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The 'primitive in the Arthagăstra
does not survive beyond three fortnights, with his sons, wife and his wealth. (XIV. 3.73-74). Similarly, he in whose footstep, are buried the Punarpava turned downwards, the Nimba, the Kämamadhu, the Svayamguptā, and the bone of a humanbeing, at the gate of the house or army-camp or village or city, dose not survive beyond three fortnights with his sons, wife and his wealth (XIV 3 75-76). One should peocure the hairs of a goat, monkey, cat and an inchpeumon,of Brāhmanas,and Svapôkas and of a crow and an owl The ordure of an enemy, pounded with this, causes immediate destruction (XIV 3.77) He in whose footstep are buried flowers removed from a corpse, fermenting stuff, the hairs of an inchneumon and the skins of a scorpion, d bee and a snake, become immediately impotent, so long as that is not removed (XIV 3,78).
Kautilya is supposed to be very shrewd (hulilamati ) and intelligent Then it may be asked how then in his work there 15 so much of "primitive" ? For the word primitive implies mysti cal, irrational and prescientific way of thinking H C SETH asks similar question The answer of this question proposed by him is over-simplistic He says that this portion may be "spurious" and seems to be inserted in the Arthasāstra under the influence of later Tantric literature. It is not always correct to consider anything that appears strange at first sight, to be an interpolation ( for one, believe that the magico-religious way of thinking is too all pervading in ancient Indian literature that it does not make us astonish if it is found in the ArthaŠāstra of Kautilya also. The whole Vedic literature (Samhitās, Brāhmanas, Upanisads, Sūtra texts etc.) is full of magico religious thoughts The epics and purānas are not lacking them. So is the case of literature on so called sciences like Erotics, Medicine, Chemisryetc. as well as on arts like Music, Architecture etc. The political lore existed even prior to Kautilya and it may be containing many primitive elements and Kautilya might have reproduced them with due respect to 3 H C JBTH, "The gpurious in Kautilya's Arthjästra" F. W Thomas
Felicitation Vol Bombay, 1939 (p 250 ff), p. 255
