Vigilance in Kautilya's Arthashastra

- Radhakrishnan Pillai

(The present article has been written for the in house Vigilance Journal of Air India titled EFFECTS, for its second issue of Nov 05 brought our during its Vigilance awareness

week from 7-11 Nov 05)

INTRODUCTION OF KAUTILYA’S ARTHASHASTRA

Kautilya’s Arthashastra is the oldest book on Management available to the world. It was written by Kautilya (also known as Chanakya and Vishnugupta) in 3 BC. When literally translated it means ‘Scripture of Wealth’. The main focus of the book is on Creation and Management of wealth.

However the book is a masterpiece which covers a wide range of topics like Statecraft, politics, military warfare, strategy, Selection and training of Employees, leadership skills, legal systems, accounting systems, taxation, fiscal policies, civil rules, internal and foreign trade etc. It also covers various technical subjects including Medicine, gemology, metallurgy, measures of length, tables of weights, divisions of time, among many others.

No wonder scholars down the centuries have time and again described Kautilya as a rare mastermind who could be an expert in so many varied and specialised fields.

He was responsible to bring down the Nanda dynasty and establish his able student Chandragupta Maurya on the throne as the emperor. Hence he is called a ‘King Maker’. He is also credited to have masterminded the defeat of Alexander in India when he was on his march to conquer the world.

As a political thinker, he was the first to visualize the concept of a ‘NATION’ for the first time in Human History. During his time India was split into various kingdoms. He brought all of them together under one central governance, thus creating a Nation called ‘Aryavartha’, which later became India. He documented his life long work in this book ‘Arthashastra’. For ages rulers across the world have referred to the Arthashastra for building a nation on Sound Economics, based on spiritual values. Emperor Ashoka is supposed to have built and expanded his kingdom on the principles described in this book. Shivaji, the ruler of Maharashtra is said to have studied this book in order to plan and defeat the Mughals. The Forts that he built and the Navy he created till today stands as an example for all of us to be proud of.

Even though India and Indians never forgot the ‘Arthashastra’, the study and practical application of the book lost its importance since the British rule. However, apart from the scholarly work this needs to be once again represented for practical application in today’s

world. The book has got many principles and techniques, which once applied can prove a tremendous improvement even in our day-to-day management.

Some may ask ‘Is this book written over 2400 years ago still applicable in today’s world?” For which great thinkers have said

“The Arthashastra is a book about the management of the ‘human mind’, which has remained same since ages”.

Various business leaders, managers, Politicians, Finance personals, Consultants, Public and Civil servants, Bureaucrats, Intelligence agencies, Military officers, Students and many others can benefit from the wide spectrum of knowledge available in the Arthashastra. In fact Kautilya’s Arthashastra is a must for every intelligent person irrespective of which profession he follows.

VIGILANCE IN TODAY’S CONTEXT

The Oxford dictionary defines vigilance as, “Keeping careful watch for possible danger or difficulties”. This gives us two angles to look at the same subject. It’s like looking at two sides of the same coin. It is protection of dangers and difficulties both from inside and outside. It is to protect oneself from external threats as well as internal mismanagement.

At the external level an organisation or country has to be alert about the external dangers like wars, terrorism, infiltration etc. Creating the right entry point at the borders itself is very important. Prevention is better than cure. For this we need a very powerful intelligence network and an equally powerful army. In today’s world technology can be used as a tool to get quick and valuable information at the speed of thought.

Protecting at the internal level is much more difficult. The problems within an organisation are much more difficult to manage, as we are dealing with our own people. An army commander may be able to fight and withdraw the enemy troops at the borders but may not be able to handle the revolt of his own young son.

However handling the situation at both levels is very important. Arthashastra gives us tools on handling these problems at both levels.

ARTHASHASTRA AND VIGILANCE TOPICS

Kautilya’s Arthashastra consists of 6000 Sanskrit verses divided into 15 books and 150 chapters. In all there are 180 topics that have been covered. Management thinkers are wonderstruck with the depth of each topic he has covered. Therefore they have called it a book of ‘Total Management’.

