One of the greatest figures of wisdom and knowledge in the Indian history is Chanakya. He is estimated to have lived from 350 – 283 B.C. Chanakya is touted as the “Pioneer Economist of India”. Chanakya was the adviser and Prime Minister of Emperor Chandragupta. Chanakya was a professor at the University of Takshila (located in present day Pakistan) and was an expert in commerce, warfare, economics, etc. His famous works include Chanakya Neeti, Arthashastra and Neetishastra.
Read his interesting quotes about life that covers his life history.
1. “The biggest guru-mantra is: Never share your secrets with anybody. It will destroy you.”
2. “The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction.”
3. “A good wife is one who serves her husband in the morning like a mother does, loves him in the day like a sister does and pleases him like a prostitute in the night.”
4. “Education is the Best Friend. An Educated Person is Respected Everywhere. Education beats the Beauty and the Youth.”
5. “A man is born alone and dies alone; and he experiences the good and bad consequences of his karma alone; and he goes alone to hell or the Supreme abode.”
6. “There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth.”
7. “Do not put your trust in a bad companion nor even trust an ordinary friend, for if he should get angry with you, he may bring all your secrets to light.”
8. “The serpent, the king, the tiger, the stinging wasp, the small child, the dog owned by other people, and the fool: these seven ought not to be awakened from sleep.”
9. “Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.”
10. “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.”
11. “Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such friendships will never give you any happiness.”
12. “He who lives in our mind is near though he may actually be far away; but he who is not in our heart is far though he may really be nearby.”
13. “Those born blind cannot see; similarly blind are those in the grip of lust. Proud men have no perception of evil; and those bent on acquiring riches see no sin in their actions.”
14. “We should always deal cautiously with fire, water, women, foolish people, serpents, and members of a royal family; for they may, when the occasion presents itself, at once bring about our death.”
15. Even if a snake is not poisonous, it should pretend to be venomous.”
16. “The world’s biggest power is the youth and beauty of a woman.”
17. “The life of an uneducated man is as useless as the tail of a dog which neither covers its rear end, nor protects it from the bites of insects.”
18. “Even as the unborn babe is in the womb of his mother, these five are fixed as his life destiny: his life span, his activities, his acquisition of wealth and knowledge, and his time of death.”
19. “The earth is supported by the power of truth; it is the power of truth that makes the sun shine and the winds blow; indeed all things rest upon truth.”
20. “Rain which falls upon the sea is useless; so is food for one who is satiated; in vain is a gift for one who is wealthy; and a burning lamp during the daytime is useless.”
21. “He whose son is obedient to him, whose wife’s conduct is in accordance with his wishes, and who is content with his riches, has his heaven here on earth.”
22. “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.”
23. “Women have hunger two-fold, shyness four-fold, daring six-fold, and lust eight-fold as compared to men.”
24. “Religion is preserved by wealth; knowledge by diligent practice; a king by conciliatory words; and a home by a dutiful housewife.”
25. “Union in privacy (with one’s wife); boldness; storing away useful items; watchfulness; and not easily trusting others; these five things are to be learned from a crow.”
26. “Books are as useful to a stupid person as a mirror is useful to a blind person.”
27. “My dear child, if you desire to be free from the cycle of birth and death, then abandon the objects of sense gratification as poison. Drink instead the nectar of forbearance, upright conduct, mercy, cleanliness and truth.”
28. “As gold is tested in four ways by rubbing, cutting, heating and beating — so a man should be tested by these four things: his renunciation, his conduct, his qualities and his actions.”
29. “That man who is without religion and mercy should be rejected. A guru without spiritual knowledge should be rejected. The wife with an offensive face should be given up, and so should relatives who are without affection.”
30. “Wealth, a friend, a wife, and a kingdom may be regained; but this body when lost may never be acquired again.”
31. “Do not be very upright in your dealings for you would see by going to the forest that straight trees are cut down while crooked ones are left standing.”
32. “Do not keep company with a fool for as we can see he is a two-legged beast. Like an unseen thorn he pierces the heart with his sharp words.”
33. “Moral excellence is an ornament for personal beauty; righteous conduct, for high birth; success for learning; and proper spending for wealth.”
34. “Knowledge is lost without putting it into practice; a man is lost due to ignorance; an army is lost without a commander; and a woman is lost without a husband.”
35. “A single son endowed with good qualities is far better than a hundred devoid of them.”
36. “A wise man should not reveal his loss of wealth, the vexation of his mind, the misconduct of his own wife, base words spoken by others, and disgrace that has befallen him.”
37. As soon as the fear approaches near, attack and destroy it.”
38. Do not put your trust in rivers, men who carry weapons, beasts with claws or horns, women, and members of a royal family.”
39. “Constant travel brings old age upon a man; a horse becomes old by being constantly tied up; lack of sexual contact with her husband brings old age upon a woman; and garments become old through being left in the sun.”
40. “A man is great by deeds, not by birth.”
41. “It is better to live under a tree in a jungle inhabited by tigers and elephants, to maintain oneself in such a place with ripe fruits and spring water, to lie down on grass and to wear the ragged barks of trees than to live amongst one’s relations when reduced to poverty.”
42. “A wicked wife, a false friend, a saucy servant and living in a house with a serpent in it are nothing but death.”
43. The one excellent thing that can be learned from a lion is that whatever a man intends doing should be done by him with a whole-hearted and strenuous effort.”
44. “As a single withered tree, if set aflame, causes a whole forest to burn, so does a rascal son destroy a whole family.”
45. “O wise man! Give your wealth only to the worthy and never to others. The water of the sea received by the clouds is always sweet.”
46. “In this world, whose family is there without blemish? Who is free from sickness and grief? Who is forever happy?”
47. “A wise man should marry a virgin of a respectable family even if she is deformed. He should not marry one of a low-class family, through beauty. Marriage in a family of equal status is preferable.”
48. “God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple.”
49. “He who has wealth has friends and relations; he alone survives and is respected as a man.”
50. “Brass is polished by ashes; copper is cleaned by tamarind; a woman, by her menses; and a river by its flow.”
Get inspired by chanakya and understand the thoughts of life.
-Shamim Noorani.
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