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Chanakya (c.350 - c.275 BC) also known as Kautilya is one of the earliest known political thinkers and king makers in the literal sense of the word. Seeking revenge for being thrown out of the court of the ruler of Magadha, Chanakya took a promising young boy of ten (Chandragupta Maurya) from the streets and brought him up to become one of the greatest emperors of India, which at that time was divided into several states and kingdoms.
After Alexander's invasion, Chanakya appeared on the scene and united India under the rule of Chandragupta Maurya. He was fearless, not afraid of death, disgrace or defeat. He was compassionate to the poor and kind, harsh to deceitfulness. His writings which clearly show his fearlessness in the pursuit of Truth has been echoed over 2000 years later when Swami Vivekananda cried out, 'Arise, Awake, sleep not till the goal is reached'. He brought Amatya Rakshasa from the enemy camp to serve as Chandragupta's Prime minister.
Probably the most accurate description of Chanakya can be found in Nehru's words in the Discovery of India, Chanakya has been called the Indian Machiavelli and to some extent the comparison is justified. But he was a much bigger person in every way, greater in intellect and reason. He was no mere follower of a King, a humble adviser of an all powerful emperor. A picture of him emerges from an old Indian (Sanskrit) play Mudra Rakshasa (Rakshasa's Ring) which deals with this period. Bold and scheming, proud and revengeful, never forgetting a slight, never forgetting his purpose, availing himself of every device to delude and defeat the enemy, he sat with the reins of empire in his hands and looked upon the emperor more as a loved pupil than as master. Simple and austere in life, uninterested in pomp and pageantry of high position, when he had redeemed his pledge and accomplished his purpose, he wanted to retire, brahminlike, to a life of contemplation.
Chanakya's Arthashastra is a classic of statecraft and is reverently studied even in Europe and elsewhere.
Chanakya is the personification of statesmanship, political craft, spirit of adventure and unyielding perseverance.
According to Professor Roger Boesche, "To return to Machiavelli's after reading the military writings of Kautilya is jolting. It becomes readily apparent that Machiavelli is not even trying to tell us something new about warfare, because he believed the ancient Greeks and Romans knew it all - aside from such things as artillery...
They(Kautilya and Sun Tzu) were also prepared to win in ways Machiavelli would regard as dishonourable and disgraceful-assassination, disinformation, causing quarrels between ministers by bribes or by means of jealousy over a beautiful woman planted as a secret agent, and so on. Machiavelli - who offers no systematic discussion of even guerrilla warfare - would have been easily outmatched by generals reading either Su Tzu or Kautilya."