Vishnu Sarma was the author of the anthropomorphic political treatise called
PanchatantraThe Panchatantra was originally a canonical collection of Sanskrit as well as Pali animal fables in verse and prose. The original Sanskrit text, now long lost, and which some scholars believe was composed in the 3rd century BCE, is attributed to Vishnu Sarma...
.
Vishnu Sarma lived in
VaranasiVaranasi , also commonly known as Benares or Banaras and Kashi , is a city situated on the left bank of the River Ganga in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, regarded as holy by Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains...
(a city in the present day state of
Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh , [often referred to as U.P.] is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 190 million people,...
) in the 3rd century BC. He was a Sanskrit scholar and the official
GuruA guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . As a principle for the development of consciousness it leads the creation from unreality to reality, from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge...
of the then prince of
KasiKasi may refer to:* Kasi Kingdom, an ancient kingdom with Varanasi as its capital* KASI, a radio station licensed to serve Ames, Iowa* Kasi Maru, a Japanese merchant ship* Kasi , a tragedy Tamil language movie* Kassi or Kasi, a Pashtun tribe...
. He wrote the
Panchatantra to teach political science to his royal young disciples. The
Panchatantra is one of the oldest collections of Indian
fableA fable is a succinct story, in prose or verse, that features animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature which are anthropomorphized , and that illustrates a moral lesson , which may at the end be expressed explicitly in a pithy maxim.A fable differs from a parable in that the...
s surviving today.
Legend
According to a legend, Vishnupriya was a royal instructor, who used to live in a city called Mahilaropya in
southern IndiaSouth India, also known as the Dravida in the Indian anthem, is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of area...
. The ruler of Mahilaropaya was Amarashakti, whose minister Sumati suggested appointment of
AcharyaIn Indian religions and society, an acharya is a guide or instructor in religious matters; founder, or leader of a sect; or a title affixed to the names of learned men...
Vishnu Sharma as the official instructor for the princes. Vishnusharma was known to be a savant in all the
shastra' is a Sanskrit term used to denote rules in a general sense. The word is generally used as a suffix in the context of technical or specialized knowledge in a defined area of practice; e.g, Bhautika Shastra , Rasayana Shastra , Jeeva Shastra , Vaastu Shastra , Shilpa Shastra and Artha...
s and the theory of politics and diplomacy. Acting on the suggestion, the king called Acharya Vishnu Sharma and declared that if he is able to make his sons into able administrators, he would gift him a hundred villages and gold without bound. Vishnu Sharma laughed and replied, "Oh King! I do not sell my education. I have no desire of any gift. You have called me with respect and deference, therefore I pledge to make your sons into able administrators within 6 months. If I fail to fulfill my pledge, I would change my name."
The king happily gave the responsibility of the three princes to him and continued with his work. Vishnu Sharma, however, realized that it was more difficult than he had thought to teach his new students through conventional means, and there was a need of a creative way of teaching. Therefore he made many short stories, each with a lesson, and tied them in 5 parts, called
tantraTantra , or tantram is a religious philosophy according to which Shakti is usually the main deity worshipped, and the universe is regarded as the divine play of Shakti and Shiva...
s. This collection, that has attained fame over centuries, is called Panchatantra.
The five
tantraTantra , or tantram is a religious philosophy according to which Shakti is usually the main deity worshipped, and the universe is regarded as the divine play of Shakti and Shiva...
s in the book are Mitrabhed, Mitrasamprapti, sandhi, vigraham and Apareekshitkarakam. After listening and working on these stories, all the three princes became fairly educated in politics and became able administrators.