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Theory of Government in Ancient India (Post-Vedic) c13.s1: The Fable

Theory of Government in Ancient India (Post-Vedic) c13.s1

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The Fable

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The Tantrākhyāyika seems to have been put very early into yet more popular versions. The Pañchatantra by Viṣṇuśarman has been the best known and the most influential of them all, but it was an earlier version of it which was translated into Pahlavi about the middle of the 6th century A.D. and thence into Old Syriac in 570 and into Arabic about 750, the last rendering, in its turn, being translated into Old Spanish in 1251 which, lastly, was the source of Latin and modern European versions. In India itself the Pañchatantra has influenced subsequent didactic literature in Sanskrit and has been translated into most of the Indian vernaculars.

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The prologue of the Pañchatantra indicates its motive. A king Amṛtaśakti of Mahilāropya sets his three sons to school. But the princes display an incurable aversion to all study. The monarch is in despair. The paṇḍitas whom he consults only tell him that at least twelve further years are required for grammar which must precede all other studies. Then Viṣṇuśarman steps in and offers to show an easy way of acquiring the accomplishments essential for princes. The Pañchatantra¹ incorporates the traditional political maxims and puts them into the mouth of birds and animals. In the course of one anecdote we are told that the prosperity of kings is bound up with that of subjects. If the latter decline, the former are ruined. Every king should nurse his kingdom and should not be too exacting in his demands. A little later we are informed that a fort is more useful than a thousand elephants and a hundred thousand horses.²

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¹ Pañchatantra, edited by Dr. J. Hertel in the Harvard Oriental Series, Vol. II. Benfrey's work on Pañchatantra inaugurated what may be called the scene of folk-lore, its motifs and migrations. See also Max Müller's Essay on the Migration of Fables.

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² See Book I, Tale VII. The Lion and the Hare, pp. 41, 43.

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An easy and condensed though slightly modified version of the Pañchatantra is Nārāyaṇa’s Hitopadeśa,¹ the most popular of Sanskrit school books, which, as the author says, was written to instruct princes, and which faithfully reproduces the Nīti precepts of the original.

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¹ Ed. Peterson, Bombay, 1887. In the prologue to the Hitopadeśa Viṣṇuśarman undertakes to make the three uneducated princes masters of the science of ‘conduct’ in six months. Prastāvanā, pp. 2–5. The last two sections are devoted to peace and war between the Geese and Peacocks but the precepts are intended for wider application. An edition of the Hitopadeśa was published by Colebrooke at Calcutta as early as 1804.

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Distinct in style from the Pañchatantra type of fable is the literary tale. The object of both, however, is the same. From the testimony of Bāṇa, Daṇḍin and, above all, Somadeva and Kṣemendra, it appears that about the fifth century A.D. or earlier, a great creative writer, Guṇāḍhya, composed the Bṛhat Kathā in the Paiśāchī dialect. It was on its basis that Somadeva, in the latter half of the eleventh century, wrote his Kathāsaritsāgara, the Ocean of the Rivers of Stories, which shows distinct traces of Buddhist influence and refers to Jātaka tales. At the very start a Brāhmaṇa offender is unceremoniously sentenced to death by a king. But, on the whole, its tone and spirit are Brahmanic. The Kathāsaritsāgara paints the rule of the Mlechchhas as one of persecution of Brāhmaṇas, interruption of sacrifices and abduction of the hermit’s daughters. The gods are frightened. Śiva comes to the rescue and commissions his son to assume the form of a man and slay the Mlechchhas.²

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² Kathāsaritsāgara, Vol. II, Book XVIII, Canto CXX. The Kathāsaritsāgara was composed between 1063–66 A.D. and 1081–88.

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Another work of a similar character, though of inferior merit, is the Puruṣaparīkṣa by Vidyāpati Thakur, a protege of Śwasimhadeva, composed in the 14th or 15th century but belonging to the old tradition.¹ Now and then it touches political subjects. Here it has no originality of its own but it weaves the time-honoured precepts wonderfully well into its narration. Thus, one should decide alone on a course of policy. There is too great a risk of mistaking the right for the wrong and vice versa. Consultation is essential for all success. Now and then, however, we catch glimpses of arbitrary despotism. For instance, King Nanda of Kusumpur deprives his minister, Śakaṭāra, of all his property, and throws him into prison. The minister himself belonged to the Kayastha caste. Rules of caste were often disregarded in the choice of ministers, and Brāhmaṇas were often passed over in favour of the more capable members of the lower castes.

