Chanakya quotes:

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A good wife is one who serves her husband in the morning like a mother does, loves him in the day like a sister does and pleases him like a prostitute in the night.
There is no austerity equal to a balanced mind, and there is no happiness equal to contentment; there is no disease like covetousness, and no virtue like mercy.
He who is overly attached to his family members experiences fear and sorrow, for the root of all grief is attachment. Thus one should discard attachment to be happy.
Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.
The serpent, the king, the tiger, the stinging wasp, the small child, the dog owned by other people, and the fool: these seven ought not to be awakened from sleep.
Purity of speech, of the mind, of the senses, and of a compassionate heart are needed by one who desires to rise to the divine platform.
Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead.
Do not reveal what you have thought upon doing, but by wise council keep it secret being determined to carry it into execution.
The life of an uneducated man is as useless as the tail of a dog which neither covers its rear end, nor protects it from the bites of insects.
Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest.
There is poison in the fang of the serpent, in the mouth of the fly and in the sting of a scorpion; but the wicked man is saturated with it.
The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all directions.
Treat your kid like a darling for the first five years. For the next five years, scold them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them like a friend. Your grown up children are your best friends.
A man is born alone and dies alone; and he experiences the good and bad consequences of his karma alone; and he goes alone to hell or the Supreme abode.
There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth.
As a single withered tree, if set aflame, causes a whole forest to burn, so does a rascal son destroy a whole family.
Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such friendships will never give you any happiness.
The happiness and peace attained by those satisfied by the nectar of spiritual tranquillity is not attained by greedy persons restlessly moving here and there.
The wise man should restrain his senses like the crane and accomplish his purpose with due knowledge of his place, time and ability.
One whose knowledge is confined to books and whose wealth is in the possession of others, can use neither his knowledge nor wealth when the need for them arises.
The world's biggest power is the youth and beauty of a woman.
A man is great by deeds, not by birth.
Test a servant while in the discharge of his duty, a relative in difficulty, a friend in adversity, and a wife in misfortune.
As long as your body is healthy and under control and death is distant, try to save your soul; when death is immanent what can you do?
Books are as useful to a stupid person as a mirror is useful to a blind person.
If one has a good disposition, what other virtue is needed? If a man has fame, what is the value of other ornamentation?
A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first.
The one excellent thing that can be learned from a lion is that whatever a man intends doing should be done by him with a whole-hearted and strenuous effort.
The earth is supported by the power of truth; it is the power of truth that makes the sun shine and the winds blow; indeed all things rest upon truth.
As soon as the fear approaches near, attack and destroy it.
O wise man! Give your wealth only to the worthy and never to others. The water of the sea received by the clouds is always sweet.
He who gives up shyness in monetary dealings, in acquiring knowledge, in eating and in business, becomes happy.
A wise man should not divulge the formula of a medicine which he has well prepared; an act of charity which he has performed; domestic conflicts; private affairs with his wife; poorly prepared food he may have been offered; or slang he may have heard.
We should not fret for what is past, nor should we be anxious about the future; men of discernment deal only with the present moment.
The learned are envied by the foolish; rich men by the poor; chaste women by adulteresses; and beautiful ladies by ugly ones.
A father who is a chronic debtor, an adulterous mother, a beautiful wife, and an unlearned son are enemies in one's own home.
Avoid him who talks sweetly before you but tries to ruin you behind your back, for he is like a pitcher of poison with milk on top.
She is a true wife who is clean (suci), expert, chaste, pleasing to the husband, and truthful.
What vice could be worse than covetousness? What is more sinful than slander? For one who is truthful, what need is there for austerity? For one who has a clean heart, what is the need for pilgrimage?.
The fire of the forest burns trees to ashes. Even expensive sandalwood tree which is endowed with qualities of cooling and fragrance, cannot escape from burning. In the same way wicked cause harm to their benefactors also.
Brass is polished by ashes; copper is cleaned by tamarind; a woman, by her menses; and a river by its flow.
An egoist can be won over by being respected, a crazy person can be won over by allowing him to behave in an insane manner and a wise person can be won over by truth.
