Introduction to Indian Political Thought

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Book No. – 8 (Political Science)

Book Name – Indian Political Thought (Himanshu Roy/ M.P. Singh)

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1. Methodological Issues and an Overview

2. Political Thought in Ancient India

2.1. Metaphysical and Philosophical Foundations

2.2. The Vedic Folklores

2.3. The Vedantic Idealist Vision

2.4. The Jaina and Buddhist Visions

2.5. The Hindu Vision

3. Political Thought in Later Medieval India

3.1. The Hindustani Vision

4. Political Thought in Modern India

4.1. Modern Indian Vision

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Introduction to Indian Political Thought

Harshit Sharma

Alumnus (BHU)

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Methodological Issues and an Overview

Indian political thought has evolved as an independent field, without the need for condescending comparisons to Western political thought.
Orientalist thought once held that Western political thought was more abstract, universal, and historically contextual, while Indian thought was seen as religious, metaphysical, and politically irrelevant.
Edward Said (1978) critiques the Western construction of the Orient, highlighting power dynamics and domination in this relationship.
Aggressive nationalism can lead to fundamentalism and terrorism in both the West and East.
The author aims to address methodological problems in the study of Indian political thought and to explore it through cultural relativism.
Periodization of Indian culture often follows stereotypical divisions (Hindu, Muslim, and British periods), which are misleading. Ramdhari Singh Dinkar offers an alternative division, including:
1. Aryan–Dravidian acculturation
2. Jain and Buddhist reform movements
3. Hindu–Muslim encounter and coexistence
4. Western colonialism and Indian responses, leading to modernization
A comprehensive survey of Indian political thought must include texts like Kautilya’s Arathashastra, Manusmriti, Abul Fazl’s Akbarnama, and writings from modern political figures.
Indian philosophy is not just religious and spiritual; it includes political and epistemological insights, as shown by Bimal Krishna Matilal.
A critical problem is the contextual study of texts, as historians and Indologists have often examined them separately, missing their full political relevance.
E. H. Carr suggests that history is shaped by contemporary concerns, which applies to the study of political thought in India.
The history of Indian political thought shows evolution from undifferentiated ideas to a more complex, multiculturalpolitical community.
In the ancient period, Indian political ideas evolved from Vedic, Jain, and Buddhist influences to state structures centered around kingship.
Medieval India saw a rupture with ancient traditions due to the Muslim conquest, which led to the adaptation of foreign political ideas into a syncretic political vision.
The modern period saw the rise of renaissance and revivalism, with the former embracing Western colonial modernity and the latter resisting it, leading to different political ideologies.
Renaissance led to religious reforms and liberal nationalism, while revivalism promoted religious foundationalismand extremist nationalism, which fed into communalism and casteism.
The British colonial strategy of divide-and-rule aggravated these divisions.
Political terrorism and revolutionary nationalism grew in the early 20th century, while the Indian bourgeoisie grew during World War I.
Liberal nationalism and political terrorism declined due to British repression and lack of colonial concessions.
The emergence of militant nonviolent nationalism under Mohandas K. Gandhi transformed the Indian National Congress into a mass movement.
By the 1920s and 1930s, Indian communism and socialism emerged, with communists initially outside the Congress but collaborating at times.
Socialists remained within the Congress, seeking to balance right-wing and left-wing elements until they split after independence.
In the years following, Nehruvian socialism took hold, continuing the legacy of earlier political ideologies.

