Duties of a King

Abstract This article examines a versified text on rājanīti (duties of a king), written in a highly Sanskritized form of Gāndhārī using a Kharoṣṭhī script paleographically dated to the 1st or 2nd century CE . Preserved on a birch-bark scroll (fragment 9 of the Bajaur Collection; short: BC 9), the recto transmits 39 verses in Āryā meter outlining principles of kingship, while the verso contains an unrelated Buddhist scholastic text in Gāndhārī. The work, attributed in the colophon to a certain Cakṣuka, presents political counsel addressing royal conduct, administration, and foreign policy. It describes the sevenfold “body of the state,” the role of royal associates and the treasury, and strategies for dealing with enemies. Although rooted in the broader arthaśāstra and dharmaśāstra traditions, the text shows no direct dependence on extant treatises. Instead, it reflects a shared intellectual milieu and emphasizes righteousness ( dharma ) as the foundation of stable and successful kingship. The purpose of this article is to introduce the contents of the rājanīti verse text ( BC 9 r ) to a wider audience, before the (philologically) detailed edition is published, which, as experience has shown, takes considerable time.