R. Shamasastry
Encyclopedia
Rudrapatnam Shamasastry was a Sanskrit
scholar and librarian at the Oriental Research Institute Mysore
who is known for discovering and publishing the Arthashastra
, an ancient Indian treatise
on statecraft
, economic
policy and military strategy
.
, a village on the banks of the Kaveri river
in Karnataka
, to a Sankethi Brahmin
family. He "had mastered Vedas, Vedanga, classical Sanskrit, Prakrit, English, Kannada, German, French and other languages."
palm-leaf manuscripts. Shamasastry, the librarian, examined these fragile manuscripts daily, to determine their contents and catalogue
them.
In 1905 he discovered the Arthashastra
among a heap of manuscripts. He transcribed, edited and published the Sanskrit edition in 1909. He proceeded to translate it into English, publishing it in 1915.
The manuscript was in the Grantha script. Other copies of the Arthashastra were discovered later in other parts of India.
It was one of the manuscripts in the library that had been handed over by 'a pandit of the Tanjore district' to the Oriental Library.
Until this discovery, the Arthashastra was known only through references to it in works by Dandin
, Bana, Vishnusarma, Mallinathasuri, Megasthenes
, etc. This discovery was "an epoch-making event in the history of the study of ancient Indian polity
". It altered the perception of ancient India and changed the course of history studies, notably the false belief of European scholars at the time that Indians learnt the art of administration from the Greeks
.
The book was translated into French, German and many other languages.
, Moriz Winternitz
, F. W. Thomas, Paul Pelliot
, A. Berriedale Keith
, Sten Konow and others. J. F. Fleet wrote of Shamasastry: "We are, and shall always remain, under a great obligation to him for a most important addition to our means of studying the general history of ancient India."
In India, it was acclaimed by Ashutosh Mukherjee
, Rabindranath Tagore
, and others. Shamasastry also met Mahatma Gandhi
in 1927 at Nandi Hills. The discovery brought international fame to the institute
.
Shamasastry was awarded a doctorate in 1919 from the Oriental University in Washington D.C. and in 1921 from the Calcutta University. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society
and won the Campbell Memorial gold medal.
He was appointed as Professor of History at Mysore University.
Several titles were also conferred on him, including Arthasastra Visharada by the Maharaja of Mysore, Mahamahopadhyaya by the Government of India, and Vidyalankara and Panditaraja by the Varanasi Sanskrit Mandali.
, to Germany. When introduced as the king of Mysore, he was asked by the vice-chancellor of a German university whether he was from the Mysore of Shamasastry. On his return, the king honoured Shamasastry and said "In Mysore we are the Maharaja and you are our subject, but in Germany, you are the master and people recognise us by your name and fame."
His house 'Asutosh', in the Chamundipuram locality of Mysore, was named after Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee
. As of 2009, he is survived by his daughter Smt. Lalithamma, who is in her nineties. All other children including M.S. Srinivas, Smt. Kamalamma, Smt. Sharadamma and Smt. Shantamma are diseased.
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
scholar and librarian at the Oriental Research Institute Mysore
Oriental Research Institute Mysore
The Oriental Research Institute at Mysore, India is a research institute which collects, exhibits, edits and publishes rare manuscripts in both Sanskrit and Kannada. Formerly it was known as the Oriental Library....
who is known for discovering and publishing the Arthashastra
Arthashastra
The Arthashastra is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy which identifies its author by the names Kautilya and , who are traditionally identified with The Arthashastra (IAST: Arthaśāstra) is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and...
, an ancient Indian treatise
Treatise
A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject.-Noteworthy treatises:...
on statecraft
Public administration
Public Administration houses the implementation of government policy and an academic discipline that studies this implementation and that prepares civil servants for this work. As a "field of inquiry with a diverse scope" its "fundamental goal.....
, economic
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
policy and military strategy
Military strategy
Military strategy is a set of ideas implemented by military organizations to pursue desired strategic goals. Derived from the Greek strategos, strategy when it appeared in use during the 18th century, was seen in its narrow sense as the "art of the general", 'the art of arrangement' of troops...
.
Early life
Shamasastry was born in 1868 in RudrapatnaRudrapatna
Rudrapatna is a small village on the banks of the Kaveri river in Arkalgud taluk of Hassan district in the Indian State of Karnataka.The village is known for its rich musical heritage. The village was an abode of Veda, Nada, and Taranga, according to the renowned Carnatic vocalist, R K Padmanabha...
, a village on the banks of the Kaveri river
Kaveri River
The Kaveri , also spelled Cauvery in English, is a large Indian river. The origin of the river is traditionally placed at Talakaveri, Kodagu in the Western Ghats in Karnataka, flows generally south and east through Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and across the southern Deccan plateau through the...
in Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, to a Sankethi Brahmin
Sankethi people
The Sankethis are Smartha brahmins residing in Karnataka. They are an offshoot of the Iyer Community. There are also some Sankethis in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. They are said to have left their homeland under the guidance of a saintly lady, nAcAramma...
family. He "had mastered Vedas, Vedanga, classical Sanskrit, Prakrit, English, Kannada, German, French and other languages."
The discovery
The Oriental Research Institute was set up in 1891, as the Mysore Oriental Library. It housed thousands of SanskritSanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
palm-leaf manuscripts. Shamasastry, the librarian, examined these fragile manuscripts daily, to determine their contents and catalogue
Library catalog
A library catalog is a register of all bibliographic items found in a library or group of libraries, such as a network of libraries at several locations...
them.
In 1905 he discovered the Arthashastra
Arthashastra
The Arthashastra is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy which identifies its author by the names Kautilya and , who are traditionally identified with The Arthashastra (IAST: Arthaśāstra) is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and...
among a heap of manuscripts. He transcribed, edited and published the Sanskrit edition in 1909. He proceeded to translate it into English, publishing it in 1915.
