Pramāṇa · Search · About · API

Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c7.s2.t3: The Royal Council and the Minister

Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c7.s2.t3

Language
English

The Royal Council and the Minister

c7.s2.t3.1

The *parishad* or Council is an important limb of the central organisation and its origin can be traced to a very early period. The Jain texts describe five kinds of Council of a king : *pūranti*, *chattanti*, *buddhi*, *mantri* and *rahassiyā*. It is said that when the king went on tour, all the officials attended on him till he returned ; this council of officials was called *pūranti*. The members of the *chattanti* council had the privilege of holding the umbrella over the king and were permitted to go up to the outer assembly hall. The *buddhi* *parisat* consisted of members who were well-versed in general customs (*loka*), the Vedas and the scriptures (*samaya*). Various rumours and off-hand remarks current among the people were brought to their notice. The fourth council was the council of ministers. They were well-versed in politics (*rāyasattha*), were born in the family with no royal connections (*atakkuliya*), were sincere, old in age and bold ; the king counselled with them in a secret place. The last council was known as *rahassiyā*. The members of this council pacified the angry queen, carried the news of the dates of the purificatory bath after monthly course of various queens; they also informed the king the names of his daughters who were eligible for marriage. They also informed him of the love-affairs of the queen and also talked with the king in private on various topics pertaining to his sexual life.⁶ The *mantri* *parisat* was an organised council of ministers who were concerned with the political affairs of the realm. It is said that a minister should always think of his country, city and the master and he should be efficient in law and administration.⁷ A minister or *amātya* had power to punish even a king, and we come across instances, although rare, when the ministers dismissed a king and appointed another king in his place. We are told that king Jiyasattu of Vasantapura loved his queen Sukumāliyā excessively and as a result of this he neglected the affairs of the state. One day the ministers assembled together and after banishing the king and the queen put the prince on the throne.⁸ In order to protect the realm from internal disturbances and the invasion of the enemy, a minister is said to have employed a number of spies such as *sūcakas*, *anusūcakas*, *pratisūcakas* and *sarvasūcakas*, who supplied him all sorts of secret information. The *sūcakas* made friendship with the harem officers and found out internal secrets of the harem; the *anusūcakas* were employed to detect the foreign spies in the city; the *pratisūcakas* sat on the city gate apparently doing some menial work; the *sarvasūcakas* gathered information through their assistants and reported it to the *amātya*. These spies were both males and females and they worked in frontier territories, their own country, cities and the royal harem.⁹ The ministers were helpful in attaining the objective of defeating the enemy by diplomatic machination. Their feigned dismissal was made and they were allowed to join the services of the opponent. We hear of the minister of Sālīvāhana of Paiṭṭhāna, who joined the king Nahavāhana as a minister and after exhausting his whole treasury informed his master, who invaded the enemy and captured his kingdom.¹⁰

c7.s2.t3.2

⁶ Brh Bhā Pi, 378 383

c7.s2.t3.3

⁷ Vya Bhā, 1, pp 129 f

c7.s2.t3.4

⁸ Ava cū, p 534, for similar references see Saccamkāra Jātaka (I, No 73), p 326

c7.s2.t3.5

⁹ Vya. Bhā, 1, p 130a f According to the Mahābhārata (śānti p LXviii, 8-12) the employment and direction of spies is one of the prime duties of the king They are to be set in cities, provinces, and the territories of feudatories, also see Arthasāstra, pp. 17-22

c7.s2.t3.6

¹⁰ Ava cū, II, pp 200 f; cf. the minister Vassakāra in Buddhist literature by whose tactful machination the unity of the Vajjian confederacy was broken (Com on the Dīgha, II, pp. 522 ff)

c7.s2.t3.7

Besides, there were other officers such as chieftains (gaṇamukhyas), head police officers (daṇḍanāyaga), knights (talavara),¹¹ heads of families (koḍumbiya), the head of a mercantile guild (seṭṭhi)¹² generals (senāvai) and frontier guards (sandhīpāla),¹³ who formed an assembly of king's officers.

c7.s2.t3.8

¹¹ They were invested with a paṭṭa given by the king, they possessed the same status as th king, the only difference was that they were without chowries.

c7.s2.t3.9

¹² They are invested with a golden paṭṭa inscribed with the image of god

c7.s2.t3.10

¹³ Rãy Sū., Ṭī. p 313; 148, p 285; Nisī. cū., 9, p 506, Bṛh. Bhā. Vr, 3 3757, Kalpa. Ṭī., 4, 82.

c7.s2.t3.11

FISCAL ADMINISTRATION

Linked texts (6)