Sutra 1

Devanagari script

कर्मस्कन्धाश्चत्वारो दम्यः साम्नाह्य औपवाह्यो व्यालश्च ॥ कZ_०२.३२.०१ ॥

Transliteration

karmaskandhāś catvāro damyaḥ sāmnāhya aupavāhyo vyālaś ca

Translation

There are four work-divisions (operational classes) [of elephants]: the trainable, the battle-equipped, the riding/transport class, and the dangerous/rogue class.

Word by Word

कर्मस्कन्धाःbranches/divisions of work (administrative functions)

चand

त्वारःfour

दम्यःthe category called Damya

साम्नाह्यःthe category called Sāmnāhya

औपवाह्यःthe category called Aupavāhya

व्यालःthe category called Vyāla

चand

Entities Mentioned

state elephants

trainers/handlers (implied)

FAQs

Why would Kautilya classify elephants into four work-divisions?

To standardize management: each class implies different training, deployment, cost, and risk controls—especially separating high-risk (vyāla) animals from operational assets.