The beauty of a cuckoo is in its notes, that of a woman in her unalloyed devotion to her husband, that of an ugly person in his scholarship, and that of an ascetic in his forgiveness.
The cuckoos remain silent for a long time (for several seasons) until they are able to sing sweetly (in the Spring) so as to give joy to all.
Do not be very upright in your dealings for you would see by going to the forest that straight trees are cut down while crooked ones are left standing.
It is better to die than to preserve this life by incurring disgrace. The loss of life causes but a moment's grief, but disgrace brings grief every day of one's life.
No one should ever be disrespected.
A wicked wife, a false friend, a saucy servant and living in a house with a serpent in it are nothing but death.
He who lives in our mind is near though he may actually be far away; but he who is not in our heart is far though he may really be nearby.
As water collected in a tank gets pure by filtration, so accumulated wealth is preserved by being employed in charity.
The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction.
Even a pandit comes to grief by giving instruction to a foolish disciple, by maintaining a wicked wife, and by excessive familiarity with the miserable.
Fate being unfavorable( or without god's grace, even an easy task becomes difficult to accomplish)
The biggest guru-mantra is: never share your secrets with anybody. It will destroy you.
The power of a king lies in his mighty arms; that of a brahmana in his spiritual knowledge; and that of a woman in her beauty youth and sweet words.
Skills are called hidden treasure as they save like a mother in a foreign country.
Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields in all seasons. Like a mother, it feeds you on your journey. Therefore learning is a hidden treasure.
God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple.
How well u treat the wicked people, they do nto give up their wickedness. They derive pleasure in hurting others. A serpent made to drink milk, it ejects poison only.
Water is the medicine for indigestion; it is invigorating when the food that is eaten is well digested; it is like nectar when drunk in the middle of a dinner; and it is like poison when taken at the end of a meal.
The demerits of our own people bringh infamiy. Their disgrace is our own disgrace. That is why infamy os such people relly hurts . It is desifrable that the ruler or the administrator may work in a way that such disgraceful conduct may not occur.
He who shall practice these twenty virtues shall become invincible in all his undertakings.
He who wears unclean garments, has dirty teeth, is a glutton, speaks unkindly and sleeps after sunrise - although he may be the greatest personality - will lose the favour of Lakshmi.
Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth, comes of Her own accord where fools are not respected, grain is well stored up, and the husband and wife do not quarrel.
Women have hunger two-fold, shyness four-fold, daring six-fold, and lust eight-fold as compared to men.
If people of one''s own side have good conduct, it adds power to oneself. The misconduct on the contrary render one powerless. The enemy taks advantage of it. A skilled statesman never allows enemy to win over.
This world is a bitter tree, it has only two sweet nectar like fruits - one is soft voice and the other is company of gentlemen.
Low minded people are fraudulent, wicked and chaeat. They shouldnot be trusted. To h ave faith in low minded ones is mistake in policy and useless because they are not trustworthy. An administrator should not invited calamity by trusting the low minded ones.
Many a bad habit is developed through overindulgence, and many a good one by chastisement; therefore, beat your son as well as your pupil; never indulge them.
He is a pandit (man of knowledge) who speaks what is suitable to the occasion, who renders loving service according to his ability, and who knows the limits of his anger.
The low minded are fond of deception the nature of low-minded people never changes.
Even if a snake is not poisonous, it should pretend to be venomous.
It is better to live under a tree in a jungle inhabited by tigers and elephants, to maintain oneself in such a place with ripe fruits and spring water, to lie down on grass and to wear the ragged barks of trees than to live amongst one's relations when reduced to poverty.
That man who is without religion and mercy should be rejected. A guru without spiritual knowledge should be rejected. The wife with an offensive face should be given up and so should relatives who are without affection.
The forest fire burns even tree like sandalwood.
Those base men who speak of the secret faults of others destroy themselves like serpents that stray onto anthills.
Do not keep company with a fool for as we can see he is a two-legged beast. Like an unseen thorn he pierces the heart with his sharp words.