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¹ Puruṣaparīkṣa (The story of one well-versed in wordly wisdom) by Vidyāpati Thakur, translated by V. R. Nerukar, Bombay, 1914.

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Numerous sayings are spread all over the work here and there. For example, the army is the strength of kings, as recourse to evil is the fashion of the wicked; meanness is the mainstay of the poor, while truth is the forte of the good. (XII, Tale of a base informer.) We are told of ministers, who drew the mind of the king away from duty and themselves usurped the practical authority. Indeed, once we are told that ministers are naturally of crooked minds. (XIII, Tale of a base informer.) Blessed is the king who has an assembly full of efficient men (XVII, Tale of a man learned in the Śāstras.) “Ignorance of kings comes to light in this world when they patronize fools as is also the case when they do not favour the really merited.” (Tale of a man knowing the art of singing, XXII.) “A king transgressing proper limits of decorum and moral rectitude through pride, like an elephant mad with intoxication, and erring from the duties of a king, is none but a demon.” Yet “if we plot against him for these offences of his, we incur the sin of treason against the king: if we put up with his mischief, destruction awaits us. So he ought to be taught religion through sages.” When the sages failed the king was expelled. (Tale of a repentant sinner.)

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There exist numerous other story-books in Sanskrit. The dates of the Śukasaptati, and the Jaina and Brahmanical versions of the Vetālapañcaviṃśatikā and Siṃhāsanadvātriṃśikā are uncertain but they fall in with the tradition.

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The eleventh century saw another story-book of considerable literary merit, the Dharmaparīkṣa by the Jaina writer Amitagatisūri, author of Subhāṣitaratnasandoha, Pañcasaṃgraha, Śrāvakācāra and other works.¹ He writes in an easy clear style but in a narrow sectarian tone. The Dharmaparīkṣa (scrutiny of religions) ridicules Buddhist and Brahmanic schools but in its stories it cheerfully incorporates the received political views.

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¹ Amitagatisūri belonged to the Māthura Saṃgha, a branch of the Kāṣṭha Saṃgha. The Dharmaparīkṣa has been published at Bombay. Ms. copies of it, as of so many other Jaina works, exist in Jaina temple libraries. There are several vernacular commentaries on the Dharmaparīkṣa.

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A Jaina treasury of stories, the Kathākoṣa,² gives many tales of princes and princesses. *Inter alia*, it repeats the old conversation between Indra in disguise and King Nami. Its avowed purpose is to glorify spirituality, renunciation and asceticism but it also gives the usual rules of statecraft.

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² The Kathākoṣa, tr. C. H. Tawney, Oriental Translation Fund, New Series, pp. 26–28.

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To the class of story-tellers also belongs Kṣemendra, but he really stands in a class by himself among later classical Sanskrit writers. He lived in Kashmir in the reign of Ananta Deva in the eleventh century and was probably descended from a line of ministers. Earlier than Somadeva, he wrote a Bṛihat Kathāmañjarī on the basis of Guṇāḍhya's Bṛihatkathā. Here the political instruction corresponds to his age but in his Bhāratamañjarī and Rāmāyaṇamañjari he seeks to recapture the atmosphere of the two great epics. In broad outline he follows the order of narration in the epics and, inter alia, summarises the didactic chapters, of course, adding touches of his own. Once again we meet with the state of nature or anarchy, with all its horrors, where might is right and people dine on one another. There religion or virtue is impossible; there are no timely rains. How can there be any wealth or wife, how can the body itself subsist, unless there is a king, a protector, an embodiment of all the gods? Well, the people put an end to anarchy by raising Manu to the kingship.¹ In laying down precepts for the guidance of kings, Kṣemendra sums up the injunctions of the Mahābhārata, Arthaśāstras, Dharmaśāstras and Nītiśāstras.² He does not omit to add that Brāhmaṇas should be honoured, worshipped and followed by kings but if they fall from the ethical code, they are to be punished like Śūdras. It is to the interest of the king himself that all his subjects should be devoted to religion, virtue and family usage. A Kekaya monarch was once taken hold of by a demon in a forest but the latter released his victim when told of the virtue prevalent in his realm. It follows that none dare molest a ruler who leads his subjects into righteousness. In the same strain follow the precepts on finance and general administration. Spies are there in abundance.¹ In dealing with enemies, internal or external, Kṣemendra faithfully follows the Mahābhārata. In his usual limpid flowing style he paraphrases the Āpaddharma chapters of the Epic and joins to them the substance of Kaṇinka's discourse in the Ādiparva and a few scattered tales. He rehearses the discourse of Viśvāmitra and the Caṇḍāla on the ethics of abnormal days and goes on to illustrate his theme by additional anecdotes.² In other cantos, too, political reflections are interspersed in the manner of the Mahābhārata though not with the same abundance. The Rāmāyaṇamañjarī³ which begins and ends like Vālmīki echoes the scanty political precepts of the Epic.⁴

