PORTFOLIO

CHANAKYA AND THE ART OF GETTING RICH Radhakrishnan Pillai has done extensive research on Kautilya’s Arthashastra, the well-known book on management written in the fourth century bc, from Chinmaya International Foundation (CIF). He did his MA in Sanskrit and a PhD in Arthashastra from the University of Mumbai. He is currently the deputy director of Chanakya International Institute of Leadership Studies (CIILS), University of Mumbai. His first book, Corporate Chanakya, has been on the bestseller list since its launch in 2010 and is used as a textbook in various business schools in India and abroad. The book was made into an audio book, and a management film on Chanakya’s teachings, Chanakya Speaks, as well as translated into ten languages. He is the author of eight bestsellers: Corporate Chanakya, Chanakya’s 7 Secrets of Leadership, Chanakya in You, Katha Chanakya, Chanakya in Daily Life, Inside Chanakya’s Mind: Aanvikshiki and the Art of Thinking, Thus Spoke Chanakya and Chatur Chanakya and the Himalayan Problem. He has been honoured with the prestigious Sardar Patel International Award (2009) and the Aavishkar Chanakya Innovation Research Award (2013) for his research in and contribution to the fields of management and industrial development.

THE

NATION AS

MOTHER and Other Visions of Nationhood

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First published in Portfolio by Penguin Random House India 2018 Copyright © Radhakrishnan Pillai 2018 All rights reserved 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 The views and opinions expressed in this book are the author’s own and the facts are as reported by him which have been verified to the extent possible, and the publishers are not in any way liable for the same. ISBN 9780143442912 Typeset in Bembo Std by Manipal Digital Systems, Manipal

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To all the rich people whom I have met in my life. They were rich from outside and inside.

Contents

Introduction 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Understanding Aanvikshiki Thinking Your Way to Prosperity Stages of Wealth Accounting Systems Your Richness Guru Becoming a Rich Leader Teaching by Example The Importance of Kosha Questions to Contemplate

Acknowledgements Notes Bibliography

ix 1 21 43 69 89 111 131 151 167 183 185 189

Introduction

Do you want to be rich? Of course everyone wants to be rich, whether they accept it or not. Those who deny it are either lying or fooling themselves. The reality is that everyone wants to have money and power in some form or the other; they just don’t know the process and path to become rich. Bill Gates once said, ‘If you are born poor, it is not your mistake. But if you die poor, it is your mistake.’ Times have changed. With the opportunities available to us, one frequently hears rags to riches stories. Men and women from all classes and communities are rising up to powerful positions, making a mark in their fields, making a name for themselves. Those already at the top are holding their positions, the rich are becoming richer! I would say that we are all lucky to be born in ix

Introduction

such times where we can witness exponential growth in most sectors. The contribution of scientific development has created magic in the lives of people. Communication has become faster and much, much cheaper. Education has reached every part of the world. Travel has become fast and affordable. The motorbikes and cars which were once considered a luxury have now become a necessity. Other luxuries like foreign trips, air conditioners, computers, cell phones, etc. have moved from the category of unaffordable luxuries to affordable comforts. Airports are becoming as busy as railway stations and are thronged by people from all levels of society. Technology and its various mediums of use have become as commonplace as a bag of chips at the corner store. Today we are not talking about availability of food, but the quality of food. We are discussing nutrition and a balanced diet. A generation that grew up seeing malnutrition now ponders over how to overcome obesity. Healthcare and medicine have progressed by leaps and bounds. Life expectancy has gone up. A lot of diseases hitherto known to be fatal can now be treated, cured completely! The global average life expectancy is approaching seventy years, as per a report by the World Health Organization. There is more focus on a better standard of living, longer, healthier lives, more fulfilled existence. x

Introduction

Slowly, in the twenty-first century, the focus started shifting from survival to growth and sustainability. Yet let us not take things for granted. It is not that we went to sleep one night in a shanty and woke up the next day in a palace. Things did not change overnight. There were millions of people, and families, across the globe who worked hard over years, decades and even generations to bring about this change. In every field there were those contributors who played their part in facilitating this big shift. They were the scientists, the teachers, the writers, the politicians, the business persons, the artists, the doctors, the spiritual healers, the engineers who committed themselves to adding to what they had been given by their ancestors, to make the world a better place for the coming generations. Some of these contributors were recognized for their efforts by organizations or governments who honoured them with awards and titles. Yet, most of them went about their lives unnoticed. Some of these heroes were the families and mentors who supported the dreamers and inventors of the world and gave them the backing to go ahead and achieve their dreams. These unsung and silent heroes should never be forgotten. So, where do we as individuals come in? What should be our role as a generation and as individuals? The answer is service. If we think of service as our motto in life, we become contributors and positive change agents. We no longer xi

