Studies in Ancient Hindu Polity (Based on the Arthashastra of Kautilya), Vol. I c8: Chapter IV. The Department of Live Stock (Continued): Elephants

Studies in Ancient Hindu Polity (Based on the Arthaśāstra of Kauṭilya), Vol. I c8

Language: English

Chapter IV. The Department of Live Stock (Continued): Elephants

c8.2

ONE of the four well-known divisions of the old Hindu army was the elephant force, on the efficiency of which depended to a great extent the efficiency of the army as a whole.¹ There has been on record many a battle in early Indian history in which elephants carried the day. Hence the rearing up of a good breed of elephants was recognized as one of the special cares of Chandra Gupta's Government, which made itself famous by the strength of its army organization. The killing of an elephant was visited even with capital punishment, which shows the great care taken for them by the State.

c8.3

¹ The references in this chapter are to भूमिच्छिद्रविधानम्, हस्त्यश्वः and हस्त्यप्रचारः Bk. II.

c8.4

The department of elephants had several officers. At the head was हस्तिध्यक्ष, the superintendent of elephants, whose main duties were (1) to see that the elephant forests were well protected, and (2) to superintend the internal arrangements in the elephant stables and the proper training of elephants by experts. The immediate work of the maintenance and upkeep of the elephant preserves was, however, not his look-out. This was left to another officer called नागवनपाल, the superintendent of elephant forests. He had a staff of assistants called नागवनपाल's, the keepers of elephant forests, through whom he had to acquaint himself with the limits as well as the paths leading into and out of the forests—especially those that were mountainous or boggy or contained rivers or lakes. The capture of elephants was also their concern, in which they were helped by a special set of men. These were: (i) हस्तिपक (elephant drivers); (ii) पादपाशिक (those who slip nooses round the legs of elephants); (iii) सैनिक (boundary guards); (iv) पारिकर्मिक (servants for miscellaneous works); (v) वनचरक (foresters); and (vi) अनीकस्थ (elephant trainers).

c8.5

The need for the presence of elephant trainers (हस्तिक), mentioned last in the above list, was owing to the fact that they alone could readily ascertain those elephants that were fit for capture; for certain classes of elephants were exempted from capture, viz. those that had small tusks like those of female elephants (मूड़),¹ diseased (व्याधित) or pregnant elephants as well as those that suckled their young (गर्भिनी and धेनुका), and elephants below twenty years of age or without tusks (मदच); young elephants (बभ्रु) were as a rule allowed to remain at large, and only a few were captured to train for sports.

c8.6

¹ *Vide* Bhaṭṭasvāmī’s Commentary.

c8.7

The captors, with five or seven female elephants (हस्तिदमकी) which had been specially taught the devices of capture, roamed about in summer—the season for the capture of elephants—in the forests, and traced the whereabouts of herds of elephants by following the course of their dung and urine (हस्तिमुत्रपुरी-षधम्य) and by observing their footmarks (पथा), the spots where they reposed (मध्यास्थान), and the banks of rivers, lakes, etc., damaged by them (इतपातोहेमेन). The captors passed along the lines of भल्लातक trees (Semecarpus anacardium), called Bhelâ (ভেলা) in Bengali. One of the reasons for this was perhaps that the trees, being very shady, afforded a good resting-place for the animals, where the herds or clues to their wanderings were most likely to be found. It is also possible that the leaves and branches of the trees formed a favourite food of the animals, for भल्लातक is mentioned as a medicinal plant in the extant works¹ on हस्त्यायुर्वेद and अश्वशास्त्र alike, the properties of which, according to medical authorities (quoted in *Elephants and their Diseases*, by Lt.-Col. Evans, p. 144), are mainly those of a stimulant, and admit of both internal and external uses.

c8.8

¹ हसयो यदि वाते सृजाता भल्लातकैः सह विपाच्य सार्षपं तैलं बलाहं लेपयेद्ब्रजे । —हस्त्यायुर्वेदः, by पालकाप्यमुनि, p. 208. मधुकं केशरं पत्रं भल्लातकविभीत कम् अर्कपुष्पं वहा सारं समभागेन मिश्रितम् काथार्तस्य स्युर्हितः स्नायोऽयं विमलात्मकः उत्साहवर्द्धकः सस्यस्य काथाधिदीपकः । —अश्ववैद्यकम्, by नकुल, p. 58; see also p. 54 (ibid.).