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¹ Bhāratamañjarī, ed. Śivadatta and Kāśīnāth Pāṇḍurang Parab. Bombay, 1898. Kāvyamālā, No. 64. Śāntiparva, Rāja-dharmāḥ, 298-307. As Bühler declared on a comparison of the Mss. of the Bhāratamañjarī, Kṣemendra's text of the Mahābhārata was practically the same as we have got at present.

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² See the Śāntipūrva of the Bhāratamañjarī.

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¹ Ibid., Śāntiparva, 320, 328, 330, 331-333.

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² Ibid., Śāntiparva. Āpaddharma, pp. 581-596.

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³ The Rāmāyaṇamañjarī, ed. Bhavadatta Śastri and Kāśināth Pāṇḍurang Parab, Bombay, 1903. Kāvyamālā, No. 83.

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The theme changes in another remarkable work of Kṣemendra called Bodhisattvāvadāna Kalpalatā.⁴ Here numerous Buddhist Jātaka and Avadāna tales are epitomized. It is significant of the commingling of Brāhmaṇical and Buddhist streams of culture that the same writer could try his hand on the epics and Buddhist tales with the same amount of success. In the Kalpalatā, political reflections are few and far between and can hardly be distinguished from Brāhmaṇical ideas.

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⁴ Along with its Tibetan version, this work, edited by Śoṅton Lochāva, Paṇḍita Lakṣmīkara, Sarat Chandra Dās and Paṇḍita Hari Mohan Vidyābhūṣaṇa, has been published in the Bibliotheca Indica, Calcutta. The Sanskrit original is a block-print from Lhasa in Tibetan characters, more than two centuries old. The first forty chapters had been lost in India. (Introduction, p. ix.)

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A word may be said on a few late miscellaneous compositions. In the Nalodaya, wrongly ascribed to Kâlidâsa, which draws its plot from the Mahâbhârata, a kingdom is treated like private property. Nala can pawn it and lose it at dice and regain it by the same means. The theme recurs in Trivikramabhaṭṭa's Nala Champû. In the latter half of the twelfth century, Śrî-Harṣa worked the story of Nala and Damayantî into the Naiṣadhîya,¹ one of the five Mahâkâvyas of Sanskrit literature. Bound by the Kâvya canon he introduces politics but is content to re-echo the foregoing masters—Kâlidâsa, Bhâravi and Mâgha. In artificiality, even the Naiṣadhîya is surpassed by Kavirâja's Râghava Pâṇḍavîya, composed probably about the close of the twelfth century,² which simultaneously relates the tales of the Râmâyaṇa and the Mahâbhârata and, perforce, brings in the usual political maxims. A work of a far different character is the Yogavâsiṣṭha traditionally ascribed to Vâlmîki but really very late. It bears an affinity to Purâṇas but is more philosophical than any of them. Orthodox in tone, it wants the king to sustain the dharma of varṇas and âśramas and, in a few passages, reiterates the usual Brahmanical conception of government.³

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¹ The Naiṣadhîya Charita, with Nârâyaṇa's Commentary, has been edited by Śivadatta, Bombay, 1907.

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² Ed. with the Commentary of Śasadhara by Śivadatta and Kâśinâth Pâṇḍurang Parab, Kâvyamâlâ No. 62, Bombay, 1897. The Râghava Pâṇḍavîya was ascribed to the ninth century, but see Keith, Classical Sanskrit Literature, 56.