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think of what benefit I as an individual can get, but what benefit all of us can get. In the benefit of all lies the benefit of the individual. Instead of being selfish and worried just about ourselves, we need to become more selfless and dedicate our lives to a higher and bigger purpose benefitting not just us but also the society. So, how does one do that? Arnold H. Glasow was of the opinion that, ‘Happy is the person who knows what to remember of the past, what to enjoy in the present, and what to plan for in the future.’ A peep in the past will help us understand our present. A detailed study and observation of the present will help us create a better future. World history is a very interesting subject. It is not just about the wars and the conquerors. It is also about the philosophers, the saints, the sages. It holds the secrets of powerful families and the values they upheld. It contains stories of civilizations, traditions and cultures all over the world. It unravels the legends behind our food habits, the education system, the trade and commerce practices around the world, and holds in its pages the songs of yore and beautiful poetry written decades ago that we still read. It preserves our heritage by keeping a record of the paintings, sculptures—the art of the various eras. In a study of world history lies the treasure of any society or nation—the literature of the past which often holds the key to the future. xii

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One of the key strains one identifies through the history of various dynasties and eras is the immense importance given to wealth. Economics is such an important part of our lives that it influences a nation as well as an individual simultaneously. As we delve into the workings of modern economics, we begin to see that there is a deep connection with the past. This connection with the past helps us understand the present economic scenarios. In every generation, there is a common desire to be wealthy and rich. We live in a world that is a rich man’s world. Everything costs money, everything is measured in terms of the money it requires or the money it generates; even a man’s worth is assessed by the amount of money he earns and the assets he owns. There are other factors too, but money and power are very important, and there is no denying it. The forms of wealth and what is defined as wealth may have changed over the decades, but the search for wealth and the desire to understand its different aspects so as to amass more of it has been an ever-evolving and interesting subject. In the past, if you had more land and animals, you were considered a wealthy person. Land ownership was a symbol of power. Therefore, kings wanted to expand their kingdoms by acquiring neighbouring lands through accession or alliances. Gradually, emphasis increased on intellectual prowess, inventions. These inventions that altered the way we lived were a huge source of xiii

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income because everyone wanted them. Gradually, the world moved into the age of technology, patents, and intellectual property rights. Today, wealth means not just money and assets, but also an idea that generates that money constantly. Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, where he redefines the way wealth is understood, is considered one of the pillars of modern-day economics. Man’s search for wealth also led many philosophers and economists to think about the very concept of wealth. Was conquering and looting others the only method of gaining wealth? How could one generate wealth instead of having to take it away from someone else to increase one’s pile? Then there is this other aspect of wealth: transactions. When one person exchanges some form of wealth with others, what does it mean? If we gain wealth by exchanging it for something of value, is it still a gain? The history of transactions started with the barter system, and evolved into the coinage system and the currency system. Then, with the banking system, it evolved from metal to paper currency to plastic and now digital currency. It is an ever-growing field. However, every system in the past or the present has helped us in one way or the other. And this process of evolution of money helps us to constantly progress and grow. World economists studied wealth creation and its various methods and rose to ask important and difficult xiv

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questions that changed the way wealth was perceived: What is wealth? What makes a person truly wealthy? How can one make everyone wealthy? They debated, discussed and came to their own conclusions about how the economy works. They put their theories into practice, tested these ideas and led an entire generation towards prosperity and development. But that wasn’t all. Wealth was also considered from a spiritual standpoint. Mahatma Gandhi pointed out the difference between need and greed when he said, ‘There is enough in this world for every man’s need, but not for one man’s greed.’ As this book is being written, many new systems and thoughts are evolving in the economic field. But the purpose of this book is to understand wealth in its totality—not just understand it theoretically, but also apply it practically. So we come to the questions we ask ourselves at one point of time or the other, perhaps even every day. Do we really require money and wealth for our existence? If so, how much? When do we stop making money? Is there a point where we say ‘Enough! I don’t need more.’? Once we get the theory of becoming wealthy right, we can get the application right as well. If you want to be rich, there is an art to it. There is also a science behind it. Chanakya, who is hailed as one of the greatest economists the world has seen and is the author of the economic treatise, the Arthashastra, is often xv

THE MIDAS TOUCH FOR ALL YOUR WEALTH-CREATION NEEDS Chanakya’s Arthashastra is an unrivalled political treatise that has been used by scholars, academics and leaders across the world. In Chanakya and the Art of Getting Rich, Radhakrishnan Pillai brings out inherent lessons from the Arthashastra to present a strategic and practical way of wealth creation. This holistic study highlights the importance of a guide for thoughts and processes on the path to wealth recognition, management and distribution. PRAISE FOR THE AUTHOR

‘Ancient wisdom, modern gyan’ Business Herald ‘Chanakya and his Arthashastra come alive in Radhakrishnan Pillai’s books’ Times of India

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