Chanakya (Sanskrit: चाणक्य Cāṇakya) (c. 350-283 BC) was an adviser and a prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta (c. 340-293 BC), and architect of his rise to power. Kautilya and Vishnugupta, the names by which the political treatise Arthaśhāstra identifies its author, are traditionally identified with Chanakya. Some scholars consider Chanakya to be "the pioneer economist of the world". He is known as "The Indian Machiavelli" in the Western world. Chanakya was a professor at Taxila University and is widely believed to be responsible for the first Indian empire. (Source: Wikipedia)
The legend-
· 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, prompting Chānakya to swear revenge.
· Chānakya searches for one worthy for him to rule through. Chānakya encounters a young Chandragupta Maurya who is a born leader even as a child.
· Chānakya's initial attempt to overthrow Nanda fails, whereupon he comes across a mother scolding her child for burning himself by eating from the middle of a bun or bowl of porridge rather than the cooler edge. Chāṇakya realizes his initial strategic error and, instead of attacking the heart of Nanda territory, slowly chips away at its edges.
· Chānakya changed his alliance with the mountain king Parvata due to his obstinance and non adherence to the principles of treaty as agreed .
· Chānakya enlists the services of a fanatical weaver to rid the kingdom of rebels.
· Chānakya adds poison to the food eaten by Chandragupta, now king, in order to make him immune. Unaware, Chandragupta feeds some of his food to his queen, who is in her ninth month of pregnancy. In order to save the heir to the throne, Chānakya cuts the queen open and extracts the fetus, who is named Bindusāra because he was touched by a drop (bindu) of blood or of poison.
· Chānakya's political rivalry with Subandhu leads to his death.
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