Political Thought in Ancient India

Metaphysical and Philosophical Foundations

Philosophical and/or cultural monism is a recurring theme in various Indian traditions, including Vedism, Vedanta, Jainism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and even in Indo-Islamic, Indo-British, and postcolonial secular versions.
Indological and orientalist interpretations, influenced by biases and Edward Said’s critique (1978), explored and commented on Indian literary heritage and ontology, focusing on ideas of monism vs pluralism, jnanayoga, karmayoga, and bhaktiyoga.
Rajadharma (statecraft) and dharmashastra traditions often run parallel, with the dharmashastra tradition being more prolific than the arthashastra tradition.
In classical Hindu tradition, the abstract purana or mythic writing style often prevailed over the positivist style of itihasa (historical texts), such as Kalhan’s Rajatarangini.
Kautilya’s Arthashastra is seen as an abstract treatise on statecraft rather than a historical document bound to a specific time, place, or dynasty.
Medieval India saw a shift in writing styles, with Indo-Islamic texts like the Akbarnama and Ain-i-Akbariincorporating philosophical, scientific, cultural, demographic, geographical, and agronomical accounts alongside records of Mughal conquests.
Indo-British and post-colonial administrative accounts (gazetteers, census, royal/constitutional commissions) adopted a more historical, legal, and secular perspective, marking the rise of colonial and postcolonial modernity with an emphasis on democracy, development, science, and technology.
Marxist historians of ancient India, using Vedic, Buddhist texts, and archeological evidence, trace the evolution from lineage– or tribe-based social and political systems in early Vedic periods to the post-Vedic mahajanapadas(territorial states).
The evolution continues to the rise of the centralized monarchical-bureaucratic state in the Maurya and Guptaperiods, followed by feudal monarchies in early and late medieval India before the onset of the British colonial state.
History and Indology/Orientalism are distinct fields of knowledge but can intersect and mutually benefit from one another.

The Vedic Folklores

Political ideas have faint beginnings in the Vedas, Upanishads, and epics, evolving into more defined theories in Brahmanical and Buddhist texts, with the most detailed theory found in Kautilya’s Arthashastra.
The Rig Veda contains a variety of anthropomorphic personifications of natural forces such as Indra, Agni, and Varuna.
Agni is praised as the household priest, divine minister of sacrifice, chief priest, and bestower of blessings.
Indra starts as a warrior and victor, later elevated as the ruler of heaven, embodying the power to overcome natural forces like drought and darkness.
Indra’s victories are depicted as bringing light, dawn, and sun, and separating heaven and earth.
Varuna is portrayed as the ruler of cosmic law (rita, dharma), regulating worldly activities, with powers similar to Indra.
A verse in the Rig Veda (5.86) reflects political obligation in the Indian tradition, where humans seek Varuna’s mercy to be free of guilt.
The Vedic pantheon is notably pluralistic, with metaphors like the thousand-headed, thousand-eyed Purusha who pervades and transcends the earth.
The hiranyagarbha (golden embryo) is seen as the life-giver, whose decree is honored by the gods and represents the duality of immortality and death.
Vedic myths of creation and social formation explore cosmological ideas, such as the golden embryo (hiranyagarbha) that establishes the earth and heaven.
The Purusha is depicted as a cosmic being whose parts form the four castes: Brahmin (mouth), Rajanya (arms), Vaishyas (thighs), and Shudra (feet), with different elements of nature born from different parts of his body.
The cosmological hierarchy in the Vedas suggests a political angle, where the structure of the universe reflects social and political order.

The Vedantic Idealist Vision

The Upanishads are the culmination of Vedic literature, developing earlier religious ideas into spiritual and philosophical discourses.
Unlike the Vedas, the Upanishads are not homogeneous and lack a consistent system of thought.
They probe for new interpretations of Vedic concepts to form a more coherent view of the universe and human existence.
The Upanishads aim to discover the truth by moving from the gross to the subtle, attempting to find unity in seemingly dissimilar elements.
The dualism in the Upanishads is reduced to brahman (pure idea or god) and atman (self or soul), leading to the equation brahman = atman.
The Ashvamedha (horse sacrifice) is an ancient Brahminical rite where a king extends his realm by releasing a horse to roam freely, accompanied by an armed band.
The horse is brought back to the capital, sacrificed, and symbolically copulates with the chief queen in a ceremonialgathering.
The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad offers a cosmological reinterpretation of the Ashvamedha, equating the parts of the sacrifice to elements of the universe.
Elements such as the sun, wind, fire, earth, and others are symbolically linked to various parts of the horse’s body, representing cosmic unity.
The metaphorical connections underline the variety of elements and highlight the consensual nature of political conquest and hegemony.