The manuscript was in the Grantha script. Other copies of the Arthashastra were discovered later in other parts of India.
It was one of the manuscripts in the library that had been handed over by 'a pandit of the Tanjore district' to the Oriental Library.
Until this discovery, the Arthashastra was known only through references to it in works by Dandin
Dandin
Dandin can refer to:* Daṇḍin, 6th-7th century Sanskrit writer* The Dandin Group, a wireless internet thinktank* Dandin the Sword Carrier, a character appearing in Mariel of Redwall and The Bellmaker, two books from the fictional Redwall series by Brian Jacques....
, Bana, Vishnusarma, Mallinathasuri, Megasthenes
Megasthenes
Megasthenes was a Greek ethnographer in the Hellenistic period, author of the work Indica.He was born in Asia Minor and became an ambassador of Seleucus I of Syria possibly to Chandragupta Maurya in Pataliputra, India. However the exact date of his embassy is uncertain...
, etc. This discovery was "an epoch-making event in the history of the study of ancient Indian polity
Polity
Polity is a form of government Aristotle developed in his search for a government that could be most easily incorporated and used by the largest amount of people groups, or states...
". It altered the perception of ancient India and changed the course of history studies, notably the false belief of European scholars at the time that Indians learnt the art of administration from the Greeks
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
.
The book was translated into French, German and many other languages.
Awards
The discovery was hailed over the world by Indologists and Orientalists such as Julius JollyJulius Jolly
Professor Julius Jolly was a German scholar and translator of Indian law and medicine.Jolly was born in Heidelberg, the son of physicist Philipp Johann Gustav von Jolly , and studied comparative linguistics, Sanskrit, and Iranian languages in Berlin and Leipzig...
, Moriz Winternitz
Moriz Winternitz
Moriz Winternitz was an eminent Austrian Orientalist.He received his earliest education in the gymnasium of his native town, and in 1880 entered the University of Vienna, receiving the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in 1886...
, F. W. Thomas, Paul Pelliot
Paul Pelliot
Paul Pelliot was a French sinologist and explorer of Central Asia. Initially intending to enter the foreign service, Pelliot took up the study of Chinese and became a pupil of Sylvain Lévi and Édouard Chavannes....
, A. Berriedale Keith
A. Berriedale Keith
Arthur Berriedale Keith was a Scottish constitutional lawyer, scholar of Sanskrit and Indologist. He became Regius Professor of Sanskrit and Lecturer in Constitutional History in the University of Edinburgh.-Biography:...
, Sten Konow and others. J. F. Fleet wrote of Shamasastry: "We are, and shall always remain, under a great obligation to him for a most important addition to our means of studying the general history of ancient India."
In India, it was acclaimed by Ashutosh Mukherjee
Ashutosh Mukherjee
Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee, CIE was a prolific Bengali educator and the first Indian Vice Chancellor of the University of Calcutta from 1906 to 1924. Perhaps the most emphatic figure of Indian education, he was a man of great personality, high self-respect, courage and towering administrative ability...
, Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...
, and others. Shamasastry also met Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
in 1927 at Nandi Hills. The discovery brought international fame to the institute
Oriental Research Institute Mysore
The Oriental Research Institute at Mysore, India is a research institute which collects, exhibits, edits and publishes rare manuscripts in both Sanskrit and Kannada. Formerly it was known as the Oriental Library....
.
Shamasastry was awarded a doctorate in 1919 from the Oriental University in Washington D.C. and in 1921 from the Calcutta University. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
and won the Campbell Memorial gold medal.
He was appointed as Professor of History at Mysore University.
Several titles were also conferred on him, including Arthasastra Visharada by the Maharaja of Mysore, Mahamahopadhyaya by the Government of India, and Vidyalankara and Panditaraja by the Varanasi Sanskrit Mandali.
Recognition in Germany
An often-told anecdote involves the visit of the then-king of Mysore, Krishna Raja Wadiyar IVKrishna Raja Wadiyar IV
Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV , also known popularly as Nalvadi Krishna Raja Wadiyar , was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Mysore from 1902 until his death in 1940. He is regarded as one of the most celebrated rulers among the Indian States when India was still under British rule...
, to Germany. When introduced as the king of Mysore, he was asked by the vice-chancellor of a German university whether he was from the Mysore of Shamasastry. On his return, the king honoured Shamasastry and said "In Mysore we are the Maharaja and you are our subject, but in Germany, you are the master and people recognise us by your name and fame."
Later life
Shamasastry continued his research work on Indological problems. He later became the curator of the institute. As Director of Archaeology of Mysore State, he discovered many inscriptions on stone and copper plates.His house 'Asutosh', in the Chamundipuram locality of Mysore, was named after Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee
Ashutosh Mukherjee
Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee, CIE was a prolific Bengali educator and the first Indian Vice Chancellor of the University of Calcutta from 1906 to 1924. Perhaps the most emphatic figure of Indian education, he was a man of great personality, high self-respect, courage and towering administrative ability...
. As of 2009, he is survived by his daughter Smt. Lalithamma, who is in her nineties. All other children including M.S. Srinivas, Smt. Kamalamma, Smt. Sharadamma and Smt. Shantamma are diseased.
External links
- Article in OrganiserOrganiserThe in-house publication / newspaper of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Organiser was first launched in 1947 , and has since been edited by some of the leading figures of Hindu nationalist thought. As such, it remains crucial to the propagation of Hindu nationalist ideology.- External links :*...
- Article in Outlook magazine, also in Star of Mysore
- Kamat
- Text of 1915 Shamasastry translation