Learning From History
Chanakya, also known as Kautilya, was a highly revered scholar, strategist and statesman in Indian History. He was deeply insulted by Dhana Nanda, the last ruler of the Nanda Dynasty. Vowing to overthrow the Nanda Empire, Chanakya dedicated himself to creating a new order. He discovered and mentored a talented young boy named Chandragupta, who came from a humble background. Under Chanakya's guidance, Chandragupta Maurya rose to power and eventually established the Mauryan Empire—one of the most powerful and expansive empires of the world.
Chanakya in his teachings spoke in length about warfare, administration, judiciary, tactics, economics, business, foreign affairs, relationships (family, friends, colleagues etc.). The teachings of Chanakya, were preserved as texts, called ‘Chanakaya Neeti’. This granth (sacred text) covers all facets of life.
A problem with most of us is that we do not value such teachings of our ancestors. Whenever faced with doubt, dilemma, or adversaries, we mostly look towards the West for solutions. We have been conditioned to ignore our indigenous wisdom.
Prithvi Raj Chauhan was a great Indian king and great warrior. He fought the First Battle of Tarain with Mohammed Ghori. In the battle, Mohammed Ghori was badly defeated, but Prithvi Raj spared his life in spite of knowing what ideology Ghori believes in, what Muslim invaders had done to the native Indians, what happened to Raja Dahar and his daughters.
The result of his compassion was that Ghori rose again. Second Battle of Tarain was started; hundreds of Indian soldiers including Prithvi Raj Chauhan were killed. Islamic Rule established on Indian soil, which claimed millions of lives, thousands of temples, libraries were destroyed, and millions of Hindu girls were raped, taken as sex slaves, sold in markets over a time span of about 900 years (even today such atrocities are going on).
Prithvi Raj Chauhan was undoubtedly a great warrior, but he lacked one quality; that of learning from the past and valuing the teachings of our ancestors,
In one of his Sutras, Chanakya says, -
कार्यार्थिना दाक्षिण्यं न कर्तव्यम्।
Don’t be kind towards harmful people.
An example from the Mahabharata: At the end of the Battle of Kurukshetra,the Kauravas decimated the Gurus, Bhishma Pitamah no more , Duryodhana was left to fight Bheema. In the fight, Duryodhana sustained multiple injuries, losing even the strength to stand. At that stage, Duryodhana was of no harm to anyone. Even then, he was not spared. Krishna ordered Bheema to kill Duryodhana and finish the Job.
Had Prithvi Raj Chauhan chosen a different ending for Ghori on that fateful day , things would not have been the way they are today. Indians would not have suffered the cruel imposition of Islamic ideology; India would have been Vishwa Guru (world leader), no Jaish-e-Mohammed, no Lashkar-e-Taiba, no Hizbul Mujahiddin, no Taliban, there would not have been jauhar, no devaluation of women, no Kashmiri genocide, no Pakistan etc. A little ignorance of history, traditions and ancestral values resulted in chaos.
Hence, it is extremely important for us to revisit our history, learn from it and always uphold Dharma (righteousness).
