Chapter CXII - Commendable traits in servants (in the Nitisara)

Suta said:—There are three kinds of servants, good, bad and indifferent, who shall be posted to offices best suited to their capacities. Presently shall I describe in detail the traits which are to be commended in the character of each of them, as narrated in the works on Social Economy. Gold is tested by touch, cutting, striking and melting, whereas a servant is known by his conduct, character, parentage and acts. A man of noble birth and character, who is further graced by the qualifications of truthfulness, honesty of purpose, handsome features and a broad catholicity of views, should be entrusted with the management of a realm. He who can rightly assay gold, silver and precious stones, should be alone appointed as the jeweller to his king. An officer, who understands the comparative strength or weakness of the enemy’s forces and can at once detect the point of vantage in a field of battle, should be alone confided with the martialship of the realm. He, who can read the mind of his master by his looks and gestures, and is strong vigilant, and handsome, and can successfully deal or pair off a blow, should be appointed as a warder. The king’s writer or secretary shall be a man, who is intelligent, wise, truthful and self-controlled and is well-read in all the branches of the Shastras. The royal ambassador shall be a man of profound intelligence and clear comprehension. An adept in the art of simulation, he must be capable of reading what passes in other men’s minds and of giving the right reply at the opportune moment. The high priest of the realm, should be a man of vast erudition and perfect self-control—a hero in soul and virtue. The royal cook should be a man whose father and grandfather had served in the same capacity before and who is truthful, hardy and cleanly in his habits; He, who has acquired a mastery in the science and practice of medicine and is virtuous, frank and friendly to all—beaming with the glow of health and kindness which virtue sheds only on the face of her sincere and ardent votary, shall be the royal physician. The royal priest should be a man who has studied the Védas and the Védangas, and constantly meditates upon the divine Self, and celebrating Homa ceremonies and pleasing the whole world in his weal and woe. A king shall dismiss from the royal service any writer (secretary), astrologer, computer, and the head of any civic corporation, etc., any way found wanting in their respective duties.

Double-tongued are the snakes and the malicious; their cruel mouths are the source of many an evil to man. Avoid the company of an erudite miscreant: Is not the serpent that bears a gem on its hood doubly dangerous for the stone? Who is he that dreadeth not the malicious who work mischief without any provocation and who are but the serpents in human form? Words of spite drop down from the mouths of the malicious; the fangs of serpents secrete deadly venom. The king, who ruins a servant, who is equally rich, powerful and influential as himself and holds a divided sway over the country, escapes ruin in his turn. They bode no good—those servants who show themselves silent, valarous, truthful, self-controlled and capable at the outset, and exhibit contrary qualities in the course, of the service. Rare are the servants who are contented, laborious, vigilant, equally devoted for good or for evil, and capable of being readily roused up from their sleep. A man bereft of all fortitude, character and honesty as well as the one who is arrogant, gluttonous, dishonest, spiteful, should be excluded from the royal service, A king shall take recourse to his fortress for the purpose of destroying his enemy as soon as he can secure a well-replenished treasury and a well-equipped arsenal. A king shall bide in peace with his adversary under a treaty, for six months or a year at the outside, and shall give battle-thereafter as soon as he will be able to fully recoup his losses. Infamy, frustration and Hell are the three dire consequences which befall a prince that employs a foolish and illiterate man in his service. The subtle dynamics of good or evil deeds determine the prosperity or ruin of a sovereign, and therefore he shall ponder well over a thing before undertaking it. Hence a king should constantly dedicate himself to the good of the cows and the Brahmanas.