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Chapter 2 - Arthaśāstra Historiography

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2019

Mark McClish
Affiliation:
Northwestern University, Illinois
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Summary

An overview of the historiography of the Arthaśāstra, beginning with a presentation of the text's formal and informal features. This chapter then goes on to explore the traditional history of the text, which assigns it to a figure called Cāṇakya who probably lived in the late fourth/early third century BCE. A critique of this account is offered based on a preliminary examination of the text's features. Rules out the possibility that the extant text could have been produced at one time by a single author.

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The History of the Arthasastra
Sovereignty and Sacred Law in Ancient India
, pp. 28 - 51
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

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  • Arthaśāstra Historiography
  • Mark McClish, Northwestern University, Illinois
  • Book: The History of the Arthasastra
  • Online publication: 28 June 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108641586.002
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  • Arthaśāstra Historiography
  • Mark McClish, Northwestern University, Illinois
  • Book: The History of the Arthasastra
  • Online publication: 28 June 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108641586.002
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Arthaśāstra Historiography
  • Mark McClish, Northwestern University, Illinois
  • Book: The History of the Arthasastra
  • Online publication: 28 June 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108641586.002
Available formats
×