The Mudrarakshasa (“Signet Ring of the Rakshasa,the loyal chief
minister of the last Nanda king”), a historical play in Sanskrit by
Vishakhadatta (4th century BC) narrates the ascent of the king
Chandragupta Maurya to power in Northern India with the aid of Chanakya, his Guru and chief minister.
Chanakya and his disciple Chandragupta plan for usurpation of Magadha
to overthrow evil Dhanananda and make a pact with king Parvata from the
Northwest to ensure their victory.
As per agreement Parvata
and Chandragupta divide up the Magadha Empire after victory over Nandas.
Next, Parvata dies poisoned by a visha kanya and his nephew Malayaketu
succeeds him. Malayaketu, together with Rakshasa, the loyal minister of
Nanda, demands the inheritance of all the old territories of the Nanda.
Events begin to unfold when Malayaketu and his allies (the kings of
Persia, Sind and Kashmir) are poised to attack Pataliputra (present day
Patna), the capital of Chandragupta.The outcome arrives when Chanakya,
by the use of intelligence and guile, manages to attract Rakshasa to the
Maurya side, thus undoing the coalition of Malayaketu.
The
historical authenticity of the Mudrarakshasa is supported by the
description of this period of history in Classical Hellenistic sources:
the violent rule of the Nanda, the usurpation of Chandragupta, the
formation of the Maurya Empire, and the various battles with the
kingdoms of the Northwest resulting from the conquests of Alexander the
Great.
This famous book is one of the authentic source for ancient politics,strategy,thriller
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