Nitiprakasika (Critical Analysis)
by S. Anusha | 2016 | 34,012 words
This page relates ‘Sarga I: Rajadharma-upadesha (57 Verses)� of the study on the Nitiprakasika by Vaisampayana which deals primarily with with Dhanurveda, i.e., the science of war, weapons and military strategies of ancient Indian society. It further contains details on Niti-shastra, i.e., the science of politics and state administration but most verses of the Nitiprakashika deal with the classification and description of different varieties of weapons, based on the four groups of Mukta, Amukta, Muktamukta and Mantramukta.
Sarga I: Rājadharma-upadeśa (57 Verses)
verse 1: Prayer:
The author begins with an invocation wherein he pays obeisance to Lord ҲԱś, ī, the goddess of speech, all preceptors starting with and proceeds to compose the work īپś.
verses 2-10: ղśⲹԲ visits Janamejaya:
Sage ղśⲹԲ visits king Janamejaya, stationed at ղṣaś, with the intention of narrating to him the political and military concepts. On hearing about the arrival of the sage, the king immediately receives him with due regard and offerings, enquires about his welfare and seeks his blessings. The king conveys his pleasure at the sight of the ṛṣ. He says that by this 岹śԲ, even his ancestors have got liberated of their sins and become purified souls. The sage confers his blessings saying �dharme te ramatām ܻ��. Then, facing the ṛṣ, the king bowed down and asked him to clarify doubts about Ჹ, which was earlier expounded by the sage in the Ѳٲ.
verses 11-20: King’s lament on Kaliyuga:
King Janamejaya says that, as kaliyuga arrives, it is quite natural for dharma, satya, śܳ, ṣa, 岹, āyu� and balam to diminish; wealth would surpass noble qualities like truth, patience and piety; marriage is not for the sake of dharma but for indulging in sensory pleasures; there is no loyalty in business transactions; external signs for being spiritual are deemed sufficient; keeping away from bad deeds is considered a virtue; meritorious man, devoid of money is treated with contempt; bathing is considered to make oneself pure; people work with the selfish motive of filling up their udara; doing good is for receiving recognition; all men behave without morality; there is no genuine religious pursuit; even kings behave like thieves. In such circumstances, king Janamejaya poses a question to the sage as to how the rules of polity, Dhanurveda as well as the manner of using śٰ and astras can be instructed to such morally disoriented people. Then, the sage reveals that the real intention of his visit is to satisfy the king‘s interest in īپśٰ.
verses 21-8: īپ-貹貹:
Sage ղśⲹԲ enlightens king Janamejaya about the earlier works on polity. He points out that , Rudra, ܲṇy, Indra, Pracetas, ṛh貹پ, Śܰ, Bharadjvāja, Ҳܰś and ղ had respectively written 1,00,000, 50,000, 25,000, 12,000, 6,000, 3,000, 1000, 700, 500 and 300 cantos on īپ. He adds that the ṛṣs have reduced the volume of the work for the sake of mankind which has limited life-span.
He then goes on to narrate the story of king ṛt who was instrumental in bringing Գܰ to human beings.
verses 28-40: ṛt’s rule:
ṛt ruled the Earth flawlessly. The Earth brought forth her produce even without tilling. In ṛt‘s kingdom, natural fibre like darbha grass was golden. It was used by men widely for personal and household needs. ṛt rendered water immovable and walked over ocean. Mountains gave way to him and his royal emblem never slipped. He gave ornamented elephants, land and mountains of gold as gifts to ṇa. Pleased with the merits of ṛt, the four-faced Lord appeared before him. ṛt considered himself, extremely fortunate to have had the 岹śԲ of the Lord and requested the creator to impart Գܰ with its four 岹, and all the secrets about the weapons, to him.
(The treatise from the second sarga onwards is that detailed exposition of dhanurveda, narrated by to ṛt and re-told by sage ղśⲹԲ to king Janamejaya.)
ղٳٱṛt on verse 38:
Here the four 岹 of the dhanurveda are enumerated as�mukta, amukta, ܰ峾ܰٲ and mantramukta. A detailed enumeration of the thirteen different types of ṣy�ś岹, 貹ś, gandha, rasa, ū, cala, a岹śԲ, pṛṣṭhasthita, sthira, ṇa, pratibimba and ܻś–and the corresponding Puranic or epic instances are cited.
verses 41-51: Stage set for Dhanurvidyā Upadeśa:
tells ṛt that just as his (ṛt‘s) mind is inclined to receive instruction regarding dharnurveda, he () too has come for imparting knowledge about weapons. then tells him about the mythological origin of the sword and other weapons. The sword was created by to subjugate the wicked. He expresses willingness to hand over the sword and other weapons to ṛt so that he can overthrow societal evils. Then, he tells about the descent of the śٰ and astras. Sage Bṛśāśva (ṛśāśv) had two wives, and ܱ, ٲṣa‘s daughters. gave birth to all weapons and missiles due to a boon and ܱ bore the powerful ṃh weapons.
Then, blesses ṛt to protect his subjects by practising dhanurveda. He discusses the six-fold foreign policy in a nutshell. He recommends areas where the king has to refine his conduct in office to serve the purpose of efficient administration of the country. The key areas he draws attention to are: cultivation of appropriate royal virtues; employment of seven ܱⲹ; analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the foe keeping in mind the fourteen elements as well as officials and development of knowledge of eighteen īٳ.
ղٳٱṛt on verses 44-5:
While describing the origin of astras ղٳٱṛt discusses the term �ṃh‘and explains that while the first wife of Sage Bhrśāsva named Jaya gave birth to some astras the second wife, ܱ too gave birth to fifty astras. The commentary refers to this when it enumerates the second division of the ܰ峾ܰٲ weapons and clearly states that both the wives of the Sage gave birth to fifty weapons each (īپś II. 29-38).
ղٳٱṛt on verses 48-9:
Ṣāḍṇy, ٴDZⲹ and 䲹ٳܰ岹ś are discussed elaborately citing 峾Ի岹īⲹ īپ and other īپ texts. In the porcess, the fourteen ṣa to be avoided by a king according to the 峾ⲹṇa is enumerated and explained. Also the twenty types of chieftains with whom one should not commit alliance according to 峾Ի岹īⲹ īپ is added. A comprehensive understanding of foreign and internal policies is found here.
ղٳٱṛt on verses 50-1:
ṣṭ첹 (the eight-fold activities) and ṣṭ岹śīٳ (the eighteen officials) are enlisted and explained while the text just gives the numbers.
verses 52-6: Conclusion of first Sarga:
After instructing thus, the creator says that by following these guidelines, the king will be able to establish his authority, conquer his enemies and protect his subjects. He finally blesses ṛt to have a stronger army (with eighteen constituent divisions) than that of his enemies.
ղٳٱṛt on verses 52-4:
Trividhabala & Ჹṇḍ are explained by drawing citations from 峾Ի岹īⲹ īپ and other īپ texts.
ղٳٱṛt on verses 55:
The constituent components of ṣṭṅg & Caturbala of the army are enumerated and explained.