Secondly, unlike Abrahamic traditions, Hinduism sees divinity in all of creation and God as both immanent and transcendent. Such an attitude infuses divinity into all activities of life. Work itself is worship, and this philosophy of karma yoga is yet another context in which to place the veneration of weapons. Although it means “weapons”, ayudha is also a generic term that means "instrument or implement." On the ninth day of Navaratri, everyone cleans, decorates and worships the implement that enables them to make a living, seeing a manifestation of the divine in that. This applies to musicians and musical instruments, farmers and the plough, students and their books, as well as factories and machinery. And of course, it applies to soldiers and their weapons.

It is perhaps more interesting to observe how a culture that has a tradition of worshipping weapons approaches questions of war, violence and non-violence. Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha are the four great “purusharthas” (goals of life) of Hinduism. Dharmic conduct is the basis upon which all the other goals of life are to be attained. At an individual level, it is the dharma of a soldier to fight if necessary. At a social level, the ruler must enforce dharma and protect society. Use of weapons is seen as part of a sacred duty to protect dharma. This infusion of divinity and dharma into the use of weapons, in our minds, largely explains why wars in India were circumscribed by a strict code of conduct. The most important component of this code is that wars were fought between soldiers only and other segments of society were not involved.

As far back as the 4th century BCE, Megasthenes the Greek Ambassador to Chandragupta Maurya describes the Mauryan army as a permanent and professional body, recruited, trained and maintained at state expense, and which scarcely impinged on the agricultural masses. “It therefore not infrequently happens that at the same time, and in the same part of the country, men may be seen drawn up in array of battle, and fighting at the risk of their lives, while other men close at hand are ploughing and digging in perfect security.”2

Suleiman, an Arab merchant who made several trips to India during the first half of the ninth century, says: “The Indians sometimes go to war for conquest, but the occasions are rare. I have never seen the people of one country submit to the authority of another... When a king subdues a neighbouring state, he places over it a man belonging to the family of the fallen prince who carries on the government in the name of the conqueror. The inhabitants would not suffer it to be otherwise.”3

“Once again one is reminded of Megasthenes’ description of agriculturalists ‘ploughing in perfect security’ while armies did battle in the next field. Although the ploughmen may have had a stake in the outcome of the battle or may have contributed to the equipage of one of the protagonists, they were not expected to get involved. Warriors fought with warriors; the ploughman’s dharma was to plough”.4

This remarkable similarity in the accounts of two outside travelers separated by over 1000 years suggests that there must be some truth to this idea, stunning though it is in its idealism when viewed from a modern perspective. It is also a remarkable anticipation of the Geneva conventions of the 20th century that required armies not target civilians during times of war. And it stands in stark contrast to the “total war” approach of the Islamic invasions of India, characterized by plunder and destruction of cities and large scale rape, murder and forced conversion of the general populace.

Finally, the tradition that sees divinity in weapons also prizes ahimsa (non-violence). It is the Hindu ideal of ahimsa that inspired Mahatma Gandhi’s satyagraha, a movement unique in the annals of world history. But the fact that Gandhi was inspired by Hindu ideas cannot be interpreted as Hinduism’s abhorrence for violence under all circumstances. Indeed, absolute non-violence is a mandate ONLY for sannyasis, and Gandhi’s genius lies in marrying his sannyasi-like ahimsa with the demands of a political movement. Whether in martial customs or the injunctions of the Bhagavad Gita, Hindu tradition is clear that a refusal to fight on grounds of non-violence often only empowers adharma. The 75th hymn of the 6th mandala of the RigVeda is glorious eulogy to the Ratha, the great warrior in the chariot that protects dharma

The Arthashastra, that masterpiece of statecraft, deals with defence and external relations at length, and lays out sama, dana, bheda, danda (conciliation, gifts, dissension and force) as a way to deal with other kingdoms. War is the last option, but imperative if other options fail. Chanakya then proceeds to describe how the king should treat a subjugated kingdom: ‘having acquired new territory the conqueror shall substitute his virtues for the enemy’s vices and where the enemy was good, he shall be twice as good. He shall follow policies that are pleasing and beneficial by acting according to his dharma and by granting favours and exemptions, giving gifts and bestowing honours.’5

With this balanced understanding, it is appropriate to end this piece on the worship of weapons with the following remarkable ode to non-violence from the Mahabharata:

अहिंसा परमो धर्मस्तथाहिंसा परो दमः

अहिंसा परमं दानमहिंसा परमं तपः

अहिंसा परमो यज्ञस्तथाहिंसा परं बलम्

अहिंसा परमं मित्रमहिंसा परमं सुखम्

अहिंसा परमं सत्यमहिंसा परमं श्रुतम्

सर्वयज्ञेषु वा दानं सर्वतीर्थेषु चाप्लुतम्

सर्वदानफलं वापि नैतत् तुल्यम् अहिंसया

अहिंस्रस्य तपोऽक्षय्यम् अहिंस्रो यजते सदा

अहिंस्रः सर्वभूतानां यथा माता यथा पिता

एतत् फलम् अहिंसाया भूयश्च कुरुपुंगव

न हि शक्या गुणा वक्तुम् इह वर्षशतैरपि

~ महाभारतम्

(अनुशासन पर्व, अध्याय ११७, श्लोक ३७ - ४१)

Ahimsa is the highest Dharma; Ahimsa is the highest self-control

Ahimsa is the highest charity; Ahimsa is the highest penance

Ahimsa is the highest yajna; Ahimsa is the highest strength

Ahimsa is the highest friend; Ahimsa is the highest happiness

Ahimsa is the highest truth; Ahimsa is the highest shruti

Gifts made in all sacrifices; ablutions in all holy waters

Gifts made under all scriptural injunctions; the merits of all these do not add up to that of ahimsa

The penances of a man of ahimsa are inexhaustible; The man of ahimsa is always performing sacrifices

The man of ahimsa is father and mother to all creatures

These, O chief of Kuru's race, are some of the merits of ahimsa

Ahimsa’s merits are so many that they cannot be listed even if one were to speak for a hundred years.

-- Bheeshma in the Anushasana Parva of Mahabharata

Notes:

1 Gurbachan Singh Talib. The Impact of Guru Gobind Singh on Indian Society. Guru Gobind Singh Foundation. p. 59

2 McCrindle, J.W., Ancient India as Described by Megasthenes and Arrian , Trübner, London, 1877, p.84, as quoted in ‘India: A History’ by John Keay, chapter 9

3 Suleiman, in HOIBIOH, vol.1, p.7 as quoted in ‘India: A History’ by John Keay, chapter 9

4 ‘India: A History’ by John Keay, chapter 9

5 Kautilya (ed. and trans. Rangarajan, L.N. etc.), The Arthasastra , p.741 as quoted in ‘India: A History’ by John Keay, chapter 9