CHAPTER-SIX
THE DUTIES OF THE STATE
Now, we shall describe the duties of the State.
Manu says to the sages, “after describing the four varnaas and four aashramaas, we shall speak of the duties of State, for example, what should be the type of the government; how should it originate and how should it be the most successful.”
-Manusmriti 7//1
‘Just as a Brahman should be profoundly learned, in the same way a kshattriya should be well-educated, highly disciplined and should protect the kingdom with justice.’
-Manusmriti 7//2
God enjoins that the governor and the governed should co-operate in fostering prosperity and enlightenment by establishing three bodies – Board of education, Board of religion and Board of politics and by providing men and other creatures with all-round education, liberty, piety, training, wealth et cetra.
The object in view is that one man should not possess the absolute power of government. Let the king be the President of the Assembly; the Assembly under him and he under the Assembly, he and the Assembly both under the people, and the people under the Assembly. If this system is not followed then:
If the ruling class be independent of the people, it will interfere and bring ruin upon the people. The absolute monarch, intoxicated with power, ruins the subjects and eats them up. There should be no absolute and unrestricted power. Just as a lion or other flesh eating beasts kill and devour fat and well grown animals, similarly, an absolute monarch destroys the State.
-Shatpath 13- 2//3//7,8
—-
Experts in education should be members of the Education Board; those well-versed in religion, of the Board of Religion; men of righteous conduct and reputed fame of the Board of Politics; and whoever among them be the most excellent as regards qualifications, character and temperament should be made the President of the whole State. They should devote themselves to all kinds of progress. With the consultation of all the three Boards, a suitable constitution should be drawn up and all should respect that. In matters of common welfare, the opinion of all should be taken. Everybody should regard himself subordinate to law in matter of common weal. But, all should be independent in their personal matters.
—-
‘Law is the real head, law is the real ruler, law is the administrator of justice, law is the actual governor and law is the custodian of four varnaas and four aashramaas.’
-Manusmriti 7//17
‘Law governs the king, law protects the subjects, law wakes when men are asleep; therefore wise men hold that law alone is religion.’
-Manusmriti 7//18
—-
‘Only that man do people call law-maintaining ruler, who always speaks truth and who fully and keeping in view the three objects of life- piety, enjoyment and material prosperity- administers law in consonance with the cannons of reason.’
-Manusmriti 7//26
—-
‘The members of (this) cabinet ought to be well-versed in all the Vedas, logic, philosophy, religion et cetra.’
-Manusmriti 12//111
—-
Translator-‘A mere collection of thousands of irresponsible, un-educated and ignorant masses (who exploit their birth in earning their bread) cannot be called a meeting.’ This condemns mobocracy.
-Manusmriti 12//114
‘The opinions held by those who are foolish and ignorant and do not know the Vedas should never be followed. Those, who act according to the advice of the ignorant are susceptible to all sorts of sinfulness.’
-Manusmriti 12//115
—-
‘Nobody can govern people without being able to govern his own senses. Therefore, the members and the president should always act righteously and avoid evil things. It is necessary for them to devote themselves to the practice of yoga, night and day.’
-Manusmriti 7//44
—-
‘Even easy things are difficult for only one man, especially when he is unaided. Much more so a vast empire. Therefore, it is bad to make one man the absolute monarch or to depend upon one man for the management of the State.’
-Manusmriti 7//55
‘Therefore, it is very essential that the President should constantly consult his ministerial staff on the following six points:
- With whom to be at friend (2) With whom to be in opposition (3) of whom to take no notice, owing to unsuitable times while taking care that our own State is quite safe (4) to attack enemy when our position is strong (5) to preserve vital resources, for example, the State army, the State treasury et cetra. (6) to restore peace and order in the subjugated countries.’
-Manusmriti 7//56
—-
‘These persons (of the foe) can be arrested. But, out of the arrested ones, those who are sound in body should be put in prison and fed and clad properly. The wounded ones should be medically treated. They should neither be insulted nor tormented.’
-Manusmriti 7//92
‘Their children should be brought up like your own. So should their women. They should be looked upon as your sisters and daughters, and not even a glance should be cast at them with sensual feelings.’
-Manusmriti 7//93
—-
‘The king and the assembly should be eager to — increase what they have preserved, to spend what they have acquired by the multiplication in the propagation of Vedic culture and piety, and in the support of students, preachers and orphans.’
-Manusmriti 7//99
—-
‘Let no enemy know your loop-holes or weak points. You should have a knowledge of their loop-holes up-to-date. Just as a tortoise keeps its limbs closed so should a king keep closed all inlets through which the enemy may have a chance of entry.’
-Manusmriti 7//105
—-
‘The officers whom the king gives the charge of the protection of the subjects should be virtuous, well tried, qualified and of respectable families. Under them, there may be employed some infamous persons such as thieves, robbers also in order that they may be cured of their evil habits by their contact with persons of good character and they may be helpful in the protection of the subjects.’
-Manusmriti 7//123
‘The officers, who receive illicit gratification from the plaintiff and the defendant should be severely punished and all his belongings should be forfeited to the State and he should be interned in such a place that he might not return from there. Such punishments are a warning to other officers because if they are left free, others are encouraged to do similar evils.’
-Manusmriti 7//124
—-
‘The king and the assembly should keep two points in view in determining taxation—first, the smooth carrying on of governmental work and the second, the well-being of the people.’