c8.9

The exact devices that were employed for catching the elephants are not described in the Arthaśāstra, but an extract from Megasthenes bearing on this point is worth quoting. It runs as follows:—

c8.10

"The manner of hunting the elephant is this. Round a bare patch of ground is dug a deep trench about 5 or 6 stadia (a stadium=202¼ yds.) in extent, and over this is thrown a very narrow bridge which gives access to the enclosure. Into this enclosure are introduced three or four of the best-trained female elephants. The men themselves lie in ambush in concealed huts. The wild elephants do not approach this trap in the daytime, but they enter it at night, going in one by one. When all have passed the entrance, the men secretly close it up; then, introducing the strongest of the tame fighting elephants, they fight it out with the wild ones, whom at the same time they enfeeble with hunger. When the latter are overcome with fatigue, the boldest of the drivers dismount unobserved, and each man creeps under his own elephant, and from this position creeps under the belly of the wild elephant and ties his feet together."—Megasthenes, Bk. III, Fragment xxxvi.

c8.11

The sources of supply of elephants in those days were the following places, viz.: (i) कलिंग, (ii) अङ्ग, (iii) करुष¹ (eastern portion of the district of Shahabad in Behar), supplying elephants of the best quality; (iv) प्राच्य (the east), (v) दशार्ण,² (vi) अपरान्त³ (western countries, viz. Konkan and Malabar), supplying elephants of medium quality; and (vii) सुराष्ट्र (Guzerat), (viii) पञ्चजन,¹ supplying elephants of inferior quality.

c8.12

¹ N. L. Dey's Geogr. Dict. ² दशार्ण has been identified with modern Mandasore. ³ Vide N. L. Dey's Geogr. Dict.

c8.13

¹ पञ्चजन probably stands for पञ्चनद, a place in Northern India, which is referred to in the Mahabharata, Sabha Parva, ch. 27, in connexion with the Northern conquests of Arjuna, thus: किरीटी जितवान् राजन् देशान् पञ्चनदांस्ततः ।

c8.14

STABLES.

c8.15

There were two sets of stables, one in the fort and the other outside; in the former were kept those elephants that had already been trained for war and riding, and in the latter those that were being tamed, together with the refractory ones.

c8.16

An elephant stable was twice as high as the length of an elephant, and its width was half its height; it was made to face either the north or the east, had separate apartments for female elephants, had a spacious corridor (वीथी), and was provided with smooth, square, T-shaped tether-posts called कुमारी, which were as long as the length of an elephant, and between which were placed apertures for the removal of excreta. Their place for sleeping was similar to that for standing, with this difference, that in one half of it was a raised platform for the elephant to lean upon.

c8.17

*Stabling staff.*

c8.18

For the stabling of elephants a good number of officers was employed. A list of such officers set forth in the Arthaśāstra mentions the following: (i) चिकित्सक (elephant doctors); (ii) अनीकस्थ (elephant trainers); (iii) आरोहक (ordinary drivers or *mâhuts*); (iv) आघोरक (expert *mâhuts* able to control the pace and movement of elephants); (v) हस्तिपक (grooms or elephant keepers); (vi) औपचारिक (attendants); (vii) विपाचक (cooks); (viii) यावसक (grass suppliers); (ix) पादपाशिक (those who put fetters round their feet); (x) कुटीरक्ष (guards); (xi) उपशायिक (those who take care of the elephants at night).

c8.19

These officers were given wages and allowances of food, and a deduction was made from their dues for negligence in their duties, *e.g.* allowing a stranger to ride the elephants, striking them in the vital parts of their bodies, not cleansing the stables, etc.

c8.20

*Daily routine.*

c8.21

Their bathing hours were fixed once in the morning between 6 and 7.30 and again in the afternoon between 3 and 4.30. The two bathing hours were followed by hours for meals. The forenoon was the time for their physical exercise, and afternoon for their training. Two out of the eight parts of the night were spent in sleep (स्वप्न) and three in drowsiness (संवेधनीतानिद्र).

