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DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Kolkata:20150102T053000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Kolkata:20150102T053000
DTSTAMP:20261104T162505
CREATED:20231223T133147Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20231224T130237Z
UID:63081-1420176600-1420176600@idsa.in
SUMMARY:Dharma and Artha
DESCRIPTION:Chairperson: Prof. Charan Das WadhvaExternal Discussants: Amb. H. H. S. Viswanathan\, Dr. Deepshikha ShahiInternal Discussants: Dr. S. Kalyanaraman\, Saurabh Mishra  \nMajor Arguments of the Paper: \nOne of the fundamental  aims of political science in Indian traditions was to create the cultural  conditions necessary for the pursuit of the four great ends of life\, the purusharthas  – ethical goodness (dharma)\, wealth and power (artha)\,  pleasure (kama)\, and spiritual transcendence (moksha). The final or fourth individual aim  of moksha or liberation/spiritual transcendence is at a personal level  of self-realization and is not being included in this paper. Without moksha the concept is of the three goals of human existence consisting of dharma\,  artha and kama or trivarga. Each  goal is a deep philosophical subject. In statecraft\, the most important ones  are dharma and artha\, and it is on these that the author deliberates upon.  \nThe paper argues that in ancient Indian traditions  dharma and artha play an important role as they relate to statecraft. It has  not changed with time. Simplistically\, this is akin to what we may today  understand as principle and power. Only artha by itself is insufficient  to understand the philosophy of statecraft of the Indian traditions. The author  argues that for statecraft and international relations as practised in India\,  dharma is an important limb. Kautilya\, the author cum editor of Arthasastra\,  never suggested to be selective. He did not ever mention to ignore dharma. It  is only later commentators who have given their understanding where the holistic  interpretation of dharma with artha is underdeveloped; more so in  the domain of statecraft and diplomacy. This paper engages with the concepts in  the text and the commentaries and opinions of a number of authors who have  dealt with this topic. The paper argues that both dharma and artha are integrated and linked. If artha is like surface water surely   dharma is like ground water. Their meaning need to be  contextualized in the present milieu and a combination of these two concepts  should be judiciously applied in statecraft to herald lasting peace and  prosperity.  \nMajor  Points of Discussion and Suggestions to the Author:\n\nDharma with a capital D signifies the overarching  principles of life governing the universe\, whereas dharma with a small d is for  specific circumstances. Indian scholars of politics have mostly deliberated  upon the latter. Kautilya’s Arthasastra also falls into the second category.\nKautilya was secular in his outlook. His personal  religious belief did not affect the conduct of statecraft. It was evident when  Chandragupta\, his disciple\, leaned towards Jainism and Kautilya did not get  perturbed by this or come in his way.\nThe general western perception of India is that of a  land and people who are concerned with other-worldly affairs. However\, it is a  fallacy as we know that in the Indian philosophical tradition all four aspects  of life\, that is\, Dharma\, Artha\, Kama\, Moksha\, have been  given adequate attention.\nKautilya is considered to be immoral and lacking in ethics  because of its prescriptions for statecraft. However\, a proper understanding of  the Arthasastra suggests that he was very mindful of ethics and morality even  in the conduct of state affairs. For instance\, he gives precedence to Dharma Vijaya over Asura Vijaya. \nThe study of Arthasastra and other ancient Indian  political texts have assumed significance in the backdrop of the possibility of  India emerging as a world Power.\nExisting ‘Western’ IR theories are inadequate to  explain India’s rise.\nKautilya’s Arthasastra is a more holistic work than  Morgenthau’s Politics Among Nations.  Kautilya was the first scholar to establish a link between domestic and foreign  policy. He argued that although the policy options before the king for the  conduct of the two are different\, there is a direct correlation between the  domestic and foreign policies of a state. \nFor Kautilya dharma was limited to the end and did not apply to the means. The king must set his  goals in consonance with dharma. Adoption  of unethical means to achieve a pious end has not been ruled out. In this he  differs from Gandhi who advocated the purity of means as well as end.\nIt was argued that Indian scholars should avoid the  tendency of exalting Kautilya and denigrating Western scholarship. A synthesis  of the best scholarly tradition of east and west will lead to the furtherance  of true knowledge.\nThe author was advised to give current examples to  argue his case as to how the Indian state has sought to practice dharma and artha in the conduct of statecraft. That will generate more  interest in Arthasastra.\nSince the morality of individual may not be in sync  with the state’s morality\, the author needs to deliberate upon different  aspects of morality and resolve the dilemma.
URL:https://idsa.in/idsa-event/dharma-and-artha
CATEGORIES:FELLOW'S SEMINAR,EVENT REPORT
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