Theory of Government in Ancient India (Post-Vedic) c15.81

c15.81

The monarchy was despotic. Hindu theory knows of no constitutional checks as distinct from the force of custom, tradition and spiritual sanctions. But it strongly deprecates arbitrariness. It would have been blasphemy for a Hindu king to say, like the Stuarts of England or the Bourbons of France that Rex is lex. In the Mahābhārata, the king swears at the coronation that he would observe Dharma and Niti. Apart from conformity to Dharma, the Mahābhārata wants the rule of law. The Smṛitis follow suit. All administration, central and local, must be conducted according to well-defined principles and regulation. Caprice is the