Chanakya - The Legend
Who was Chanakya:
Chanakya was born with a complete set of teeth, a sign that he would become king, which is inappropriate for a Brahmin like Chanakya. Chāṇakya's teeth were therefore broken and it was prophesied that he will rule through another.
The Nanda King throws Chānakya out of his court, Chānakya took swear for revenge. But he was not interested in ruling.
One day Chanakya saw a child was playing as a king with his friends and was giving justice to another boy playing criminal. He also saw the kindness inside him to help others. Chanakya saw this and was impressed with that child's sense of justice. Chanakya asked his mother about him. His mother told him that his father used to work as a servant of the Nanda king who ruled over the kingdom of Maghada and due to some fault he was sent into the prison.
Then Chanakya trained that child and after some time that child became the king and became famous as Chandragupta Maurya and with the help of Chanakya he won many wars.
Interesting incident:
Chanakya was an astute brahmin and shrewd observer of nature. Once, it is said that Mauryan forces had to hide in a cave. There was no food, and the soldiers were starving.They could not come out of the cave either, as there was a threat to their lives. Chanakya saw an ant taking a grain of rice, whereas, there was no sign of food or grain anywhere. Moreover, the rice grain was cooked. He ordered the soldiers to search and they found that their enemies had been dining under the cave. Indeed, they were eating at the ground floor. As soon as they saw this, they escaped and were thus saved.
Chanakya Quotes:
A man is great by deeds, not by birth.
A person should not be too honest. Just as straight trees are chopped-down first, honest people are taken advantage of first.
Variant: A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first.
A rich man has many friends.
A woman is four times as shy, six times as brave and eight times as lusty as a man.
An egoist can be won over by being respected, a crazy person can be won over by allowing him to behave in an insane manner and a wise person can be won over by truth.
As centesimal droppings will fill a pot so also are knowledge, virtue and wealth gradually obtained.
As soon as the fear approaches near, attack and destroy it.
Avoid him who talks sweetly before you but tries to ruin you behind your back, for he is like a pitcher of poison with milk on top.
Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it? What the results might be? And Will I be successful? Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead.
Books are as useful to a stupid person as a mirror is useful to a blind person.
Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.
Even if a snake is not poisonous, it should pretend to be venomous.
God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple.
He who befriends a man whose conduct is vicious, whose vision impure, and who is notoriously crooked, is rapidly ruined.
If you get to learn something even from the worst of creatures, don't hesitate.
In a state where the ruler lives like a common man, the citizens live like kings do. And in the state where the ruler lives like a king, the citizens live like beggars do.
Jealousy is another name for failure.
Never go on a long journey alone.
Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such friendships will never give you any happiness.
Once you start working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest.
One who is in search of knowledge should give up the search of pleasure and the one who is in search of pleasure should give up the search of knowledge.
The biggest guru-mantra is: Never share your secrets with anybody. It will destroy you.
The four greatest enemies of a man are - the father who has taken a loan, the characterless mother, the beautiful but promiscuous wife and the stupid child.
The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all directions.
The world's biggest power is the youth and beauty of a woman.
There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth.
Treat your kid like a darling for the first five years. For the next five years, scold them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them like a friend. Your grown up children are your best friends.
Whores don't live in company of poor men, birds don't build nests on a tree that doesn't bear fruits and citizens never support a weak administration.
Wise men should never go into a country where there are no means of earning one's livelihood, where the people have no dread of anybody, have no sense of shame, no intelligence, or a charitable disposition.