The Political Institutions and Theories of the Hindus: A Study in Comparative Politics c9.s4.t3.12

c9.s4.t3.12

In the fourth place, leaving aside the fact that men following the soldier’s profession were often organized on the gild principle (*śreṇî-vala* or gild corps¹ e. g. the Kṣatriya gilds of Gujarat described by Kautilya) the ordinary industrial and commercial *śreṇîs* had great military importance as well. The chief reason of course was their power over the purse or the sinews of war.