THE ENDURING CHANAKYA NEETI: WHICH ENLIVENS THE ESSENCE OF LIFE

     

         There will be an instance at some point in our life we need the courage to stand alone, the tenacity to not succumb to pressure, and the patience to keep fighting until the day. In short, we need to enliven our life through the wisdom of great people, who endure their life to lead succeeding generations. Since wisdom grows with years and who are ahead of us become wiser with choices and experience. Learning all the life lessons with our own experiences is merely impossible, as life seems to be short. That’s why every person who aspires to live life the best way they can, need to give chase to learn from the lessons provided by exceptional leaders.

So here in this blog, I’m bringing one of the most exceptional people who is ancient India’s finest political strategist and thinker, CHANAKYA the great a.k.a Kautilya or Vishnugupta was an adviser and played a significant role in the inception of Mauryan empire. He was a philosopher and a chief advisor of the Mauryan Empire, who assisted emperor Chandra Gupta and his son Bindusara in politics, economic affairs, administration, and in almost every state affairs. A learned scholar known for his intellect is also sharp with Knowledge of Vedas. His philosophies relating to economic, political and administration helped the Mauryan empire flourish. His teachings and philosophies are even considered beneficial to modern day situations and circumstances.

Chanakya’s wisdom is ageless and immutable. He elucidated his smattering of pithy observations on other prominent topics on women, family life, human relationships, moral conduct, politics, and spirituality. He had an amazing knowledge of human psychology, his teachings are the real nourishment of life. Even if years and centuries go by, even if natural calamities change the face of the planet, the teaching of this great being spring forth a new, and they are never destroyed; nor does the subtle presence of such divine beings ever diminished.

CHANAKYA NEETI :

 Chanakya saved his wisdom in these books named: Arthashastra, Neetishastra, and Chanakya Neeti. The Arthashastra discusses monetary and fiscal policies, welfare, international relations, and war strategies in detail. Many of his Neeti’s or Policies have been compiled under the book title Chanakya Neeti. Neetishastra is a treatise on the ideal way of life and shows Chanakya’s in-depth study of the INDIAN WAY OF LIFE.

Chanakya Neeti’  is, in fact, this great thinker’s pithy observation to impart the practical wisdom to the people of his time. But these teachings are so fundamental relevance is almost everlasting. Written in a simple lucid language with clear thoughts. Although Chanakya is painted as a scheming manipulator who could bow to even the meanest level to serve his purpose, a few of his shlokas negate this concept and present Chanakya as a soft-hearted and imaginative poet.

The basic purpose of Chanakya-Neeti is to impart knowledge on every practical aspect of life. And in this context, he has touched upon various factors dealing with faith and culture, from the individual’s point of view.

CHANAKYA’S VISION ON,

Learning:

Chanakya emphasizes continuous learning. He believes that every day brings with it a learning opportunity and one must utilize it. He quotes: “Do not allow a single day of your life to pass away without learning something good and useful”. Further, he emphasizes the need for learning from the mistakes of others. As he puts: “Learn from the mistakes of others, you can’t live long enough to make them all yourselves.”

On Education:

Acharya Chanakya advocates the philosophy that if one wants to excel in studies, he must get rid of eight shoddy habits – seeking for sensual pleasure, binging excessively on food, feelings of annoyance and avarice, self-indulgence, lingering on entertainment, uncurbed sleep and unchecked indulges in anything. Moreover, he adds that one must get rid of the comfort zone. A person craving for comfort cannot be successful in pursuing his dream for studies.

On Friendship:

He also spoke about friendship. Chanakya suggests that a person having a sacrificial nature is worth having them in our life. He says Never miss a chance to be friends with them. A person who doesn’t have the sacrificial nature is one filled with ego and is indifferent and callous. So, he suggests not to make friends with those who aren’t willing to sacrifice and doesn’t have the quality of compassion towards others.

Hard work and Dedication:

Hard Work and Dedication are no doubt the essential ingredients of success and hence Chanakya suggests to ask ourselves few questions before taking up any task – “Why should I take up this task?, What are the Consequences?, and Will I succeed in doing it? Only when you are pleased with the solutions to these questions,  take up the work.” Further, he directs that one must not abandon work for the fear of failure. People who are sincere with their work are the most contended ones.

 On Spirituality:

A Person filled with greed wandering here and there can never embark on the journey of spirituality and hence he can never taste the nectar of spirituality. He suggests that to experience  God and spirituality, one must focus on feelings and thoughts. That’s where God dwells, not in temples and idols.  He quotes,

“One who desires to rise to a divine platform, must have the purity of thought, mind, senses and a heart of compassion.”

 

Thank you for reading this till the end. I hope this was useful takeaway inspiration from this blog. As always I appreciate you to share this inspiration with your friends and others, also please comment your views on this. 🙂