Jain Thought and Culture

Author(s): G C Pandey
Publisher: University of Rajasthan

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earliest reference in Sanskrit to the legend of Chanakya is in the Mrichchhakatika of Sudraka (probably fourth century A D) where the name appears in the Prakrit form Chanakka (I 39 and VIII 34 and 35) From these references it appears that at that time it was a very well-known story on a level with those of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana The Nandisutta of the Jains mentions Chandkka among a list of person famous for their intellect, here the reference is no doubt to the political skill displayed by Chanakya in uprooting the Nandas Elsewhere the same text refers to Kautilya Arthasastra without giving any hint of any connection between Chanakya and Kautilya 37 The Jain literature, as we shall presently discuss, also refers to Chanakka or Chanakya, the minister of Chandragupta, without suggesting that he was also known as Kautilya In both the Kashmirian Sanskrit versions (of Somadeva and Kshemendra) of the Brihatkatha of Gunadhya the story of Chanakya is found, it is quite likely, therefore, that it was included in the original Brihat katha The significant fact however is that in the Sanskrit versions of this work also only the name Chanakya appears, not Kautilya or Vishnugupta
Jain Thought and Culture
In the Buddhist literature, the story of Chanakya is found briefly in the Mahavamsa and in detail in its tika According to Burrow, no trace of the name Kautilya is to be found in the Pali sources in connection with this story though it is found mentioned in separate contexts in some later Buddhist works 38
Thus we find that all these versions of the story of Chanakya use only this name, and never Kautilya or Vishnugupta Secondly, and it is also a very significant fact, in all these versions nowhere is there any mention of Chanakya' having been the author of a work on the science of government These facts should be quite sufficient to make it clear that Chanakya, the Chancellor of Chandragupta Maurya, and Kautilya, the author of the Arthasastra were originally two different persons and that they were separated from each other by more than five hundred years As regards Vishnugupta, it also usually occurs as the name of the author of the Arthasastra, therefore it may be regarded as another name, probably the original name of Kauti
37 Burrow, op cit
Burrow, op cit,
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