Chant Ashok! Dham Ashok!
Ashoka who was probably the most important monarch in the History of India, was the third
ruler of the Mauryan dynasty and the grandson of its founder, Chandragupta Maurya. Chandragupta was an indian
military leader, who in the years subsequent to the campaing of Alexander the Great, conquered most of northern india, and thereby established the first major empire in indian history.
The year of Ashoka`s birth is unknown; probably it was close to 300 B.C. Ashoka ascended the throne about 273 B.C. At first he followed his grandfather`s footsteps and sought to extend his teritory through military action. In the eight year of his reign, he concluded a successful war against Kalinga, a state on the east coast of india (about where the present state of orissa is). But when he realised the horrible human cost of his triumph, Ashoka was appalled, a hundred thousand persons had been killed and even a larger number had been wounded. Shocked and remorseful, Ashoka decided that he would not complete the military conquest of india, but would instead renounce all aggressive warfare. He adopted Budddhism as his religious philosophy, and attempted to practice the virtue of Dharma, which include TRUTHFULNESS, MERCY and NONVIOLENCE. On a personal level, Ashoka gave up hunting and became a vegetarian. Of more significance were the various humane and political
policies that he adopted. He established hospitals and animal sanctuaries. He even appointed special government officials, Dharma officers, to instruct people in piety and to encourage friendly human relationships. All religions were tolerated in his realm, but Ashoka particularly promoted Buddhism, which naturally enjoyed a great increase in its popularity. Buddhist misssions were sent to many foreign countries, and were especially successful in ceylon.
Ashoka ordered discriptions of his life and policies inscribed on rocks and pillars throughout his large realm. Many of these monuments survive to the present day. Their geography distribution provides us with reliable information concerning the extent of Ashoka`s domain, and the inscriptions on them are our main source of knowledge of his career. Incidentally, these pillars are also considered to be superb works of Art.
Within fifty years of Ashoka`s death, the Mauryan empire fell apart, and it was never revived. However, through his support of Buddhism, Ashoka`s long-term influence upon the workd has been very large. When he ascended the throne, Buddhism was a small, local religion, popular only in north west india. By the time of his death, it had adherents throughout india and was spreading rapidly to neighbouring countries. More than anyone man, except Gautama Himself, Ashoka is responsible for the development of Buddhism into a major world religion.