Rations

c8.s1.1

The quantity of ration to be given to an elephant was regulated generally according to its age, which was inferred from its size and other physical features; and for this purpose elephants were divided into three groups, viz.:—

c8.s1.2

(i) those that were 14 feet high, 18 feet long, and 20 feet in girth, and were from these measurements inferred to be of forty years of age; (ii) those that were thirty years old; and (iii) those that were twenty-five years old.

c8.s1.3

The diet for the second group was one-quarter less than that of the first; and the diet of the third group was one-quarter less than that of the second.

c8.s1.4

The dietary of the first group comprised the following :—

c8.s1.5

| Quantities. | Modern equivalents. |
| 1 droṇa of rice (तण्डुल) . . . . . . 4½ chataks. |
| ¼ ādhaka of oil (तैल) . . . . . . 1¼ chatak. |
| 3 prasthas of ghee (सर्पिष) . . . . . 3¾ kanchas. |
| 10 palas of salt . . . . . . . 4½ sikis. |
| 50 palas of मांस, i.e. fleshy parts or pulp of fruits . . . . . . . . . 1 chatak 4 sikis. |
| 1 ādhaka of रस (drink) or } . . . . 1¼ chatak. |
| 2 ādhakas of curd } . . . . . . |
| 10 palas of sugar (सार) for making food palatable . . . . . . . . 4½ sikis. |
| 1 ādhaka of liquor (मद्य) or } . . . . 1¼ chatak. |
| 2 ādhakas of milk (पयः) } . . . . . |
| 2 bhāras of meadow-grass (यवस) . . . 6 seers. |
| 2½ bhāras of मष (sporting-grass) . . . 6¼ seers. |
| ½ bhāra of hay . . . . . . . ½ seer. |

c8.s1.6

And any amount of stalks of various sorts of pulse.

c8.s1.7

1 prastha of oil (1½ kancha) and ⅓ prastha of the same (¾ siki) were given respectively for rubbing the body and the head with, and ¼ prastha for a light in each apartment (प्रादीपक).

c8.s1.8

An elephant of 16 feet in height, and in rut, was given the same amount of food as one of 14 feet, and the rest when in rut were given food according to their size. A young elephant captured for sports (शिक्ष) was fed on milk and meadow-grass.

Training of Elephants

c8.s2.1

It was one of the most important duties of the superintendent of elephants to see that proper training was given to the animals under his charge by expert trainers. The elephants were divided into the following four classes according to their training :—

c8.s2.2

(i) दम (those that were being tamed); (ii) संग्राम (those trained for war); (iii) उपवाह्य (those trained for riding, etc., in times of peace); (iv) व्याल (those that were refractory and difficult to be broken).

c8.s2.3

The taming of elephants had several clearly marked out stages.

c8.s2.4

The process began when the animal was brought to attach itself to a herd of tamed elephants, and lost its wildness by contact with them; this was called the यूथगत (juthagata) stage of the training. Then the animal was cleverly thrown into a pit specially dug, to subdue its ferocity; this was the अपपातगत (apapâtagata) stage. The next step in the taming (वारिगत—vârigata) was to keep the animal confined within a particular area of the forest instead of allowing it to roam at large.

c8.s2.5

The next disciplinary measure was to tie the animal to a post when it was found to be sufficiently gentle for the purpose (स्तम्भगत—stambhagata). The taming was completed when the elephant became so gentle that it allowed its driver or trainer to sit on its withers without protest; this was the स्कन्धगत (skandhagata) stage.

c8.s2.6

Of the elephants tamed in the above way some were selected for military training and some for purposes of ordinary work.

c8.s2.7

As regards military training, the preliminary steps adopted were to accustom the elephant to girths (कक्षाकर्म) and collars (ग्रैवेयककर्म) and to co-operation with a herd in a common work (यूथकर्म). Then the animal was taught the following movements necessary for war:—

c8.s2.8

(i) उपयान (rising, bending, jumping over fences, etc.); (ii) संवर्तन (turning); (iii) संयान (moving forward straight or transverse, or making serpentine movement); (iv) वधावध (killing and trampling down); (v) रथियुद्ध (fighting with other elephants); (vi) नगरायण (assailing forts and cities); and (vii) यानिक (other cognate movements relating to war).

