KAUTILYA'S ADVICE ON GOOD GOVERNANCE

WAR is a state of extreme violence, destruction and mortality.

- 

Several countries have in recent times been ravaged and destroyed by war: Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Yemen, and now Ukraine and Gaza. The toll on the people, especially women and children, is immense: displacement, economic devastation, food shortages and insecurity.

Wars in ancient India were conducted under strict rules. Fighting from sunrise to sunset only; no hitting below the belt. I am bemused by the Kurukshetra war, where, after fighting each other all day, the Pandavas and senior Kurus would fraternise in the evenings. Arjuna stopped the war to discuss the ethics of fighting with Krishna, who gave us the immortal Bhagavad Gita as a result. Bhishma lay on a bed of arrows for 41 nights, at times lecturing Yudhishthira on raj dharma.

Sun Tzu of China saw war as an art.

His The Art of War is a military work dating back to 500 BCE. For almost 1,500 years, it was the most influential strategy text influencing both East Asian and Western military thinking. The book contains a detailed explanation and analysis of the Chinese military, from weapons, environmental conditions and strategy to rank and discipline, the importance of intelligence operatives and espionage to the war effort. His strategies formed the basis of advanced military training throughout the world.