष्टकः ॥ (Manu, vii. 47-48.)

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Śukrāchārya rules that any overindulgence in gambling, women and drinking would produce disasters. Nala and Yudhiṣṭhira are examples of kings who suffered terribly on account of indulgence in the vice of gambling. Indra, Dāṇḍakya, Nahuṣa and Rāvaṇa were kings who came to great grief owing to excess in sexual sensuousness. Too much of drink leads to the loss of intelligence.³

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³ i. 11. 215-229.

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दशकामसमुत्थानि तथाष्टौ क्रोधजानि च ।
व्यसनानि दुरन्तानि प्रयतेन विवर्जयेत् ॥
कामजेषु प्रसक्तो हि व्यसनेषु महीपतिः ।
वियुज्यतेऽर्थधर्माभ्यां क्रोधजेष्वात्मनैव तु ॥
(Manu, vii. 45-46.)

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मृगयाक्षो दिवास्वप्नः परिवादः स्त्रियो मदः ।
तौर्यत्रिकं वृथाज्या च कामजो दशको गणः ॥
पैशुन्यं साहसं द्रोहः ईर्ष्यासूर्यार्थदूषणं ।
वाग्दण्डजं च पारुष्यं क्रोधजोऽपि गणोऽष्टकः ॥
(Manu, vii. 47-48.)

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Vṛṣṇi is an instance in point. To these is added hunting. Excessive indulgence alone stands condemned.¹ King Pāṇḍu indulged in this with great detriment to the welfare of the kingdom.²

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¹ Cf. Kāmandaka, i. 48-65 ; xiii. 61-64.

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² *Ibid.*, ii. 283.

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According to Kāmandaka even women and drinking are allowed to a certain extent.³ Their combined evil-effects⁴ are indeed great, but not greater than hunting and gambling.⁵ But Kauṭalya takes a different view altogether. Anger is worse than *kāma* or lust, and gambling is worse than hunting owing to loss of wealth and other defects. But sensuous lust is a worse evil, worse than gambling. In the latter attention can be directed which is not possible in *kāma*. Drinking is the worst evil. For loss of money, lunacy, absence of the sense of shame, loss of learning and friends, suffering from diseases of all sorts are its evil consequences.⁶ Possessing such qualities and subject to such responsibilities the institution of kingship in modern political parlance should be regarded as a popular monarchy in spirit, if not in every detail of form. The king could not have his way in word or deed. In private as well as in public life he was bound down by the limitations of a comparatively rigorous character.⁷ When he misbehaved out of sheer carelessness in public assemblies or councils, it was the function of the ministers as well as the *purohita* to see that he did not err but pursue the path of *dharma*. For this Kauṭalya mentions a curious device of striking a bell which answers to our telephone system and which acts as a check for him to abstain from any wrong course of action.¹

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³ xiv. 21-26, 43-54, 55-58, 59-61.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, 65-68.

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⁵ Cf. Bārhaspatya, i, 33-35.

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⁶ Arthaśāstra Bk. viii. 3.

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⁷ Cf. Sarkar, Bk. ii, pp. 44-45.

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¹ मर्यादां स्थापयेदाचार्यानमात्यान् वा, य एनं अपायस्थानेभ्यो वारयेयुः छायानालिकप्रतोदेन वा रहसि प्रमाद्यन्तमभितुदेयुः । Bk. i, Sec. 7. Shāma Śāstri translates ‘छायानालिक’ as a time indicator.

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Thus checks and balances at every stage of his work made the Hindu monarch act up to the concept of *dharma* and never stray beyond its sphere. He was made to realize that his prosperity rested only on the good will of the people.²

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² *Arthaśāstras*, Bk. iv. 5.

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The responsibilities and rights of the ancient Hindu king were too many and too varied. A catalogue of such duties and rights is given not only in the *Dharmaśāstras*, the *Arthaśāstras* and the *Purāṇas* but also in the whole range of Vedic literature both the *Saṃhitās* and the *Brāhmaṇas*. The *Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa* says that the king is the upholder of the sacred law or *dharma* as also his *śrotriya* (the *purohita*). The king alone is not ‘capable of all and every speech, nor of all and every deed’. ³ By upholding law he becomes a realm sustainer—*rāṣṭrabhṛt*.⁴ The necessity of offspring to a ruler so as to continue an uninterrupted succession is told in another succeeding verse.⁵ It is also enjoined that a king could not afford to neglect or oppress the *purohita* but try to work in conjunction with him and so to win distinction.⁶ His other functions are to root out the enemies and thus bring welfare to his people.⁷ He was to bestow gifts of land and wealth on the deserving but with the previous approval of the clan.⁸ He was forbidden to rear cattle.⁹

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³ *S. B. E.*, vol. xliii, v. 4. 4. 5.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, ix 4. 1. 1.

