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The Mauryan Polity c5.s2.t8: Religious Data

The Mauryan Polity c5.s2.t8

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English

Religious Data

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An examination *in extenso* of the religious data³ afforded by the *Arthaśāstra* shows that it belongs to a period when the Vedic religious practices and rituals were in vogue. Great significance is indeed attached to the performance of *yajñas* or sacrifices⁴ and there is an unreasoned belief in the efficacy and fruitfulness of such sacrifices. Whenever the kingdom or king was visited by *vyasana* or dangers, providential or otherwise, prayers were offered to the Vedic deities⁵ like Indra, Varuṇa, Agni, Aśvins, Jayanta and others.

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³ See author's article on the *Religious Data in the Arthaśāstra*, *Zeitschrift für Indologie*, Vol. VII.2 (1929).

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⁴ Bk. iii, ch. 14.

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⁵ Bk. iv, ch. 3; Bk. xiii, ch. 1-2; Bk. ii, ch. 4.

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Belief was then current that by propitiating these Gods calamities of all sorts could be averted, or at least modified to a considerable extent. Even the worship of nature and nature deities like the rivers and mountains is seriously recommended. Worship of snakes, rats, and other similar creatures is not unknown. A recommendation is also made for achieving objects desired through spells, incantations, and mystical rites prescribed in the *Atharvaveda Saṃhitā*. The sacred books recommended for regal and other studies¹ are the three Vedas and their six Aṅgas besides the Ithihāsa which is also mentioned under the category of the Vedic literature. Hindu social polity of *varṇa-dharma* and *āśramadharma* is explained and too much insistence is made on the principle of *svadharma* the fundamental basis of all *varṇāśramadharma* system. A high place is given to the *śrotriya*—the ideal Brahman—who is the veritable master of all sacred literature and who puts into practice the ideals contained in those books. The Purohita is glorified and he occupies a social status, equal, if not higher than the reigning chieftain of the land.²

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¹ Bk. I, ch. iii.

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² See author's *Hindu Administrative Institutions*, p. 123 ff.

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There is little or no trace of Buddhism or Jainism. There is indeed a mention of heretical sects especially monastic. Though Kauṭalya was not against *sannyāsa* still he did not allow people to indiscriminately don the robes of a Sannyāsin³ on one day and give them up on the morrow if it did not suit their purpose. Absence of direct reference to Buddhism or Jainism leaves one with the impression that these religious movements had not gained sufficient currency or enough influence in the country. These and other details which are scattered all through the pages of the work lead us on to the conclusive observation that the work belongs to an earlier epoch of Hinduism when the Vedic religion held firm sway in the minds of the people. The religious data furnished may possibly go to support an early date for the composition of the work probably not later than 300 B.C.

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³ Bk. II, ch. 1.

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