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Chaanakya's Arth Shaastra is a very famous and useful book of Chaanakya's times and till now it is quoted everywhere. Chaanakya was the CHief Minister of Chandragupt Maurya, the first great Emperor of India in the 4th century BC. This book was discovered by Shamasastri in 1909 and he translated and introduced it to the world. Although it is a great controversy that this Chaanakya was really the Chief Minister of Chandragupt Maurya or somebody else? While some people believe that it is the work of several generations. Interestingly Arth Shaastra does not mention of Chandragupt Maurya that shows that whether Chaanakya was really the Chief Minister of Chandragupt Maurya. This book contains about 6,000 hymns divide in 15 chapters, is a comprehensive manual on how a state (kingdom) should be ruled and administered by a king. It is very detailed and systematic in prescribing the solutions of many problems associated with monarchic system of ruling.

A part of this book in summarized form can be read at  http://www.hinduwebsite.com/history/kautilya.asp
Its another website is   http://www.bharatadesam.com/literature/kautilya_arthashastra/arthashastra.php

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