How were the ministers selected in ancient times?
Answers
Answer:
Kautilya, Manu, Shukra, and other law-givers prescribe testing a minister thoroughly before appointing him. Also, the privy council mentioned in the Mahabharata had members from multiple castes.
And India being what it is, hereditary was an important principle too. Usually the children of able ministers were the favorites at becoming ministers. But such a right was never absolute!
I was reading a collection of 10th century Jain short-stories in Kannada called Vaddaradhane. A king of Kausambi had a very able counselor who unexpectedly dies. The king immediately honors the deceased’s memory by appointing his two sons as counselors. But the children are degenerates, and that fact becomes obvious right away. The sons are promptly dismissed. The remaining part of the story is how the sons better themselves and win back the counselorship.
Explanation: