The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c14.123

c14.123

Besides guiding the day-to-day life of the community, the state should provide for all national calamities. Pestilences are to be fought by organised bands of physicians and by supernatural means; floods by wholesale relief measures and worship of rivers. To guard against fire, villagers should provide themselves with tubs and pots filled with water, ladders, axes, winnowers, hooks and leather bags. Or they must cook their food outside their homes. Many rational and many supernatural expedients are similarly prescribed against rats, snakes, locusts, birds, insects, etc., as also against demons.³ Social helpfulness in ordinary life as well as in emergencies is prescribed to all on risk of severe penalties.⁴ In the course of his treatment of civil law, Kautalya regulates inheritance in all its aspects and gives some rather eccentric provisions. He is, however, careful to lay down that unclaimed property except when it happened to belong to learned men, escheated to the state.¹ For priests and scholars he would provide freeholds.²