The Jaina and Buddhist Visions

The Vedanta texts critiqued and reinterpreted earlier Vedic ideas, further developing the Jain and Buddhistphilosophies between the 7th and 5th centuries BC.
This period saw the rise of a new class of prosperous merchants and free peasantry in areas like Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, where Aryan civilization was relatively new.
Founders of heterodox sects like Jainism and Buddhism were Kshatriyas, and their followers were mainly Vaishyas.
These sects did not reject the Brahminical worldview entirely but were more down to earth, less abstract, and less elitist.
Jain philosophy contrasts with Vedantic monism, emphasizing plurality of souls and focusing on the material universe.
Hemachandra (c. 1089) described the ideal king in Jain mythology as a ruler with puritanical character, reformist legislation, and a focus on charity and the welfare of people.
Somadeva, a Digambar Jain writer, described an ideal king as righteous, pure in lineage, brave, and considerate, focusing on the prosperity of his subjects.
Jain kingship philosophy is pluralist and nonviolent, contrasting with realist political thought in modern theories of international relations.
Early Jain thought focused more on societal autonomies and civil society than on the state.
Buddhism similarly critiqued ritualistic and aristocratic features of early Vedism, taking a reformist stance.
Digha Nikāya discusses the origin and evolutionary profile of the state, with a contractual theory: people gathered to elect a leader to dispense justice and protect society.
Mahasammata, chosen by the people, is considered the first lord of the fields (Khettanam), aligning with Kshatriyaideals.
Buddha’s teachings in Digha Nikāya represent one of the oldest versions of the contractual theory of the state.
The decline of the righteous state is discussed in the narrative of King Dalhanemi, leading to the concept of a Universal Emperor.
The narrative in Digha Nikāya sets the stage for the Mauryan Empire and Ashoka the Great‘s reign, with his dhamma representing an all-inclusive ideology of state and civil society.

The Hindu Vision

The Amarakosh, a Sanskrit dictionary from the early Indian Middle Ages, does not contain the term ‘Hindu’, though it includes Sindhu.
The term ‘Hindu’ originally had a geographical and communitarian connotation, used by the Greeks and Persians to refer to people living around the Indus (Sindhu) River.
A. T. Embree (1992) suggests that between the 4th and 13th centuries, the ‘Hindu way of life’ formed, encompassing various branches of Indian civilization.
Philosophically and spiritually, the Hindu way of life included concepts such as karma (deeds), dharma (code), avatar (reincarnation), sanatanata (eternity), atma (soul), and bhakti (devotion).
Purushartha, a central Hindu philosophy, encompasses four goals of life: dharma (code), artha (matter), kama(love), and moksha (liberation), which unify the diverse strands of Hinduism.
Caste system in Hinduism involves social customs governing marriage, food habits, occupations, and relations between groups.
Society was integrated by complex and interlocking social and economic relationships at all levels.
During the early Indian Middle Ages, the state’s role focused on maintaining a stable social order so people could live according to their dharma.
India lacked an overarching subcontinental state, remaining divided into four major regional states: Guptas and Harshvardhana in the north, and Pandyas and Pallavas in the south, along with numerous smaller kingdoms.
During this period, the major regional languages of modern India began to take form.
Khari Boli dialect from the Delhi-Meerut region evolved into Hindavi (Amir Khushro), Hyderabadi Rekhta, Urdu, Hindustani (Mahatma Gandhi), and Hindi (in Devanagri script).
Hindi is the official language of the Indian Union, along with English, as per the Constitution of India.

