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[Full title: A number of miscellaneous royal informations鈥擟haracteristics of some important officials]

Minister (Amatya)鈥攊n the science of Among the seven components of the state, a minister's 27 place and importance come next to the king only. Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika describes such a minister to be one, who is essentially righteous, is equally well-versed polity, knows time and place that are proper and possesses the impartiality even to punish his own children for welfare of the master. He knows all the means of statecraft and is not given to spend without thrift. Aking 27. Cf. Arthasastra (1.7.15) which compares a minister to the second wheel of the state-chariot, the first being the king.

482 without a minister is compared to a tree which has no flowers and a house, without a lamp. He is always required to speak the truth howsoever bitter it may be for a king initially, but never should he resort to flattery which is sweet and pleasant to hear, but painful at the end. Thus, it is the duty of the king to select a minister after duly testing his sagacity and loyalty. And, an able minister is said to shoulder the burden of the state as easily as the mythical serpent sesa carries the burden of the earth b. 28 (70.23-27). Commander in chief (Senadhipa) : The fourfold army of a king is led by a commander in chief. Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika describes him primarily to be an experienced warrior who has successfully led his troops in many a battle. He is so much dedicated to his master that he is ready to fight in the fringes of enemy-ranks even endangering his own life. In the process, he does not hesitate to kill his own relatives like a son or brother if the latter identify themselves with the enemy. And the fate of a war is often decided by the leadership and 28. Cf. Manasa. (2.2.52-59).

483 stewardship of an able commander. Therefore, the need arises for a king who wants to crown the glory of victory in battle, to appoint as suitable warrior as head of the army (28-32). C The Royal Chaplain (Purohita) : The ritual-ridden atmosphere of the royal court perhaps, necessitated the creation of the office of a royal chaplain to guide and conduct suitable rituals and to advise the king in moments of need. Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika attempts at a derivation of the term purohita and says that he is so called because he performs all the beneficial acts (hita) before (purah) the king. Being connected with priestly ministrations, it is essential that he should be well-versed in the essence of Vedic lore with its auxiliary literature (anga) He is further described to be an expert in the acts of sacred repetitions (japa) and oblations (homa) . Being a just speaker he comes from a traditional and good family, is of perceptive talent (sarvabhavaina), knows sacred formulae (mantra) and magic (tantra) befitting all occasions and is highly skilled in showering myriads of benediction. The king is instructed to perform all his daily and occasional rituals strictly, according to the advice of such a priest (33-36).

484 d. Servants (bhrtyas) : The importance of servants in a royal house-hold is a foregone conclusion. Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika specifies that the king should observe great caution while appointing them. As far as possible, a king should prefer servants from families, that have earlier rendered service to the king. Besides, it is to be seen that the intending person should be of a good birth (kul Ina) and full of heroism (saurya) and gallantry (Virva). The real test of servants lies in the fact that they don't think ill of the king even when beaten, rebuked or punished by him. Uninvited also, they come and wait near the door and when asked, do always tell the truth. Persons who confirm to the rigours of such tests should be appointed by the king. On the otherhand, those who are not bold or confident, given to pleasures of various kinds, are cruel and covetous, come from doubtful with family-background, never content, nor devoted to the master, are to be forsaken by the king (37-40). Store-keepers (Bhandagarikas) : Ideal store-keepers are those, who are devoted and loyal to the master, experts in their trade, eloquent, truthful and not given to covetousness. Such persons should be put in charge of different stores (40-41).

485 f. Door-keeper (dauvarika), Courtiers (Sabhasad) etc. The qualities of a door-keeper are specified as follows. He should be highly restraint, intelligent and of a calm mind. An expert in swift movement of hands (laghu-kara) he is required to be acquainted with the essence of scriptures (sastrarthatattvavit), (41-42). The members of the Royal Council (sabha sad) are to be chosen from good families. religious law-books (dharmasastra), They are versed in are truthful and impartial to both friends and foes (42-43). While selecting a number of royal servants, the with his king is advised to maintain friendly relations kinsmen (bandhu). His attitude to the host of them should be that of respect and honour. Never should he oppose them (44). g. The Protectorate: The king is similarly urged to search after a number of people who seek shelter under his protection. Such people might entertain entirely diverse opinions and may be belonging to other seets and cults and be learned, in still different lores. The king should readily pardon the offence of such persons who are said to be under his

486 protection (asrita). Some persons being not akin, to his religion, faith or beliefs should not disturb him. In such occasions, he should bear in mind the maxim that intelligence and versatility in all men are not always 29 equally harnessed (45-469. h. Spies (Carah) : Caracaksu is the most common epithet a king is called upon to bear on assumption of the veins of a administration of a State. And to efficiently discharge his responsibilities, to keep himself abreast of the affairs of his State, he seeks help from the spies. Thus, the institution of spies serves a very useful purpose under any administration. Some of the innate qualities that characterise a spy are recorded by Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika as the capacity of swift movements, foresight, truthfulness, concerned expertise, skill in understanding signs and the talent to interpret others' sentiments (thoughts) etc. And the utility of maintaining a number of spies is summed up by the author as follows. As a king is able to keep himself informed of the distant happenings which take place in his kingdom without his 29. na hi sarvatra pandityan sulabham puruse kvacit (70.46).

