Chandragupta Maurya and His Times c7.53

c7.53

It may be noted that Kauṭilya (II. 2) provides for a reserved forest for purposes of the king's *vihāra* or sport. Asoka in his Rock Edict VIII speaks of the king's *vihārayātrās*. According to Kauṭilya, this reserved forest was to be protected by a ditch (*khātaguptam*), to have only one entrance, and to be stocked with tigers, beasts of prey, and bisons (*kalabha*) with their claws and teeth cut off, so that the king could have his sport without any risk to his life. Kauṭilya further provides that the king should go out a-hunting into such forests as are previously cleared of all sources of danger, robbers, tigers and the like, by his foresters (*lubdhaka*), with the hounds of the king's kennels. Under these conditions, the king was to learn the difficult art of shooting at a moving mark, such as running deer (*chalalaksha*) [I. 21]. The *Mudrārākshasa* tells of a park (*udyāna*) where the Nanda king used to shoot at moving objects.