Political Thought in Later Medieval India

The Hindustani Vision

In Islamic political thought, religious and political powers were initially undivided in Prophet Muhammad’s rule starting around AD 610.
After Muhammad’s death, a schism occurred between supporters of Ali (Prophet’s son-in-law) and Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman who were accepted as successors.
The Sunni faction accepted the elected Caliphate theory, where the Caliph was an agent rather than the chief of the ulama (Islamic scholars).
The Umayyad (AD 661–750) and Abbasid Caliphs (AD 750–1258) established hereditary rule, diverging partly from the Sharia (Islamic law).
Indo-Islamic political thought adapted to Indian conditions; Muslim rulers in India, during the Sultanates and Mughals, did not formally acknowledge the Caliphs in Baghdad.
Akbar’s circle in the 16th century, influenced by Shia doctrines and Greek philosophy, allowed the ‘just Imam’discretion in Sharia disputes but did not go beyond administrative discretion (syasa).
Mughal rulers were generally more politically generous compared to earlier Delhi Sultanate rulers, with exceptions like Muhammad bin Tughluq and Aurangzeb.
A notable difference exists between Fakhr-i-Mudir, who saw the ruler as part of a ‘god-prophet-sultan’ triad, and Abūl Fazl, who argued that God communicates directly with Kings (without intermediaries).
Political theorists during the Delhi Sultanate were divided:
- Some believed the Sultan had a duty to convert Hindus to Islam (Ziauddin Baranī).
- Others viewed Hindus as Zimmis, a protected class with certain duties like non-rebellion and respect for Muslims (Sheikh Hamadani).
By Akbar’s reign, the Mughal state implemented policies like Sulah-i-kul and political pluralism, demonstrating a more liberal tolerance.
Abul Fazl divided society into four orders resembling the Hindu varna system: warriors, artisans and merchants, intelligentsia, and workers, reflecting elements of fire, air, water, and earth.
Status reversals in the Ain-i-Akbari:
- Brahmins were moved to third place.
- Kshatriyas were placed at the top.
- Vaishyas were second in rank.
Mughal state was more secure, had stronger roots, and fostered alliances with Hindu rulers, making them more tolerant of Hindus compared to earlier Turkish and Afghan rulers.
The failure to conquer the whole subcontinent and fear of the adverse effects of forced conversions led the Mughalsto be more pragmatic and compromising.
A difference emerges between Indo-Islamic political thought and works like the Arthashastra, Ashoka’s dhamma, and the Manusmriti:
- The latter focus on intra-Hindu community relations, while Indo-Islamic texts concentrate on inter-community relations between Muslims and Hindus.
Communal polarization between Muslims and Hindus became more pronounced during British colonial rule and contributed to the partition of India.