Accumulated wealth is saved by spending just as incoming fresh water is saved by letting out stagnant water.
For the protection of state and welfare of the people, a ruler shold collect all types of wealth. By suing devices of sama, dama , danda, bheda , he shold increase income of the state, strong administration helps in collecting different type of taxes fro exchequer.
A tolerant person should not be harrased. The subject or the ruled ones generally is loyal to the ruler. The people tak to revolt when they are helpless. The duty of the ruler is that his humble people mey not tak to revolt being suppressed by his bad polity. Considering the forbearance of the subject, do not ill behave with them so that they may feel oppressed.
A man attains greatness by his merits, not simply by occupying an exalted seat. Can we call a crow an eagle (garuda) simply because he sits on the top of a tall building.
Low class men desire wealth;middle class men both wealth and respect; but the noble, honour only; hence honour is the noble man's true wealth.
Even as the unborn babe is in the womb of his mother, these five are fixed as his life destiny: his life span, his activities, his acquisition of wealth and knowledge, and his time of death.
Don't judge the future of a person based on his present conditions, becausetime has the power to change black coal to shiny diamond.
There are three gems upon this earth; food, water, and pleasing words - fools (mudhas) consider pieces of rocks as gems.
A thing may be dreaded as long as it has not overtaken you.
He who has wealth has friends.
Union in privacy (with one's wife); boldness; storing away useful items; watchfulness; and not easily trusting others; these five things are to be learned from a crow.
Virtuous persons and fruit-laden trees bow, but fools and dry sticks break because they do not bend.
Time perfects all living beings as well as kills them; it alone is awake when all others are asleep. Time is insurmountable.
Prosperity last long for one who acts after proper consideration.
One destitute of wealth is not destitute, he is indeed rich, but the man devoid of learning is destitute in every way.
Education beats the beauty and the youth.
A still-born son os superior to a foolish son endowed with a long life. The first causes grief for but a moment while the latter like a blazing fire consumes his parents in grief for life.
Religion is preserved by wealth; knowledge by diligent practice; a king by conciliatory words; and a home by a dutiful housewife.
Evil person causes harm even if treated will.
Sinfully acquired wealth may remain for ten years; in the eleventh year it disappears with even the original stock.
Offspring, friends and relatives flee from a devotee of the Lord: yet those who follow him bring merit to their families through their devotion.
A friend, even if he be the enemy's son , should be protected.
Wealth, a friend, a wife, and a kingdom may be regained; but this body when lost may never be acquired again.
Poverty, disease, sorrow, imprisonment and other evils are the fruits borne by the tree of one's own sins.
Time perfects men as well as destroys them.
Do not say, What what fear has a rich man of calamity.
What good can the scriptures do to a man who has no sense of his own? Of what use is as mirror to a blind man?
A debt should be paid off till the last penny; An enemy should be destroyed without a trace
He who runs away from a fearful calamity, a foreign invasion, a terrible famine, and the companionship of wicked men is safe.
Generosity, pleasing address, courage and propriety of conduct are not acquired, but are inbred qualities.
He who has wealth has friends and relations; he alone survives and is respected as a man.
If a king is energetic, his subjects will be equally energetic.
He who forsakes his own community and joins another perishes as the king who embraces an unrighteous path.
That man who is without religion and mercy should be rejected. A guru without spiritual knowledge should be rejected. The wife with an offensive face should be given up, and so should relatives who are without affection.
Enemies strike at weak points.
Let not a single day pass without your learning a verse, half a verse, or a fourth of it, or even one letter of it; nor without attending to charity, study and other pious activity.
Rain which falls upon the sea is useless; so is food for one who is satiated; in vain is a gift for one who is wealthy; and a burning lamp during the daytime is useless.
Love is indicated by deeds (and not by words)
There is no disease so destructive as lust.
The foolish wish to speak out what was spoken in secret by the master.
What good is a cow that neither gives milk nor conceives? Similarly, what is the value of the birth of a son if he becomes neither learned nor a pure devotee of the Lord?
A single son endowed with good qualities is far better than a hundred devoid of them.
Your feelings are your god.

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