CHANAKYA NITI REVEALS A DEEP INSIGHT INTO THE HUMAN MIND

 

Chanakya needs no introduction. He has been regarded as the greatest Indian philosopher, thinker, and diplomat. He was the son of Pandit Acharya Chanak, a great scholar of his time. Chanakya's real name was Vishnugupta. Because of his “Kautilya Niti”, he came to be known as ‘Kautilya’.

Born in a poor Brahmin family, Chanakya was educated at Takshashila (now in Pakistan), an ancient center of learning located in the northwestern part of India. Chanakya was in no way behind the scholars of Greece. He came to be known as the Acharya of Nalandav Mahavidyalaya about two thousand four hundred years ago. If you turn the pages of history, you will be surprised to read that he had described the country's system, economical strategies and the virtues of business in his Chanakya Niti.

 
Chanakya expounded many ideas in various subjects like political science, ethics, economy, statecraft, espionage, military strategies, etc. There are seventeen chapters in ‘Chanakya Niti’ which inspire the readers to walk on the right path in practical life while giving a deep insight into the human mind. He was a discoverer in the fields of political science and economics. He was also the author of the Arthashastra which is an episode on statecraft, military strategy, and economic policy.

Chanakya, was the chief minister and advisor of the first Maurya King, Chandragupta Maurya (322-185) BCE. It was Chanakya who helped Chandragupta in acquiring the throne of Magadha from the Nandas, the most powerful kingdom in ancient India at the time. When Chanakya uttered the truth in front of the Nandas ruler, he was humiliated at first but eventually, it led to the fall of the Nanda dynasty and the rise of the Maurya dynasty.
 
If you go through the ethics of Acharya Chanakya i.e. Chanakya Niti, it leads you to the path of success. Some of his famous thoughts and statements are given below whose importance is reckoned to be much more than the thoughts and statements of the great Greek philosophers Aristotle and Plato. His thinking holds relevance in the current times as well and some quotes influence the youth of this new generation as well.

Some of my favorite learnings are below
 

• After taking birth in a human form, a person should believe in God to improve his life in the hereafter while enjoying the pleasures of the Earth. He explained God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your God. The soul is your temple. 

• Knowledge is like hidden wealth which cannot be seen. That's why a person should first focus on learning. It acts as a friend in an unknown country. Everything is attained through knowledge. People, who do not have knowledge, charity, modesty, penance, and virtue, are like a burden on the earth like animals.

• Guru is the true guide of man, without a Guru, no one can achieve his goal. The meaning is that the depth and brightness in the knowledge that comes from getting knowledge from the Guru do not come from reading books on their own. No siddhi is achieved without faith. To achieve success, there should be faith in the Guru and the goal.

• Chanakya says that the king is the face of the nation. He is the reflection of the society as he is responsible for everything that happens in the society. The king should be a cause of Dharma and should be a role model for the masses in his character. He should neither be haughty nor fickle. He should be congenial and not excite hatred or enmity in others.

• Give unconditional love to your children till the age of five. From the age of six till fifteen, teach them strict discipline and etiquette. From the age of sixteen, build trust with your children as your friend. Your children are your best friends for the whole life.

• Chanakya has further said that four mothers should be given the status of mother. The Guru's wife should also be treated like a mother. The friend's wife should also be given the status of the mother. Your wife's mother should also be treated like a mother, the way you give your mother more status than God. 

• According to Chanakya, she who is chaste, clever, soft-spoken, truthful, and pleasing to the husband is a true wife.

• Acharya Chanakya says that the person who speaks bitterly on the face and magnifies behind the back is a true friend, a well-wisher. Only after assessing the merits and demerits should a person extend his hand for friendship. This is the custom of this world that when a person is rich, the number of friends, relatives, and kindreds increases a lot.

• Poverty is destroyed by charity. If a needy person donates, it is considered very important. Money or other things should always be given in the form of charity to a virtuous person; it should not be given to a person without virtues. Donation given to the deserving never goes in vain.

• God resides only in the true devotional spirit of every human heart. If there is no affection in the heart of brothers and sisters towards each other, then it would be better to leave them. When there is unwavering faith in the mind of a devotee, he gets one or the other fruit.

• There is no benefit in educating a foolish disciple because he may not understand and sometimes, will not be able to consume it.

• The company of a sad person is always painful. Those parents who do not educate their sons are like enemies. 

• Acharya Chanakya gives a secret mantra for the success of a person and says that if you want to earn success then learn the secret. Every person must do self-study every day. If a man shows valor in doing a great deed, he hits the desired target. 

• One should be aware of religion. This gives him the knowledge of good and bad. All the sins of the one who chants the name of God are destroyed. Continuous hard work is the surest way to remove poverty. No country is alien to a learned person. The person who speaks sweet words has no enemy.

• In today's era, the accumulation of wealth is essential for human beings. One who is born in a high clan should neither be arrogant nor puffed up after getting happiness. Also, it is not appropriate to get distracted when trouble comes. The best intelligent is the one who does not indulge in sinful deeds.

• Acharya Chanakya says that the glory of Satsang is limitless. That's why every human should join Satsang. The association of saints and sages is beneficial. Punya is attained just by seeing him. They are a form of real pilgrimage. There is an immediate benefit from seeing and keeping the company of sages and saints.

• Extreme should be abandoned in all respect. Good things and good qualities also become the cause of calamity if there is excess in them. Too much attachment also makes a man weak. Wicked people tend to take pleasure in condemnation. Keeping restraint on speech is also austerity. There are many types of bonds in the world, but among them, the bond in the form of love has its importance. 

• Without good conduct, knowledge is useless. Similarly, the life of an ignorant person is also useless. Money is destroyed by hating anyone. Therefore, malice is fatal for any human being. The human mind should always be pure. A person should leave a place where he does not have a livelihood. It is only in the time of calamity that one gets the knowledge of one's other side. Only the people with saintly attitudes provide new direction to society. But their number is less. 

• A man has some or other merits and demerits. Among the bad qualities, greed has been considered the biggest bad quality. Backbiting is the greatest sin, truth is the greatest austerity, and purity of mind is greater than the fruit of all pilgrimages. Gentleness is the greatest virtue and dishonour is like death.

 
India is a country steeped in spirituality, which has answers to all aspects of life. Chanakya's teachings make sense for every possible matter of today’s world. He was called as a management guru. In his thoughts, the secrets of life are hidden.
 
These words of Chinese traveler Fa Hien about Chanakya present a complete glimpse of Chanakya's personality and a complete mirror of the state system of that time - "Where the Prime Minister lived in a simple hut, the residents lived in grand buildings. And in a country where the Prime Minister lives in palace, the common people live in huts.
 
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