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Chanakya

File:Chanakya_artistic_depiction.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Chanakya

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Also known as Indian Machiavelli

Chanakya (ISO: '''', चाणक्य, ), according to legendary narratives preserved in various traditions dating from the 4th to 11th century CE, was a Brahmin who assisted the first Mauryan emperor Chandragupta in his rise to power and the establishment of the Maurya Empire. According to these narratives, Chanakya served as the chief adviser and prime minister to both emperors Chandragupta Maurya and his son Bindusara.

OverviewAI-generated

Chanakya was a male writer, philosopher, economist, and teacher who practiced Hinduism. He is also known by the nickname Indian Machiavelli. His birth name was कौटिल्य, विष्णुगुप्त, and he was born in Taxila in 375 BCE. He died in Patna in 283 BCE. He wrote in Sanskrit and his notable work is the Arthashastra.

He served as a professor and held the position of teacher. His students included Chandragupta Maurya and Bindusara. He is described by the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. His writings include quotations such as "A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first." He is referenced by 1,057 other encyclopedia articles.

Synthesized by Vinony from 32 facts across 6 sources: Wikidata, Crossref, Open Library, Last.fm, Wikiquote, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Key facts

Person.name
Chanakya
Person.image
Chanakya artistic depiction.jpg
Person.caption
Chanakya as depicted on the cover of R. Shamasastry's 1915 translation of Arthashastra
Person.birth_place
Chanaka village in Golla region, South India (Jain legends);or in Takshashila (Buddhist legends)
Person.death_place
Pataliputra, Maurya Empire
Person.occupation
Political advisor, prime minister
Person.era
4th century BC–3rd century BCE
Person.known_for
Prominent role in the foundation of the Maurya Empire
Person.relatives
Chanaka (father)

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of
human
Gender
male
Place of birth
Taxila
Place of death
Patna
Occupation
politician
Position held
professor
Languages spoken
Sanskrit
Religion
Hinduism
Notable work
Arthashastra
Image
Chanakya artistic depiction.jpg
Show 12 more facts
date of death
0283-00-00
student
Bindusara
date of birth
0375-00-00
on focus list of Wikimedia project
Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4
nickname
Indian Machiavelli
birth name
विष्णुगुप्त
described by source
Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary
Commons category
Chanakya
quotation or excerpt
The area extending from the Himalayas in the north to the sea and a thousand yojanas wide from east to west is the area of operation of the King-Emperor.
floruit
0400-00-00
writing language
Sanskrit
P13311
Olinda
Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~38 min read

Encyclopedic overview

26 sections
Contents
  • Chanakya-Chandragupta ''katha'' (legend)
  • Buddhist version (5th-6th cent. CE)
  • Source
  • Narrative
  • Jain version (12th cent. CE, based on 1st-8th cent. CE sources)
  • Source
  • Narrative
  • Kashmiri version (11th cent. CE)
  • Source
  • Kashmiri narrative
  • Mudrarakshasa version (4th-8th cent. CE)
  • Source
  • Mudrarakshasa narrative (4th-8th cent. CE)
  • Legacy
  • Identification with Kautilya, author of the ''Arthashastra''
  • Naming
  • In popular culture
  • Plays
  • Film and television
  • Arthashastra
  • Fiction
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • Sources
  • External links

Chanakya (ISO: ', चाणक्य, ), according to legendary narratives preserved in various traditions dating from the 4th to 11th century CE, was a Brahmin who assisted the first Mauryan emperor Chandragupta in his rise to power and the establishment of the Maurya Empire. According to these narratives, Chanakya served as the chief adviser and prime minister to both emperors Chandragupta Maurya and his son Bindusara.

Conventionally, Chanakya was identified with Kauṭilya and synonymously Vishnugupta', the author of the ancient Indian politico-economic treatise Arthashastra. Arthashastra is now thought with high probability to have been composed by multiple authors during the early centuries of the common era—several centuries after the Mauryan period—the backdated identification with Chanakya to have served to add prestige to the work.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Chanakya” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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