487 knowledge and away from his sight through a spy, it becomes imperative that he should be spy-eyed (46-48). 1. Envoy (duta) : Persons selected for this purpose are generally of a calm, deep and profound nature. Their thought and actions remain beyond the comprehension of others. They possess good oratory and can easily discern the essence and implication of a mission (49). The general custom of the day was not to kill the envoy of an enemy eventhough he was highly dangerous and provocative in most critical of situations. At best, in worst situation, a spy was punished by severing some of his limbs which seems to have got sanction of our author. Otherwise, it was believed that hell was the place for 30 a king who killed an envoy (50). The importance of an envoy is best examplified in the readiness of Lord Srikrsna to act as the envoy of the Pandavas in the Mahabharata (Mahabharata5.70.79). J. The Pauranika or reciter of a puranic text is described to be a highly accomplished man. He is well-versed 30. Cf. Arthasastra ,1.16.47 which records references to detention and even death to envoys. Also, see Mahabharata 5.70.7 which appears to corroborate death sentence.

488 in the Puranas, doctrine of Nyava, Mimamsa and the entire vedic-lore. Being handsome in appearance, such a person possesses an excellent voice and is versatile in various modes of singing. Also, he is an expert in acting different sentiments (rasa) the erotic, heroic etc. And, always with a smiling face, he is free from any moral dreg (74.4-5). Observation : From the long list of officers, their qualities, function etc. and the numerous ways in which they are said to assist the king in his day-to-day administration, it is not very difficult to reconstruct the lively picture S of a king who is duly assisted by him ministers, his four-fold army, is well-girt under the stewardship of an able commander-in-chief (senadhipa). The preceptor thoroughly guides the king in critical matters while the Royal Chaplain, well-versed in the technique of ies A sacrificial rites and ceremony and of high moral qualities, causes these to be performed in a flawless manner. Persons, adept in Itihasa and Puranas sooth his ears with stories from ancient-lores and his Royal Assembly teems with a host of learned-men like astronomers, poets, musicians, singers, actors, arithmeticians, physicians, astrologers, worshippers and judges. His palace is well-guarded by the guards while

489 various departments of palace-administration is supervised by a number of chamberlains. Punctuality in all matters is enforced by the time-recorders. Delectable cuisine is served by the sauce-makers who are impenetrable and not given to lures of any sort. The king is waited upon by a bevy of servants like the lamp-bearers, palanquin-bearers, carriers of parasol, the flag with royal emblem and bearers of Kalacika, karanda and foot-wears etc. Another class of servants who look into the security of the king and palace are headed by the personal body-guards. Others, holding shields, swords, and hammers are employed in their respective offices to provide protection to the king in particular and subjects in general. is Added to these there are still another class of servants, who are engaged in watering the court-yard from leathern-water-bags. The executive consists of so many departments headed by a chief superintendent with his own staff and function. The foremost of such functionaries is the dhanako sadhipa followed by head of the granaries. wealth and crops constitute the back-bone of any. As

490 administration, it is in fitness of things that these have got the prime of places. Similarly, there are the vastrakosa, gandhakosa etc. in charge of different officers. While maintenance of a store of clothes indicates the variety of occasions, when the king was suitably clothed, the presence of a perfumery, shows king's partiality for spicy aroma. Then, there are superintendents separately, for armoury, conveyances, elephant-stalls, stables, cattle and forest. The administration of the capital is incharge of the Purapala (city-superintendent) while, the guards, including the night-watchers, are controlled by an araksaraksaka. The king is variously entertained by the bouts presented by the wrestlers, the songs of flattery, sung by royal bards, the slapstick comedy of the jesters, danceperformance, by the courtezans, mellifluous songs of singers and repertoire of instrumental music augmented by the flute-players, lute-players and the drummers etc. His boon-companions (vitas) see him revitalised from time to time. We also have mention of another class of servants who specialise in a particular field. The gardeners who

491 maintain and look after pleasure-gardens are examples of this class. Similarly, to meet other needs of the king are employed the painters, gold-smiths, iron-smiths, carpenters, tailors, masons, tamers of animals and birds, fishermen and of course, the spies. Through analysis of the enumeration of seventytwo components of state as contained in Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika, we come face to face with a fully developed picture of royal administration in which the political fabric was highly organised with a number of departments, each with its function and a chief. Similarly, the Cultural facets which are depicted here also point to a highly evolved picture with the Head of the State, advised and attended by the ministers and servants, through the melee of song, dance and music. All this helps us to draw the picture of a society which is replete with contentment, peace and prosperity under the benign patronage of a benevolent king. With this let us now turn to some other informations which have a bearing on the Science of Polity. The topics covered under this category are the foreign policy adopted by a king, general sources of royal powers etc. which are only casually mentioned in Samrajya-lakshmi-pithika