Chanakya, the great political scientist of the Mauryan period, in his masterpiece Arthashastra (c. 250 AD) describes four weapons wielded by a ruler to subdue his opponents — saama, daama, bheda, danda. Subtlest of all, saama, you co-opt opponents by involving them in a dialogue, daama , you buy them over, Bheda, suggests instigating differences among your enemies, and finally danda (punitive action), refers to outright repression.
