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big secretariat (karaña,) and consisted of the five officers: adayaka, nibandhaka, pratikantaka, vinigrahaka and Rajadhyakṣa. The capital, free from inaccuracy in the debit and credit side, is known nibi. That nibi is to be checked through the accounts-books by the experts.3 The general term for the officials of finance department is niyogi. The king is advised to keep watch over them through spies or to transfer their duties frequently or to offer them royal honour so that they would not do any mischief." They should be accused very often so that they could not create any trouble. Thus accused they must have to yield immense wealth to the state. We, however, do not know much about the working method of this department from the Jain sources of our period.
XII. Law and Justice
Somadeva says: "A king should always try to get at sinners and criminals, at all those who are obstacles to the happiness of his people." Accordingly the kings of our period were the dispensers of justice. In our period we do not find kings making laws; perhaps, it was because of the Hindu view that the king had no legislative power. Traditional laws were already there and the kings had merely to execute them.
Somadeva and other Jain writers are absolutely silent about the sources. of law which means that they seem to have agreed mostly to the views held by writers other than the Jain ones in this respect.
STATE AND ADMINISTRATION
Court: In the Nitivakyamṛta, the court of law is named sabha and the Presiding Judge of the court is known as sabhāpati. Assisting judges or juries are known sabhyas. But, in the Samaraicca-kaha the court is called pancakula (Court with Juries) and judge is called karanika," perhaps being an officer of the great karana (secretariat). Sometimes the throne room or audience hall of the king was also the house of justice. According to the
1 Ibid., p. 188 : आदायकनिबन्धकप्रतिकण्टकविनिग्राहकराजाध्यक्षाः करणानि ।
● Thid: आयव्ययविशुद्धं द्रव्यं नीवी
s Ibid. : नीत्रीनिबन्धनपुस्तक ग्रहणपूर्वकमायव्ययौ विशोधयेत् ।
Jain Lekha-sangraha, I, p. 209.
• Ibid, p. 189:
• Nttivā, p. 189: नित्यपरीक्षा कार्यविपर्ययः प्रतिपत्तिदानं च नियोगिध्वर्थग्रहणे पाया: । नापीडिता नियोगिनो दुष्टत्रणा इवान्तः सारमुद्रमन्ति । पुनः पुनरभियोगो नियोगिषु महीपतीनां वसुधारा ॥
7_Nītivā., p_42-43 : योऽनुकूल प्रतिकूलयोरिन्द्रयमस्थानं स राजा । राज्ञो हि दुष्टनिग्रहः शिष्टपरिपालनं च धर्मः |
Ibid., pp. 296-297: Sutra 5-7Ahmedabad edition, pp. 270-271.
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