A. Royden D'souza

But a kingdom, however well-ordered internally, does not exist in a vacuum. Beyond its borders lie other kingdoms—some friendly, some hostile, some waiting to see which way the wind blows. Chapters 1 and 2 of Book VI introduce the foundational concept of Kautilyan foreign policy: the rajamandala, the circle of kings.

Chapters 11 through 13 of Arthashastra turn from the hunt to the harvest. The criminals have been caught; now they must be punished, and their punishment must serve the kingdom's larger purposes.

Book II, titled Adhyakshaprachara—"The Activity of Superintendents"—marks a decisive outward turn. The king is now presumed to be disciplined, wakeful, and securely enthroned. The question is no longer how should the king train himself? but how should the king's will be translated into the daily administration of a vast and complex empire?

Arthashastra, a manual on statecraft so detailed and pragmatic that it makes Machiavelli's The Prince seem like a preliminary sketch. Written in Sanskrit, this ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, politics, economic policy, and military strategy is a monumental work of political realism.