All the 15 books of Arthashastra deals with internal and external vigilance. Right from Book one, he gives emphasis on internal vigilance. Later he proceeds to deeper topics of war, prevention of calamities and Secret service agencies.

We will try to have a brief outline of the internal vigilance tools that he has suggested. Note that these are not techniques that were used only in 3 B.C. All these are universal principals that can be used not only by our generation but also by generations to come.

Among the books of Arthashastra that deals with internal vigilance are Book one titled ‘Topic of training’. Here Kautilya has dealt in detail how to select the right candidates, how to train and make them productive for the organisation. A farmer has to select the right seeds in order to have a fruitful harvest. To have a corruption free environment it has to be created from day one during the selection of trainees itself.

Therefore he says in book one, chapter 5, verse 4 and five,

A ‘trainable’ person is the one who has the following qualities 

1.Desire to learn2.Effective listening ability3.Ability to reflect (think from all angles)4.Ability to reject false views5.Intentness on truth not on any person

We need to select the right person at the beginning itself. There is not point repenting afterwards. Therefore, point 5 says, that the trainee should be the one who sticks to truth and truth alone.

Book 2 talks about the activities of the Heads of various departments.

Here Kautilya gives a lot of stress on the departments that are dealing in revenue and expenditure. Checks and counter checks are maintained to prevent leakage from internal sources. An intelligence network is maintained for this work. Various tests are conducted from time to time in order to cross verify it.

Strict disciplinary action is taken against persons who are caught either when they pocket the wealth of the treasury for are caught taking brides. This is one of the reasons that Arthashatra is also called Dandaniti – the Art of Punishment.

“The King severe with rod (punishment) becomes a terror. A king with mild rod is despised. The king just with the rod is honored” (1.4.8-10)

It means the right amount of punishments, at the right time. Today we see so many people in India are not afraid of the law due to the delay in punishments. Somewhere it has gone into our mindsets that punishments can be escaped. While the law gives us time to prove our innocence it is used as an escape tool. In the given time criminals find loopholes and finally go unpunished.

One may wonder if punishment is required at all. It is only fear of punishment that prevents a person from doing illegal and unethical dealings.

“If the rod is not used at all the stronger swallows the weak in the absence of the wielder of the Rod” (1.4.13-14)

If punishments are not used at all there is no fear and mismanagement starts to set in.

It is also advised to keep a track of day to day transactions. Why is this type of inspection required? Kautilya explains,

“He (leader) should constantly hold an inspection of their works, men being inconstant in their minds” (2.9.2-3)

Employees are inconstant in their minds. No one will deliver their work if targets and deadlines are not set. As Akio Morita, the founder of Sony Corporation said “I am dealing not just with my employees but with the ‘MINDS’ of my employees”. Therefore it is important to understand the employees at the mind level to prevent corruption.

CONCLUSION

Kautilya, was a master mind who dealt at the psychological level of human beings. A lot of strategies and techniques he used were to attack the person at the mind level itself. As Swami Chinmayananda, the great spiritual leader said,

“As the mind so the man, Man is what his thoughts are”.

In order to have a corruption free, danger free highly productive organisation the study of Arthashastra is a must. By applying the mind management techniques of Chankaya, India is sure to get back once again to its glorious golden days, both materially and spiritually.

(About the Author – Radhakrishnan Pillai is the Managing Director of ATMA DARSHAN, a company that is in the service of spiritual tourism. He is also a scholar on the book Kautilya’s Arthashastra, which he has studied and researched in its complete original format during a Management research conducted by him at Chinmaya International Foundation (CIF), Cochin under the guidance of Dr. Gangadharan Nair, the

dean of Adi Shankara Sanskrit University, Kerala. Radhakrishnan conducts trainings sessions and consultancy projects with various organisations based on the Arthashastra. He also writes regularly on this subject in various magazines, newspapers and teaches the same in various Management schools and institutions across the globe. He can be contacted on radhakrishnan@atmadarshan.com)