Political Thought in Modern India

Modern Indian Vision

The emergence of political thought in modern India was shaped by British colonial rule, modernization of Indian tradition, and challenges of nation-formation, state-formation, and economic development.
Colonial and nationalist projects triggered significant transformations, despite deep-rooted patterns of ancient and medieval Indian political thought.
Colonial modernity brought ideologies like liberalism, capitalism, nationalism, and democracy to India, with radical, socialist, and Marxist influences added by nationalist elites.
These new ideologies were countered by traditionalism, conservatism, revivalism, and communalism based on caste, tribe, and religion.
As India neared political independence, Indian political thought began addressing foreign policy and global/regional integration.
Kenneth W. Jones (1994) suggests that students of modern India need a new vision to differentiate between new ideasin the 19th century and modifications of traditional patterns.
The change in British India was driven by global economic factors, colonial politics, and religious factors.
The rise of British capitalism led to colonial rule in India, with missionaries, polemical tracts, and new conversion rituals marking religious innovation during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Politicization of religion intensified religious communalism, culminating in India’s partition in 1947.
Nationalist political thought emerged gradually, dealing with Western colonialism and the imperialism of the British Crown post-1857 Rebellion.
Between 1757 and 1849, the British subdued rivals and established political dominance across India, unlike earlier foreign invaders.
The British brought economic and social transformations by replacing zamindars with smaller landholders and fostering the rise of an English-educated urban middle class.
Social and religious reforms preceded political reforms, with socio-religious reform movements classified into transitional and acculturative types.
Transitional movements bridged pre-colonial and colonial periods, led by traditional Brahmins and ulama; examples include Namdharis and Nirankaris among Sikhs, and Arya Samaj among Hindus.
Acculturative movements arose from the colonial context, balancing indigenous cultural heritage with acceptance of British supremacy. Examples include Brahmo Samaj, Aligarh Movement, and Ramakrishna’s impact on Bengali Hindus.
Printing press played a key role in Protestantization, making religious texts accessible and undermining the authority of Brahmins, Parsi priests, and ulama.
A new analytical framework for modern Indian political thought includes seven major phases:
- (a) Reactive (e.g., 1857 Rebellion).
- (b) Responsive (e.g., Brahmo Samaj, Aligarh Movement, Congress Moderates).
- (c) Revivalist (e.g., Arya Samaj, Deoband School, Congress Extremists).
- (d) Revolutionary Nationalists (e.g., Bhagat Singh, Hindustan Revolutionary Army).
- (e) Militarist (e.g., Subhash Chandra Bose, Indian National Army).
- (f) Transformative (e.g., Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, B. R. Ambedkar, Congress Socialists).
- (g) Free enterprisers (e.g., Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, neoliberal capitalists).
The literature on modern and contemporary Indian history and political thought is extensive, and the classificatory scheme presented is largely self-explanatory.
The author aims to make a few critical and constructive comments on:
- (a) The ‘Indian Renaissance’
- (b) The major themes in modern Indian political thought.
Comparison between India and Europe should be done with caution, avoiding both narcissist fixation and fallacy of circumlocution.
K. W. Jones (1994) used the term ‘Protestantization’ in the context of socio-religious movements in British India, but avoided using ‘Indian Renaissance’.
India may have experienced not one but at least three renaissances:
- (1) Vedantic Upanishads, Jainism, Buddhism, Bhakti, and Sufi saints.
- (2) The mature Mughal tolerance and philosophical legacy.
- (3) Renascent and reformative movements in British India during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Aurobindo was one of the first to seriously reflect on the Indian Renaissance (reawakening), outlining three steps:
- (1) Reception of European contact, reconsideration of cultural principles, and denial of old culture.
- (2) Reaction of the Indian spirit against European influence, asserting national past while assimilating.
- (3) Creation of new cultural synthesis, where Indian spiritual power absorbs and transforms modern influences.
The European Renaissance (1350–1650) involved:
- Rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman languages and knowledge.
- Vernacular languages replacing classical languages.
- The advent of the printing press and mass circulation of religious and secular knowledge.
- The weakening of the Roman Catholic Church and rise of powerful post-feudal European states.
- Discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus (1492).
- Scientific discoveries by Nicolaus Copernicus and Galileo Galilei.
There appear to be some superficial parallels between Europe and India in religion, language, politics, and science, but deeper similarities may not exist to produce the same effects attributed to the Indian Renaissance.
Aurobindo contrasts Indian Renaissance with the European model, which was a reversal and overturn of the European culture, making such a model impossible in India.
The Indian Institute of Science views Indian scientists as torchbearers of the Indian Renaissance, but questions arise whether there exists a distinctly Indian science or if it is simply an invocation of patriotism and nationalism.
The debate around Indian science raises broader questions in the realms of modern history, social science, and culture, especially under pressures of globalization and postmodern fragmentation.
A comprehensive study should address the following six major themes:
- Transition from social reforms to political reforms, bridging communal fragmentation and national integration under colonial domination.
- Nation-formation in a country with unparalleled religious, linguistic, caste, and tribal diversities.
- State-formation in a society-centered ancient civilization, requiring a strong state for modernization and political development.
- The challenge of economic development in a backward economy with socio-economic and regional disparities.
- The predicament of federal governance in a society with decentralist tendencies, under simultaneous pressures of decentralization, regional integration, and global integration.
- Developing a strategy to combat environmental and ecological decay, and climate change.