For a reconstruction of the political history of Asoka and his deceasors attempted by the author in ths book the main sources of information are the Kautiliya Arthasastra, the inscriptions of Ashoka and the fragments of Megasthenes. In the first chapter the authen-ticity and value of these documents are critically examined. Chapter II is devoted to the character and extent of the Empire. Then the three following chapters deal with the Central Administration and the fifth one with Provincial and Local Governments. The last chapter is on the religion of the Mauryas in general and that of Chandragupta and Asoka in particular.
By a critical and comparative study the author has come to the conclusion that the extant Arthasastra is a genuine work of the chancellor of Chandragupta Maurya and the neither Asoka was a Buddhist nor Chandragupta a Jain.
This book is of unusual importance for those interested in the study of Indian military tradition and the art of warfare in Ancient India. Readers' attention is riveted on Indian historical cycle which begins with the carly settlement of Indo-Aryans and ends in the epoch created by Vijayanagar empire.Â
The discussion revolves round critical appreciation of psychological factors leading to internecine wars between states; various theories of war propounded by military thinkers of different schools, chief components of war machines which include organization of armed forces and their several wings; complex system of weaponry and that of espionage; the concept of strategy and tactics, filed operation; and elaborate laws formulated to keep wars within bounds. The author substantiates his viewpoint by drawing abundantly on Vedic and post-Vedic literature, Tamil classics, sculptural and inscriptional sources.
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