-Manusmriti 7//128
—-
‘That ruler is always looked upon with honour whose strictness and mildness are suited to the occasions, that is, he is strict to the offenders and mild to the well behaved’
-Manusmriti 7//140
—-
‘That king is capable of ruling over the whole world, even without a treasury, whose secret thoughts are not detectable even by the conjoin efforts of many persons; that is, who maintains the secrecy of his ideas with the motives of benefaction.’
-Manusmriti 7//148
‘All sorts of precautions should be taken by every government in exercising the following six things:
- Keeping the arms at home.
- Mobilization for fighting the enemy.
- Alliance with other party.
- Hostilities or declaration of war with the wicked foe.
- Diplomacy or division of the army into two parts.
- Subordination or acknowledging the over-lordship of another strong power when our own State is weak.’
-Manusmriti 7//161
—-
‘He (king) and his officers should be trained in the art of fighting. The people should also be given military education, as only those soldiers can fight well at the moment who have undergone adequate training previously.’
-Manusmriti 7//187
—-
‘Even a weak friend is praiseworthy if he is righteous, grateful, jovial, loving and steady in action.’
-Manusmriti 7//209
‘Care should be taken not to pick quarrels with a man, who is wise, respectable, brave, valiant, clever, learned, tenacious and acquainted with your past deeds. He, who enters into hostility with such men comes to loss.’
-Manusmriti 7//210
—-
As the improvement of a State depends upon wealth, health and plenty of the people, the king should make his subjects happy as his own children; and the subjects should likewise treat their king and ruling officers as their parents. The truth is that the subjects are the kings of the king and the king is only their protector.
—-
‘All the members of that court are dead—not one alive—in which righteousness is murdered by un-righteousness and truth by untruth.’
-Manusmriti 7//14
‘Righteousness murdered kills its killer and righteousness defended protects its protector. Therefore, righteousness should never be murdered lest it should murder its murderer.’
-Manusmriti 7//15
—-
‘Righteousness is the only friend which accompanies us even after death. All other friends stop their friendship with the end of life.’
-Manusmriti 7//17
—-
‘Those persons should be allowed to be witnesses who are more trustworthy, learned, pious, non-deceitful, above monetary temptations and knowing all their duties.’
-Manusmriti 7//63
—-
‘The witness, who speaks the truth gets a good life after death; is born under favourable environment and is happy. He glorifies this life as well as the next. It is given in the Vedaas that this tongue is a cause of respect and disgrace both.
He, who speaks the truth is respected. And, he, who speaks untruth is condemned.’
-Manusmriti 7//81
—-
‘The king, who does not punish the guilty and punishes the guiltless, that is, he, who acquits the criminal and punishes the innocent, receives ill-name in this life and misery in the afterlife.’
-Manusmriti 8//28
—-
‘A criminal should never be forgiven by the king, whether he be father, preceptor, friend, wife, son or priest. A judge sitting on the seat of judgement must do justice without any partiality.’
-Manusmriti 8//335
—-
‘If government servants are not punished more than ordinary men, then government employees would tyrannize over the people.’
-Manusmriti 8//336
—-
‘The killer of a murderer is not guilty of murder’
-Manusmriti 8//351
—-
Question-If the king, the queen, the judge or his wife commits adultery et cetra, who may punish them?
Answer-The assembly. They deserve more harsh punishment than ordinary persons.
Question-Why will the king and government official, receive punishment from the assembly?
Answer-The king is a virtuous and fortunate being. If, he is not ready to receive the punishment, why should others? Besides, if people, the president and government officers are determined to punish the king, he can do nothing. If, this be not the policy, the king, officers and other influential persons will abandon righteousness, plunge into sinfulness, ruin the people and kingdom and annihilate themselves in the end. Remember the verse, we quoted heretofore that justice administered is the real king and the real religion. Whoever, violates it, is very mean.
Question-The cutting of a limb is not a proper punishment. No man is the maker of a limb of the body, nor can he bring it to life. Therefore, such a harsh punishment is bad.
Answer-Those who regard it harsh, do not know the art of governing. If one man is given such punishment, it will be a lesson for others and they will quit bad ways and adopt virtue. To tell the truth, if the amount of punishment is distributed over all the criminals, each criminal will get infinitesimally small quantity as his share. What you call mild punishment becomes tremendously big when put together. When many persons do a crime, the punishment shall have to be lessened. Suppose one man gets a maund of punishment and another one fourth of a seer. Then, the average comes to twenty seers and one eighth of a seer. Will the evildoers mind such a punishment? Suppose, one man is given a maund of punishment or a thousand men a quarter of a seer each. The latter comes to the total amount of 6 maunds and a quarter. Therefore, this latter which you call mild is more grievous to the nation.
—-
If only intellectual education is emphasized, the one, physically strong man can subdue hundreds of men of learning, and if only physical side is developed at the expense of the intellectual side, then no government is possible, without the help of the learned people.
Nothing is so weakening of the body and the intellect as adultery and sexual excesses. The ruling class should be especially stout and healthy. If the rulers are sensual, the whole government will come to naught. It should be remembered that the subjects follow the ruler. Therefore, it is all the more necessary that the king and the government officers should never indulge in vices and should always set sound examples of righteousness, justice and reform before their people.
LIGHT OF TRUTH: CHAPTER – ONE | CHAPTER – TWO | CHAPTER – THREE | CHAPTER – FOUR | CHAPTER – FIVE | CHAPTER –SIX | CHAPTER –SEVEN | CHAPTER – EIGHT | CHAPTER – NINE | CHAPTER – TEN
Leave A Comment