ABSTRACT
One meaning of the Sanskrit word Artha is wealth. Sastra means science. Arthasastra can therefore be translated to mean the science of wealth.3 Along with Dharma (moral behavior), Kama (worldly pleasures) and Moksha (salvation), Artha, or wealth, is one of the four goals of human endeavor prescribed in the Hindu tradition. Arthasastra is the title of a treatise most probably written by Kautilya and probably written in the fourth century, BC.4 It contains fifteen parts or sections and discusses a number of topics, including a code of law as well as conduct of foreign policy. There is discussion about the way in which the economy is organized, how taxation should be arranged and distributed, how war should be conducted and how ministers should be selected. Although Kautilya presents no overt philosophy, Arthasastra maintains that the State or government of a country has a vital role to play in maintaining the material status of both the nation and its inhabitants.
