It seems that only Parvatka (sometimes identified as Porus in Greek sources), a Himalayan king, heeded Kautilya’s call, and fought unsuccessfully against Alexander at the Battle of the Hydaspes River. Kautilya is said to have perceived the Macedonian invasion as a threat to Indian culture, and therefore sought other Indian rulers in the region to unite in a war against Alexander. Ambhi (known to the Greeks as Taxiles), the king of Gandhara, concluded a treaty with Alexander, and therefore avoided fighting him. ( Public domain ) Kautilya: Teacher, Strategist, Chandragupta Maura’s AdvisorĪt the time of Alexander’s invasion of India (327 – 325 BC), Kautilya was a teacher in Taxila, a great center of learning, as well as the capital of Gandhara. Therefore, he sought to obtain his revenge by using Chandragupta to overthrow Dhana Nanda.Īrtistic depiction of Kautilya or Chanakya who was Chandragupta Maura’s teacher and advisor. Kautilya’s decision to groom Chandragupta was not only due to his recognition of the boy’s potential as a ruler, but also as part of personal vendetta against Dhana Nanda, the ruler of the Nanda Empire.
Kautilya is said to have been a Brahmin (a member of the priestly class) and is traditionally credited as the author of the Arthashastra, an ancient Indian text dealing with statecraft, military strategy, and economic policy. He would play an important role in Chandragupta’s rise to power and serve subsequently as his advisor and chief minister. In any case, Kautilya brought Chandragupta back with him back to Taxila, and began to groom him. According to another version of the story, Kautilya met Chandragupta by chance, recognized that he had the makings of a great king, and immediately took him under his wing. Finally, he was purchased by Kautilya (known also as Chanakya) in Bihar, when the latter was on his way back to Taxila. Later, however, he was sold to a hunter to tend cattle. Subsequently, Chandragupta’s maternal uncles left him with a cowherd, who brought him up as his own son. One version of the story states that whilst he was still a young boy, Chandragupta’s family fell into poverty following the death of his father, a chief of the Mauryas, in a battle. The early childhood of Chandragupta is equally shrouded in mystery. Yet another hypothesis states that the Mauryas were the Muras, or Mors, who are of Scythian, or Indo-Scythian origin.