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STATEHOOD AND SPYING IN ANCIENT INDIA

17

Pataliputra, the capital

city of the Mauryan

Empire, was one

of the largest cities

in the world, with a

population of more

than 150,000 at the

height of the empire.

MAURYAN EMPIRE

FIVE KINDS OF SPY

The Arthashastra lists five main types

of spy as of particular use to a nation’s

ruler in finding out his subjects’ views

and influencing them in his favor.

THE STUDENT

He would engage in fierce intellectual

arguments with his fellows and report

back on those students opposed to the

regime, as well as discovering the

general attitudes of the young.

THE HOLY MAN

He would gain credit from appearing to

eat only grass and roadside vegetables

(while eating well in secret) and gather

around him credulous disciples. He

would then make prophecies that

supported the ruler.

THE FARMER

He would work among the peasants,

who formed the vast bulk of the

population, and report on their

attitudes toward the government.

THE BUSINESSMAN

He would have established networks

with other traders and merchants

and gain good intelligence from

these contacts.

THE RELIGIOUS LEADER

Sponsored by the state, he would

establish religious sites in country

areas (ashrams), drawing in the

local people to be influenced by

his pro-government teachings.

“TO UNDERMINE AN ENEMY OLIGARCHY, MAKE THE

CHIEFS OF THE RULING COUNCIL INFATUATED WITH

WOMEN POSSESSED OF GREAT BEAUTY AND YOUTH.”

Arthashastra

The Arthashastra proposes several methods to deal with officials,

including sending a spy disguised as a doctor to convince the

seditious official that he is suffering from a severe disease, before

administering medicine that includes a fatal dose of poison.

The Arthashastra was consulted by Indian rulers until the twelfth

century

ce, when it seems to have disappeared from view. It was

rediscovered by an Indian archivist in 1904. Since then, the book

has been championed by many Indian politicians as an indispensable

reference on the art of running the country.