Chanaka

Chanaka (चणक) was ancient village situated in Golla district of Gandhara. Chānakya was born in the village of Chanaka.

Chankoi (चणकोई) and Chankoya are villages in Balachaur tahsil in Nawanshahr district in Punjab, India. The places are believed to be connected with Chanakya.

Variants

• Caṇaka
• Chanak/Chanaka (चणक) (AS, p.326)

Chanakya

Chānakya (Sanskrit: चाणक्य Cāṇakya) (c. 350–283 BCE) was an adviser and prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta (c. 340-293 BCE), and was the chief architect of his rise to power. Kautilya (कौटिल्य) and Vishnugupta (विष्णुगुप्त), the names by which the ancient Indian political treatise called the Arthaśāstra (अर्थशास्त्र) identifies its author, are traditionally identified with Chanakya. Chanakya was a teacher in Takṣaśila, an ancient centre of learning, and was responsible for the creation of Mauryan Empire, the first of its kind on the Indian subcontinent. His works were lost near the end of the Gupta dynasty and not rediscovered until 1915 AD.

He is generally called Chanakya, derived from his father's name "Chanaka". He is also called Kautilya derived from his gotra's name "Kotil" as Kautilya means "of Kotil".

According to Jaina account Chānakya was born in the village of Caṇaka in the Golla district to Caṇin and Caṇeśvarī, a Maga Brahmin couple.

Mention by Panini

Chanaka (चणक) is mentioned by Panini in Ashtadhyayi under Shandikadi (शंडिकादि) (4.3.92) group.

In Jat History

The Nandas were uprooted and the earth passed on to the Mauryas. But even here the credit for achievement is given to a Brahman Kautilya or Chanakya even though the self same Kautilya had a low opinion of the army of Brahmans. He was also the first to devise equal punishment for equal offences, irrespective of the status of the wrong doer. This was directly against the brahmanical law under which no Brahman could be given capital punishment under any circumstances. It is interesting to note that even Chanakya, (who was so called because he was born in village Chanaka in Golla district at Gandhara has been mentioned as belonging to Pataliputra in Brihatkatha Kosa. If Chanakya can be mentioned as originally from Magadha, there is no wonder that the Mauryas too were thus described. The reason lies in the foreign origin of these people. That is why they are called Mleccha, Asuras, etc.

चणक

चणक (AS, p.326) जैन ग्रंथ आवश्यकसूत्र के अनुसार चंद्रगुप्त का मंत्री चाणक्य, चणक ग्राम का निवासी था. यह ग्राम गोल्ल (?) में स्थित था.

चाणक्य

चाणक्य का नाम संभवत उनके गोत्र का नाम 'चणक', पिता के नाम 'चणक' अथवा स्थान का नाम 'चणक' का परिवर्तित रूप रहा होगा। माना जाता है कि चाणक्य ने ईसा से 370 वर्ष पूर्व ऋषि चणक के पुत्र के रूप में जन्म लिया था। वही उनके आरंभिक काल के गुरु थे। कुछ इतिहासकार मानते हैं कि चणक केवल उनके गुरु थे। चणक के ही शिष्य होने के नाते उनका नाम 'चाणक्य' पड़ा। उस समय का कोई प्रामाणिक इतिहास उपलब्ध नहीं है।

References

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