Arth Of War

[Guest]

Great job AnandK, thanks!

Please note, I am not comfortable with many points presented by this author. However, it is an interesting article to discuss:

STRATEGIC THINKING IN ANCIENT INDIA AND CHINA: KAUTILYA AND SUNZI

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--> Thus, ancient Indian thinkers produced two schools of war, diplomacy and interstate relations; the dharmayuddha (ethical warfare) school; and the kutayuddba (devious warfare) school. The two schools were, however, not mutually exclusive.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

• Where is this author getting these two schools of war from?
  
• Did Dharmayuddha require the pardoning of a defeated king? If so, did this contribute to our repeated defeat at the hands of the muslim invaders, previously defeated by us?
  
• Related to the question above: Was there a strong discouragement to conquering lands out of the Indic region? This meant our kings were great at fighting each other and quickly exchanging daughters, sisters, etc., but lacked the experience and entrepreneurship to launch large external campaigns.
  
• Lack of internal competition lead to the "chalta hai" attitude that some of you talk about, perhaps this was the reason we faced the external enemy with the same attitude and still do so today!
  
• Are there any lessons from the Panchatantra that we can apply to understanding the Indian approach to war? I remember some stories that may
  apply.
  
• Has anyone read or discussed: Mahabharata, A Military Analysis by Lt Col G D Bakshi?

Finally, in my opinion, it is very important that Chanakya called his work, perhaps his compilation, ArthaShastra and not RanaNeeti, Art of War, or some such title. Understanding the term ArthaShastra is central to understanding the method employed in the Hindu quest for a sustainable civilization. The challenge for the future generations of India is how to harness this civilizational strength and create a successful nation-state. Very interesting topic - hope to learn and contribute my 2paise!