Part 7: Revenue and Taxation

No state can function without stable sources of income necessary to defray the expenses of administration. Taxes, fines, treasure-trove, booty of battles, and income from forests were the main sources of income to the state. The Dharṃśāstras say that the king should always pay particular attention to the collection of lawful taxes.^[1] State income was spent mainly on state administration, maintenance of the army, and royal establishment. The civil and military officials of the state received their salaries from the royal exchequer. (Generally, bhoga, bhāga and kara were considered to have imposed tax periodically.)^[2] Emperor Harṣa also collected the tax.^[3]

According to P. V. Kane—

“The great lord (Harṣa) tribute (karaḥ) was levied from the inaccessible (dūrga) Himalaya regions.”^[4]

Bāṇa mention the word karada^[5] i.e., one who pays the tribute. The writer expresses that king Puṣpabhūti collected the tribute^[6] from his feudatories. But how much they had to pay the tax it is not mentioned.

Discussing about the booty of battles, Bāṇa informs that Bhaṇḍi, the commander of cavalry forces, requested king Harṣa to see various things such as-elephants (kariṇa), horses (harīn), necklaces (hārā), dancing girl (bāravilāsinī), chair of state (āsandī), small begs of ornaments (peḍāpīḍān) etc. collected from the battle field.^[7]

According to Medhātithi—

“Various kinds of royal dues are known by several names in several countries.”^[8]

The treasurer and the revenue minister was an important minister of administration. He was the in-charge of treasury and stores. During the reign of king Harṣavardhana, the officer’s in-charge of a village was known as grāmakṣapaṭalika,^[9] (i.e., the record-keeper of the villages). According to the Arthaśāstra, akṣapaṭala implies accountant’s office.^[10] In the Harṣacarita, description of akṣapaṭalika is to be found; while emperor Harṣa was passing through the village, there village notary (akṣapaṭalika) appeared with whole retinue of karnis (clerks) and announced -“let his Majesty whose edicts are never void even now best on upon us his commands for the day.”^[11] Then he presented a newly made golden seal, which had a bull as its emblem.^[12]

According to D.C.Sircar—

“karaṇika is an official designation of a scribe; the writer of legal documents.”^[13]

The Harṣacarita also uses the term karaṇin in the same sense.^[14] From the description of the gold coin which felt from the hand of king Harṣavardhana in the bank of the river Sarasvatī, it is assumed that the rulers of different kingdoms issued their own currency of different standards. The common currency was chiefly gold or silver or copper. At that time, currency was known as mudrā^[15] (i.e., a coin).

V. S. Agarwal mentions that Harṣa was the worshiper of god Śiva, therefore the coins were embalmed with bull or nandībṛṣa.^[16] The Banskhera copper plate^[17] and Madhuban copper plate^[18] of Harṣa mentioned about mahākṣapaṭalādhikaraṇādhikṛta. Mahākṣapaṭalādhika (i.e., the officer who looked after land records of the territory) was directly governed by the king and not by his feudatory. It proves that he was the revenue officer under Harṣa.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Manusaṃhitā,VIII.279-80

[2]:

Majumdar, R.C., History of Bengal, p.277

[3]:

atta parameśvareṇa tuṣāraśailabhuvo durgāyā gṛhītaḥ karaḥ, Harṣacarita, III.p.40

[4]:

Ibid.,p.320

[5]:

Ibid.,VII.p.114

[6]:

…svabhujabalanijitāśva karadīkṛtā mahāsāmantāstaṃ….., Ibid.,III.p.45

[7]:

..paśyatu devaḥ, ….bhujabalārjitaṃ sādhanaṃ saparivarha ….. Ibid.,VII.p.122

[8]:

Manusaṃhitā,VIII.307

[9]:

tatrasthasya casya grāmakṣapatalikaḥ…, Harṣacarita,VII.p.108

[10]:

Arthaśāstra,II.7

[11]:

Harṣacarita,VII.p.108

[12]:

tatrasthasya cāsya grāmākṣapaṭalikaḥ sakalakaraṇiparikaraḥ‘karotu devo divasagrahaṇamdaivāvandhyaśāsanaḥ śāsanānām’ ityabhidhāya vṛṣānkāmabhinavaghaṭitām hāṭakamayīṃ mudrāmupaninye, Ibid.

[13]:

Select Inscriptions, Sircar, D.C., p.146

[14]:

Harṣacarita,VII.p.108

[15]:

. ……hāṭakamayīṃ mudrāmupaninye, Ibid.

[16]:

Harṣacarita: a sāṃskṛtika adhyayaṇa, Agaraval, Vasudeva Sarana, p.141

[17]:

Corpus Inscriptional Indicarum, IV, p.208

[18]:

Epigraphica Indica, I, no. 11, p.63-68