c8.s2.9

With regard to the training of elephants in riding, they were first taken through the preliminary processes of discipline, through मारदकर्म,¹ जीवनकर्म or drudge-work, and मारोपकर्म or responsiveness to signs. Then they were trained in the following movements, viz.:—

c8.s2.10

¹ Bhaṭṭasvâmi has explained मारदकर्म as the process by which elephants unfit for work owing to excessive fatness or leanness, or other defects, were rendered useful. The word मारद also occurs in the हस्त्यायुर्वेद of पालकाप्यमुनि, p. 49, to denote elephants that were weak, naturally, or through some disease or effect of medicines:

c8.s2.11

(i) चारण (nimble motion); (ii) कुञ्जररोप्य (being mounted from another elephant); (iii) चोरण (trotting); (iv) यायानगतिक (moving with two or three legs); (v) यष्टिपथ्य (readiness to be driven by means of a stick only); (vi) तोत्रोपग्राह्य (submitting to an iron hook); (vii) सङ्केतोपग्राह्य (readiness to be driven by mere signs); and (viii) सामीयुध (being trained in hunting).

c8.s2.12

Lastly, there were those elephants that were regarded as the failures of training. Their viciousness generally consisted in aversion to work, obstinacy, perversity, unsteadiness and bad temper. There were three classes of such elephants, viz.: (1) *suddha*, having unmitigated

c8.s2.13

प्राक्तः मारदो यश्च सन्नधातुवशात्तथा प्रकृत्या व्याधिभिश्चापि दुर्बलोऽप्यथवापि । viciousness; (2) *suvrata*, clever at mischief; and (3) *vishama*, i.e. having vices of all types. The only way to keep them under control was by punishment and the use of fetters and other means to control their vicious tendencies. For these purposes there were in use bridles (पारायण), leg-chains (परिक्षेप), frontal fetters (उन्नर), hooks (अङ्कुश), and other mechanical devices.

Ornaments

c8.s3.1

Among the ornaments of elephants are mentioned necklaces such as वैजयन्ती, सुरप्रमाल, as well as housings (आस्तर) and howdah (हय); and among war accoutrements are mentioned mail-armour (वर्मा), clubs (तोमर), quivers of arrows (शरावाप), etc.

Medical Treatment

c8.s4.1

As in the case of cows and horses, there were doctors employed to apply medicines to elephants suffering from diseases due to overwork, rut or old age. Their chief duties were, however, preventive in their character—taking care that the physical conditions surrounding the life of the elephants conformed strictly to the rules of hygiene and sanitation (गजशुद्धि). Failure to take the necessary steps for the health of elephants was punishable with fines. There was also inspection as regards the proper growth and harmonious development of all the parts of the body of an elephant. This was regulated according to several standards and types of its physical development.

c8.s4.2

There were also certain rules for the cutting of tusks of elephants. Elephants born in countries irrigated by rivers had speedy growth of tusks, which were cut once in two-and-a-half years; and for mountain elephants, whose tusks grew more slowly, it was done once in five years. The rule was to leave at the root a length equal to twice the circumference of the tusk measured at its base.

c8.s4.3

CEREMONIES FOR THE WELFARE OF ELEPHANTS.

c8.s4.4

Ceremonies were observed to propitiate unseen agencies for the welfare of elephants. Thus, आरति or the waving of lights was performed thrice daily in the rainy season and at the periods of conjunction of two seasons. Sacrifices to *Bhūtas* were also performed on new-moon and full-moon days, as also to सेनानी or Kârtikeya, the god of war.

c8.s4.5

We have now completed our account of the Department of Live Stock in Chandra Gupta’s Government, and have seen the comprehensive character of its scope and work touching the welfare and growth of the useful animals on which depended to a great extent both the economic prosperity and political security of the country.

Linked texts (5)

Kauṭilīya Arthaśāstra — Kauṭilya, Sanskrit
Ἰνδική — Λούκιος Φλάουιος Ἀρριανός, Ancient Greek
Mahābhārata — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Hastyāyurveda — Pālakāpya, Sanskrit
Aśvavaidyaka — Jayadatta Sūri, Sanskrit