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[5] Cāņakya : Reflected in the Nītivākyāmộta - (An abridged ver
sion of Arthaśāstra)
When we go through the chronology of Cāņakya-legacy in the
Jaina literature, we have to take a big halt at the Nītivākyāmrta of
Somadevasūri written in the 10th century. The legacy of Nītivākyāmsta is aptly quoted by R.Shamashastri in the introduction of his edition of the Kautiliya Arthasāstra. He says, “सोमदेवसूरिणा नीतिवाक्यामृतं नाम नीतिशास्त्रं विरचितं तदपि कामन्दकीयमिव कौटिलीयार्थशास्त्रादेव संक्षिप्य संगृहीतमिति तद्ग्रन्थपदवाक्यशैलीपरीक्षायां निस्संशयं ज्ञायते ।''
Somadevasūri is a Digambara writer having supreme command on Sanskrit language. He has written the Yaśastilaka-campū, one of the prestigious campūkāvyas which exhibits his mastery over the classical Sanskrit. Somadeva's second available work is the Nītivākyāmsta. In spite of being a Jaina monk, his keen interest in the science of polity (Arthaśāstra) is noteworthy. He is a thorough scholar of anviksiki and dharmaśāstras.
Though Somadeva's work is the abridged and simplified version of the Kauțilīya Arthaśāstra, it is remarkable that he neither imitates nor Jainifies the revered work of Kautilya. Generally he has followed the sūtra-style of Kautilya. We can locate many such sūtras from the Nītivākyāmsta which are similar to the Kauțilyan sūtras. Interested readers may go through the similar sūtras quoted in the introduction written by Pt. Nathuram Premi.?
Somadeva has selected the ethico-religious part of the Arthaśāstra and presented it in a unique way to guide any common Indian as such. Though he has followed the traditional system of varņāśrama, unlike the Manu and Yājñavalkya smstis, the brahmin-focused and brahmin biased viewpoints are moderated and softened so skilfully