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³ The Yogavâsiṣṭha (edited by W. L. S. Pansikar with the Commentary. Vâsiṣṭha Mahârâmâyaṇatâtparyaprakâśa. Bombay, 1911), Part II, 123, pp. 1045-46,

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Satya Hariśchandra, a popular drama, regards the realm as the private property of a monarch. King Hariśchandra gives away his whole kingdom to a sage as if it were a piece of furniture.¹

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¹ Satya Hariśchandra Nâtaka, edited by B. R. Apte and S. V. Puranik, third edition, Bombay, 1923.

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Bhoja Prabandha by Ballâlasen belongs to the close of the ancient age and reproduces the old political ideas. The king is the guide, teacher and exemplar of his subjects. If he is sinful, his subjects will be sinful. If he is virtuous, the subjects will follow suit. The monarch should be a real king. The people do not like one whose favour and indignation alike are worthless.²

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² Bhoja Prabandha by Ballâla, edited by Vâsudeva Sharma, Bombay, 1921. See pp. 8, 10.

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Vâsudeva's Yudhiśthiravijaya and Kavirâja's Râghava Pâṇḍavîya repeat the traditional political wisdom.³

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³ Yudhiśthiravijaya by Vâsudeva, edited by MM. Pandit Śivadattâ and Kâśînâth Pâṇḍurang Parab. Kâvyamâlâ (Series), 60, Bombay, 1897. Râghava Pâṇḍavîya by Kavirâja is published in the same series as No. 62,

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When the Hindus lost their political independence after the eleventh century, they concerned themselves less and less with theories of government. They continued the ancient spiritual and literary tradition but in their new works politics occupied an insignificant place. For instance, the Adhyâtma Râmâyaṇa, which, though inserted into the Brahmâṇḍa Purâṇa, is a book by itself composed about the 14th century, devotes itself primarily to the propagation of the Vaiṣṇava faith. It borrows its plot from Vâlmîki but its tone and spirit are entirely different. It strikes a note of pessimism at the very outset and laments the rottenness of the *Kali* age when Kṣatriyas and Vaiśyas have left off their duties and Śûdras have taken to Brâhmaṇa functions.¹ Political matters are discussed more like family than like state matters.²

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¹ The Adhyâtma Râmâyaṇa, Bâla Kâṇḍa, Ch. I, 12—14.

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² For instance, Ibid., Ayodhyâ Kâṇḍa, Chs. II—IV.

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It will be observed that the stream of Sanskrit literature continued to flow long after the Hindus had lost their political independence in the North. In fact the practice of writing in Sanskrit has never disappeared in India. But from the thirteenth century onwards in the North, Sanskrit writers display little interest in politics. The utter decadence of the *Kali* age is now an axiom with them. Their pessimistic fatalism now surpasses all precedent. They leave government pretty much to take care of itself. The same characteristic is shared by the Sanskrit commentaries on literary works which arose in abundance during the middle ages. Malli Nâtha (14th century), the prince of Sanskrit literary commentators, comments on political passages in an entirely literary fashion. He often quotes Kâmandaka and sometimes refers to other writers but there is nothing refreshing in his remarks. Dinakara Miśra, who lived in the same century, is no better. Nor, if we can judge missing works by quotations in others, do their predecessors Dakṣiṇâvarta and Nâtha who lived about the 13th century seem to have been more enlightening.

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Like classical literature, Dharma Sûtras, Dharma Śâstras and other branches of Sanskrit literature, the epics were also extensively commented on during the medieval period. Sarvajña Nârâyaṇa probably in the fourteenth century, Arjuna Miśra probably in the fifteenth and Nîlakaṇṭha in the sixteenth, commented on the Mahâbhârata, but to political thought they have little to add. There are numerous other literary commentators who just touch political theory but it is needless to mention names.