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⁵ *Ibid.*, 5.

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⁶ *Ibid.*, xiv. 1. 5. 3 and 6.

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⁷ *Ibid.*, vi, 6, 3, 15.

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⁸ *Ibid.*, vii, P. 1. 4.

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⁹ *Ibid.*, xiii, 2. 9, 8.

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In the *Kauṣitaki Brāhmaṇa* we find peoples forming the state and hence its stability. Kings and *purohits* may come and go, the state will remain for ever. It is said that the offices of the kingship and *purohitship* were insecure and not stable.¹ But the necessity for a leader is well recognized in the *Aitareya Brāhmaṇa*. The legend of *asuras* fighting with gods who possessed no leader and hence suffered defeat is clear indication of the absolute necessity for leadership. Soma was therefore made king.² The great reception of Soma the king³ signifies the fact how the king was a guest worthy of all honours and how the office of kingship was a virtual necessity.

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¹ xvi. 4; Keith, *H. O. S.*, vol. 25.

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² *Ait. Br.*, i. 14.

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³ *Ibid.*, i. 15.

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Hindu texts on polity lay emphasis on all possible occasions upon the powers, functions and responsibilities of the monarch. There is not much which is so frequently insisted upon as rights and privileges. Not that the monarch had none of these but these were secondary to the concept of duty. Duty first and rights afterwards, was the great gospel preached by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna, in the great battlefield of Kurukṣetra. The duties were both personal and public. Personal duties consisted of self-control, his conduct towards himself, towards the harem to enjoy *kāma* without prejudice to *dharma* and *artha*, and towards the household in general; to avoid the company of the evil-minded and to secure personal safety by previous and pre-meditated precautions. Public duties were varied in character but could be summed up in a simple phrase—welfare of the subjects (प्रजानां योगक्षेमवहा). To carry out law and administration he was entitled to one-sixth of the produce of the land and one-tenth of merchandise besides other dues such as tolls and duties innumerable. Even in the matter of receiving gifts discrimination was used. Presents were not to be accepted from butchers (सूना), prostitutes (वेश्या), wine merchants (ध्वजी), and oilmen (चक्री). For these¹ were considered as unlawful earnings arising from immoral callings. The king was to offer gifts in cash and kind to the Brahmans who functioned to the religious affairs of the state.² Further arts and sciences were associated with religion and the king was a devout patron of these.³

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¹ Yājña, i. 141.

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² Manu, vii. 84-85 and Āpastamba, ii. 10. 26.

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³ विद्याकलानां वृद्धिस्यात् तथा कुर्यान्नृपस्सदा। Śukra, i. 370.

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That administrative affairs were conducted on systematic lines is a fact which is fully attested. Definite royal writs were issued under the seal of the king. There was a special officer in charge of the different writs used for different purposes. The Kauṭalīya says that the outbreak of wars and the agreements of peace depended on these writs. These writs were known by the general name of śāsana. The word śāsana means literally order or command. A categorical list of the writs of different interests is furnished in the Arthaśāstra, writs of information, of command, of gifts, of remission, of commerce, of general proclamation, and so forth.⁴

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⁴ Arthaśāstra. ii. 10; Śukra, ii. 11. 585-86.

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It might be noted that the system of writs was a regular feature of the administration commencing with the Mauryas. The officer in charge of the writs was a man of no mean capabilities. Kauṭalya lays down that he who possessed the qualifications of a minister, wrote a legible and intelligible hand, was smart in composition and reading and knew practically the genealogies of all chieftains and kings with whom the state had intercourse, was alone fit for this post.¹

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¹ अमात्यसम्पदोपेतः सर्वसमयविदाशुग्रन्थश्चावक्षरो लेखवाचनसमर्थो लेखकः स्यात् । (*Arthaśāstra*, ii. 10.)

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