Chandragupta Maurya and His Times c9.164

c9.164

(1) Herds of 100 heads of cattle each, which were looked after by a group of five classes of workers, namely, (a) the cowherd (*gopālaka*), (b) the herdsman in charge of buffaloes (*piṇḍāraka*), (c) the milker (*dohaka*), (d) the churner (who prepared curds, *dadhi-mathanakarmā*), and (e) the hunter (*lubdhaka*) who was to protect the cattle against wild animals. Kauṭilya [*XIV*, 3] also mentions dogs (*śunakāḥ*) keeping watch in the village (*grāme kutūhalāḥ*). All these were employed on the basis of fixed wages paid in kind (*hiraṇyabhṛitā*). They were not paid in shares of milk or clarified butter 'lest the calves are deprived of the milk that sustains them'.