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From the fifteenth century onwards the vernacular literatures arise and partly displace Sanskrit literary activity. But in the north the vernacular writers yield little to the student of political theory. Everywhere there are translations or abridgments of the epics and Purāṇas, but it is significant that some noted medieval poets who told the story of Rāma modelled themselves on the Adhyātma Rāmāyaṇa rather than on Vālmiki. They neglect the political side even of the traditional wisdom almost completely. It is remarkable that some of the greatest figures in Hindi literature, Sūradāsa and Tulsidāsa, for instance, though they lived close to Agra, the capital of the Muslim Empires, in the sixteenth and the first half of the seventeenth centuries, do not make the slightest allusion to contemporary political institutions, events or ideas. With the exception of those who were patronised by Muslim sovereigns or nobles, the vernacular writers, as a class, in Muslim India, almost studiously ignore politics.¹ In Rājputānā and Central India where Hindus retained their partial independence, literature concerns itself a little with politics. There are heroic lays embedded in the epic. Prithvirâjâso which, though ascribed to Chandabardâi and partly to his son Jalhana of the twelfth century, was really composed by many hands from the thirteenth to the seventeenth century. It repeats the traditional political ideas, glorifies martial prowess, state independence and feudal loyalty.¹ Other Râjpût compositions, many of which are perserved in Mss. in the palace libraries and private collections in Râjpût states, particularly in Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, and Bundi, closely resemble the Râso. Other poems reflect the ideas of the bards. The same remark applies to the Central Indian composition of which an excellent Ms. collection exists in the palace library of Chhatarpur.

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¹ See Beni Prasad, Education and Literature under the Great Mughals, Proceedings of the Indian Historical Records Commission, Calcutta, Vol. V, pp. 44-56. Also Introduction to Saṃkṣipta Sūra Sāgar, Allahabad. For instances of very faint reflections of Nīti and Dharma Śāstras in Sūradāsa, X, 160, 221, 1008, 2377, 2503, 2505, 2507, 2569; IX, 170. For the same, Tulasī Dāsa, Rāma Charita Mānasa (Indian Press Edition), pp. 233, 270-271, 338, 373, 392, 399. It is said that the reigning sovereign may nominate any of his sons to the throne, p. 272. In the fourteenth century, Krittivāsa in Bengal translated the Rāmāyaṇa into Bengali but in his original writings there is nothing political.

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¹ The Prithvirâjâso has been edited and published by the Kâśi Nâgarî Prachâriṇî Sabhâ, Benares. See also Miśra brothers, Miśra-bandhu Vinoda, I, pp. 227–236. Hindî Navaratna, Ch. I. Kavirâja Shyamala Das, J. A. S. B., 1886, Pt. I, 5–65. In reply to it, Mohan Lal Vishnu Lal Pandya, A Defence of Prithvî Râja Râso, Benares, 1887.

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In the Konkan, the long strip of land between the Western Ghats and the sea, the Marâthâs remained practically independent and in the seventeenth century put forth a mighty effort to repel the advancing Mughal arms. The Marâthâ renaissance which had been in progress during the previous two centuries, now reached its climax. One of the most remarkable literary figures was Râmadâsa, the preceptor of the Marâthâ leader Śivâji.²

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² Râmadâsa lived from 1608 to 1682 A. D. His magnum opus the Dasabodha is divided into twenty Daśakas or decades, each consisting of ten chapters. It has passed through many Marâthâ editions and has lately been translated into many other Indian languages.

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Râmadâsa reinterprets Brahmanic theology, metaphysics as well as social and political theory in terms of the intellectual temper of Mahârâṣṭra in the seventeenth century. Here Politics forms part of the general scheme of life and thought.

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The purpose of society is the perfection of human life leading to salvation. To attain this end it is essential to institute (1) an ethical code, (2) the true religion, and (3) a government. A code of righteous conduct serves to inculcate kindness to all, generosity, peace and quiet and also self-knowledge—which is the real knowledge. It corrects the propensities to jealousy, hatred, vilification and unsocial conduct in general. Religion consists, according to Râmadâsa’s philosophy, primarily in Bhakti or devotion to god to the comparative neglect of ritual. But to secure freedom for devotion and practice of righteousness, to repress those who would obstruct the wholesome way of life and who would indulge in unsocial, unrighteous, ungodly conduct, in a word, to protect Dharma and destroy its opposite, it is necessary to have a government. A true government has to enforce justice, fairness and all the rules of the social order. Here the Dâsabodha gives a philosophy of government in very clear terms.¹ But later when he proceeds to lay down political precepts, he is content with the vaguest generalities. One should win over as many people as possible and maintain one’s presence of mind in the face of entanglements. One should plan a good deal of political strategy but keep it strictly secret. One should not, however, aim at injuring others. Judgment is essential. One should break down the pride of others by measures of policy or win them over. One should console the timorous and challenge the audacious, and so on.² To Sambhâjî, the successor of Śivâjî, Râmadâsa imparted two injunctions—unite the Marâthâs and propagate the Dharma of Mahârâṣṭra.

