Kautilya-Arthashastra Archives - Page 2 of 3

Individual Rights and Collective Good: A Historical Perspective

Any dichotomy between the individual rights of the people and the powers of the state has to be dealt with through a nuanced approach.

How India Sees the World: Kautilya to the 21st Century, by Shyam Saran

One of the first lessons a student of international politics is introduced to is that foreign policy is a compendium of continuity and change, of static and dynamic co-existence, mired in the national interest of the nation state. In the Indian context, in particular, the first political theorist the same student studies is the realist ancient thinker Kautilya. These elementary but indispensable lessons form the basis of Shyam Saran’s riveting work, How India Sees the World: Kautilya to the 21st Century.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra: Indian Strategic Culture and Grand Strategic Preferences

The utility of the theory of strategic culture to explain the choices nation-states make is still to be convincingly proven. Alastair Iain Johnston has provided a viable notion of strategic culture that is falsifiable, its formation traced empirically, and its effect on state behaviour differentiated from other non-ideational variables. Following his methodological framework, Kautilya’s Arthashastra is identified as the ‘formative’ ideational strategic text which is assessed to illuminate Indian strategic culture.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra: an intellectual portrait: the classical roots of modern politics in India

The generalist reader, as also those interested in indigenous historical knowledge, owes a debt of gratitude to Professor Subrata K. Mitra and Dr. Michael Liebig for bringing out this remarkable study. This is especially so since the IDSA has been investing for several years now in studying indigenous historical knowledge and its links to modern Indian political thought. Professor Mitra and Dr.

The New Arthashastra: A Security Strategy for India, edited by Gurmeet Kanwal

The clamour for a national security strategy has become part of a constant refrain that accompanies every debate on India’s strategic culture or national security outlook. This repeated call for a security strategy stems from a perceived lack of clarity for functionaries within the government as well as the larger audience. An important constituent amongst the latter are a large number of countries that increasingly look upon India as an important partner in the evolving geopolitical environment.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra: Restoring its Rightful Place in the Field of International Relations

India’s rise in the twenty-first century has resulted in renewed attention on the country, especially in the sphere of strategic thought. This focus has brought into limelight ancient India’s pioneering text on polity called Kautilya’s Arthashastra (KA).Contingent with that is a growing interest in exploring the relevance of KA in the contemporary world.

Coping with Environmental Challenges: The Importance of Evolving a Balance between Artha, Kama and Dharma

Only by making the concept of dharma central can a balance be evolved between the trivarga of artha, kama and dharma and lifestyle changes introduced to cope with climate change.

P. K. Gautam
March 23, 2016
IDSA Comments

Ancient Wisdom for the Modern World: Revisiting Kautilya and his Arthashastra in the Third Millennium

Using Temple Gold for Shoring up the Economy: Learning from Kautilya’s Arthashastra

Kautilya argues that when the treasury gets depleted, concerted efforts become necessary for its replenishment and even recommends extraordinary measures in emergency situations. But the guiding principle should be what the people consider as beneficial to themselves.

P. K. Gautam
April 17, 2015
IDSA Comments

Statecraft and Intelligence Analysis in the Kautilya-Arthashastra

In the Kautilya-Arthashastra, espionage and other ‘operational’ activities of the secret service—notably ‘active measures’ and ‘covert action’—are addressed often and in detail. In contrast, Kautilya seems to say very little about intelligence analysis, assessment and estimates which provide the basis of strategic planning and grand strategy—and arekey components of statecraft. However, the central proposition of this article is that ‘ideas’ (or meanings) underlying these modern intelligence terms are very much present in the Arthashastra.