THE MAN WITH MANY NAMES

When a person is dubbed under many characters and names, it is really a proxy identity misleading. Chanakya’s profound influence on Indian history can never be exaggerated looking at the number of identities that he has. Every region of India swears of his nativity to be theirs. When such claims are agog it invariably leads to confusion and false documentation. In Chanakya’s case, it’s a reality. Broadly speaking, he has been addressed by three names—Kautilya, Ca‘nakya and Vishnugupta in literature. Some lexicographers have enumerated several more names without disclosing their source. Famous lexicographers like Hemachandra, Yadavaprakasa and Bhoja have given a whole string of names; they are:

1. Angula
2. Dramila
3. Canakatmaja
4. Varanaka
5. Katyayana
6. Mallongana and
7. Vatsyayana

Since Kautilya has also been called Vatsyayana, A.B. Keith advocated the view that the same person authors Arthashastra and Kamasutra. The word selection and the style of writing in Arthashastra and Kamasutra have close resemblance to each other. Western scholars felt that they are by the same hand. He was called Dramila, suggesting South India or "Dravida Country" as his native place. Most of the commentaries on Arthashastra had been found from Kerala, which further attests his being of Dravidian origin. Namputiri Brahmins in Kerala belonged to Kuttalur family, very similar to the gotra of Kautilya. It is assumed that some ancestor of the family went on a pilgrimage and settled in Magadha assisting Chandragupta in his political designs. All the other names have been connected to various regions of India. To sum up, Chanakya has been called by two other names, Kautilya and Vishnugupta.