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¹ Dâsabodha, Daśaka XV, Samâsa 3; XII, 10; XIV, 6; XIX, 6; XVI, 10.

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² Dâsabodha, Daśaka X, Samâsa, VI, 7-8, 19-22, etc.

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South of Kṛṣṇa river, conditions were more favourable for political thought. There, in spite of brilliant Khilji and Tughlak raids from the north in the fourteenth century.

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In the Vijayanagara Empire. the ancient age of Indian History comes to a close only with the battle of Tâlikoṭa which, in 1565, finally destroyed the Vijayanagara Empire. For more than two centuries that empire had held its own against the Deccan Muslim powers—Bahmanī Kingdom and its off-shoots, the Sultanates. Under its aegis the old Hindu life continued in full vigour. Here some of the most remarkable of ‘medieval’ Hindu philosophic, literary and legal treatises or commentaries were composed. Here some thought was bestowed on government and ancient ideas were re-interpreted and modified in the light of contemporary conditions. The best illustration of the process is furnished by the emperor-poet Kṛṣṇadeva Râya who was not only a patron of scholars living in his own dominions or attracted by his fame and generosity from distant places like Benares but who was himself a writer of no mean repute.

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Kṛṣṇadeva Râya. The Telugu classic Āmuktaṃâlyavadā is attributed to him with ample reason. It furnishes an excellent view of the political theory which was favoured at the southern court in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Eighty verses (205--284) in the fourth canto of the work are remarkable for a degree of lucidity, virility and courage which is rarely found in work of this period elsewhere in India. In fidelity to the Hindu tradition, Kṛṣṇadeva Râya sets out to give only some political maxims but they cover many spheres of administration.¹ A king should first guarantee the security of his dominions by adequate naval and military preparations or affected friendships with enemies. It is not wise to press an enemy without giving him an opportunity to come to terms. Secure on the frontiers the king should proceed to root out his internal enemies in the manner of a farmer. All the time he should keep a watch over external and internal foes. He should particularly ascertain and repress his opponents in recently conquered territories.¹ Contrary to the general tenor of Hindu thought, Kṛṣṇadeva Rāya would entrust both civil and military offices chiefly to Brāhmaṇas. "Because a Brāhmaṇa would stand to his post even in times of danger and would continue in service though reduced to becoming a subordinate to a Kṣatriya or a Śūdra, it is always advisable for a king to make Brāhmaṇas as his officers." Fortresses should be commanded by Brāhmaṇa generals who combine knowledge and heroism with virtue. An ideal civil minister is a Brāhmaṇa scholar, healthy in body, between fifty and seventy years of age, descended from a family of hereditary royal servants, versed in politics, afraid of sin, careful in business. A Brāhmaṇa who comes of a mean family or is devoid of learning or character, is never to be appointed minister. So, according to Kṛṣṇadeva Rāya, birth, learning, character and executive capacity are the qualifications for the principal office. For this, as for all other chief Posts, too, veracity, "absence of greed" and "absence of cruelty" are indispensable and requisite.²

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¹ Kṛṣṇadeva Râya's Political Maxims have been translated by A. Rangaswāmī Sarasvatī in the Journal of Indian History, January, 1926, pp. 64--77. This translation has been followed in the present notice. It was during the reign of Kṛṣṇadeva Râya (1509--1530) that the Vijayanagara Empire attained to its greatest extent.

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¹ Ānuktamālyāda, Canto IV, Verses 219, 241, 250, 252.

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² Ibid., Vv. 207, 209, 210, 211, 213, 217, 261, 227, 229, 234, 260, 269, 208, 214, 233, 254.

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Probably from his own experience of men and affairs, Kṛṣṇadeva always keeps an eye on human weaknesses. A king must guard constantly against selfish flatterers.

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Human Weaknesses.

