Local Government in Ancient India c13.101

c13.101

Meetings of assemblies are referred to even in the Vedas. The *Ṛg-veda* (X. 71, 10) thus appreciates a successful speaker and debater: 'All friends are joyful in the friend who cometh in triumph, having conquered in the Assembly. He is their blame-averter, food provider, prepared is he and fit for deed of vigour.’ The *Atharva-veda* (VII. 12, 4) thus refers to a piece of persuasive oratory arresting the attention of the audience: ‘Whether your thoughts are turned away or bound and fastened here or there, we draw them hitherward again: let your mind firmly rest on me.’ In *Av.* II. 27, a speaker seeks the help of spells and magic herbs to stimulate his eloquence in debate (*prāś*) and overcome his rival debaters (*pratiprāśaḥ*): ‘May (my) foe by no means win (*ji*) the dispute; overpowering, overcoming art thou; smite the dispute of (my) counter-disputant; make them sapless, O herb’ [अरसान् = नीरसान् शुष्ककण्ठान् वक्तुम् असमर्थान् or रसरहितवाक्यान्, i. e. असंयतप्रलापिनः कुरु, i. e. make them dry-throated, incapable of speaking or devoid of sweetness of speech, hence make their speeches irrelevant, inconsistent, and incoherent (Sāyaṇa)]. In *Av.* VII. 12, 3 the debater prays to Indra for the palm and pre-eminence in the meeting of the assembly: ‘I appropriate to myself all the power of knowledge and wisdom that belong to these members of the assembly: Indra, make me conspicuous in all this gathered assembly, so that I may monopolize its attention.’¹ The members were also anxious that their speeches should be free from impropriety and rudeness and always agreeable and fair and never foul (*Av.* VII. 12, 1). They even prayed for forgiveness of any sins of omission or commission of which they might be guilty in their debates at meetings: ‘Each fault in the assembly … that we have done … even of that sin, thou (*sūrya*) art the expiation’ (*Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā*, XX. 17). The respect for the meeting was also thus expressed: ‘Homage to the assemblies and to you, Presidents of the assemblies’ (ibid., XVI. 24).