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Nor should he confide completely in anyone. Nobles and warriors have to be controlled anyhow. A king should foment their mutual jealousies so that all their actions, good or bad, might come to his knowledge. "In trying to get over each other and become famous they will not entertain any idea of treachery to the sovereign." In a council an officer is only too likely to oppose a colleague's proposal through mere spite. The king must discover individual motives. Bad ministers only too often manage affairs so as to make themselves indispensable and thrust their own favourites into offices. From a single instance the king should judge of the character of unscrupulous persons and guard against them. An officer who has only recently been raised to the order of Doras (a sort of peerage) should not be admitted to counsels, lest his head should be turned and he should betray the counsels to his friends. If a councillor is suspected, he should be watched through spies. Officials should be promoted step by step and degradations should be avoided. In one passage Kṛṣṇadeva seems to favour the practice of putting offices into commission but he may only mean that work should be fairly distributed, and as he goes on to emphasise the staff should not be inadequate.

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On finance the royal author did not choose to reveal himself fully. Fares should be moderate. The income should be divided into four parts—one to be deposited in the treasury, another to be used for "extensive benefactions" and "enjoyment" and the rest to be devoted to the maintenance of a strong army."¹ Military expenditure thus

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¹ Ibid., Verses 238, 270.

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Income and Expenditure.

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amounts to one-half of the total income and to double the ordinary expenses.

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The "extensive benefactions here seem to include tanks and irrigation canals which, we are told, are essential both to Dharma and Artha. Rewards should be bestowed on meritorious people but Kṛṣṇadeva lays down an unexpectedly wholesome precept on charity. The king should beware of heaping gifts of money and land on mendicant ascetics.

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State-activities.

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"They may swerve from their necessary discipline which would increase in the state evils such as famine, disease and infantile mortality . . . . . it is sufficient if the king shows *bhakti* towards them. The only evil that might then result is their suffering, but no sin would accrue to the sovereign. Be assured of this." The administration of temple was another matter with which the state had to concern itself. It should not be entrusted to greedy officers. Harbours of the country should be improved and the importation of horses, elephants, precious gems, sandalwood, pearls, etc., should be encouraged. Ship-wrecked foreign sailors should be carefully looked after. Thanks to military exigencies—Kṛṣṇadeva is extraordinarily solicitous about foreign importers of horses and elephants. Daily royal audience presents, decent profits, excellent accommodation in cities and villages are the means prescribed to win their attachment. Then they will not take horses and elephants to enemy countries.¹

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¹ Ibid., 236, 242, 245, 258.

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On justice, Kṛṣṇadeva has not much to say. He would ordinarily allow three chances of appeal, perhaps for mercy, to a condemned criminal. "But in the case of those people whose escape might bring on a calamity to yourself immediate execution is advisable."²

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² Ibid., Vv. 22, 238, 240, 261, 265, 279.

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Justice.

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Espionage plays a notable part in the whole scheme of administration. Ordinarily, a king will not find out the whole truth about an affair. One-fourth of the truth is likely to be concealed from him and can be ascertained only through favourites and friends. "Do not spurn away an informer at the very outset, ponder over and over again about what he says. If what he reported proves to be false, then dispense with him, but see that he is in no way disgraced." Not only enemies but one's own ministers and partisans are to be shadowed by spies.¹

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¹ Ibid., V. 243.

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To Vijayanagara statesmen wild forest tribes constituted a practical problem and engaged the close attention of Kṛṣṇadeva. They were always refractory. Kṛṣṇadeva would like their government to be entrusted to "heroes who have fallen from great positions. It would not affect the king much whoever succeeds in the struggle between them." But a real effort should be made to bring them under control. Their fears should be set at rest. Owing to their backwardness, insignificant causes may suffice to turn them into bitter enemies or close friends. Truthfulness can bring them under control. By kind words and charity they may be utilised in the invasion of foreign territory and plundering of foreign fortresses.² It is useless to mind the little faults of forest chiefs.

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² Ibid., Vv. 225, 221, 222, 257.

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On warfare Kṛṣṇadeva has one or two ideas. He emphasises the importance of capturing fortresses. If the harem of the enemy falls into one's hands, the women should be treated with perfect courtesy and kindness. Envoys should always be politely dealt with.³

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³ Ibid., V. 267.

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