King Ashoka

Ashoka, the third emperor of the legendary Maurya dynasty, was among the most prominent kings of the ancient Indian subcontinent. He efficiently reigned over a practically pan-Indian political entity between 268 and 232 BCE. His renunciation of violence, the establishment of the notion of Dhamma (virtuous social behaviour), and promotion of Buddhism are his most notable achievements. The below article discusses the early life, administration, and religious policy of King Ashoka in detail.

Early Life

In 304 B.C., Ashoka was born to Bindusara, a Mauryan king and his wife, Devi Dharma. Chandragupta Maurya, the Maurya Dynasty’s founder monarch, was his grandfather.

Dharma (also referred to as Janapada Kalyani or Subhadrangi) was the daughter of a Brahmin priest of Champa. Due to politics in the royal family, she was assigned a low position. Ashoka was given a poor standing among the princes due to his mother’s position. Vithashoka was his only younger sibling. However, he had several older half-brothers. Ashoka had shown excellent potential in academics and warfare since he was a toddler. Bindusara, Ashoka’s father, was so delighted with his ability and intelligence that he appointed him Governor of Avanti.

Rise to Power

There are several stories behind king Ashoka’s ascension to the throne. However, Ashokavadana and Mahavamsa state king Ashoka’s story of how he killed his siblings to ascend the throne after his father’s demise.

According to the Mahavamsa, when Bindusara became ill, Ashoka returned from Ujjain to Patliputra to take control of the capital. Ashoka assassinated his eldest brother and rose to the throne following his father’s demise. According to the text, Ashoka killed 99 of his step-brothers, including Sumana.

According to the Dipavamsa, he slaughtered hundreds of his brothers before being crowned 4 years later.

According to the Vamsatthapakasini, an Ajivika ascetic foresaw the massacre based on Ashoka’s mother’s interpretation of a dream. Only Ashoka’s own brother Vitashoka was spared, according to these tales.

King Ashoka’s Reign

Both North Indian and Sri Lankan legends claim King Ashoka to be a violent man before his submission to Buddhism. He is believed to have killed several of his half-brothers to ascend the throne of the Mauryan empire. Ashoka was a violent, vindictive, and restless Emperor, according to Buddhist scripture. Due to his temperament at the time, he was given the appellation ‘Chanda’ Ashoka, which means Ashoka the Terrible. He was credited with constructing Ashoka’s Hell, a torture room supervised by an executioner to punish offenders.

Ashoka launched vicious assaults to extend his kingdom after becoming Emperor, which lasted almost eight years. His realm spanned the Iranian-Afghanistan border in the west to the Burmese border in the east. Except for Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka), he seized all of Southern India. The only kingdom he had no control over was Kalinga (coastal Orissa).

The Kalinga War

The inscription of Kalinga highlights the immense scale of the Kalinga war’s slaughter, deportation, and capture. This is what is written by King Ashoka in the inscription of Kalinga. As soon as he had secured himself as the monarch of Magadha, Ashoka set about seizing and subjugating Kalinga to the huge Maurya Empire.

According to some researchers, Kalinga posed a strategic danger to the Mauryas. It could disrupt connections between Pataliputra, the Mauryan capital and the central Indian peninsula’s possessions. Kalinga also dominated the coastline on the Bay of Bengal for trade affairs. Therefore, King Ashoka launched an attack on Kalinga, and the Kalinga war became a pivotal event in his life. The conquest was personally led by Ashoka, who was victorious. On his instructions, the province was pillaged, cities were devastated, and thousands of individuals were slaughtered.

The Kalinga War inspired Ashoka to commit the remaining years of his life to ahimsa (non-violence) and dharma-Vijaya(victory through dharma). After Kalinga’s conquest, King Ashoka put an end to the empire’s military expansion and initiated a period of relative peace, prosperity, and harmony that lasted more than 40 years.

Administration Under King Ashoka

Following his spiritual transformation, Ashoka’s government was purely concerned with his subjects’ well-being. His younger brother, Vithashoka, and a cadre of trustworthy ministers aided him in his administrative tasks. King Ashoka consulted them before implementing any new administrative policies. Yuvaraj (Crown Prince), Mahamantri (Prime Minister), Senapati (General), and Purohita (Priest) were among the most significant members of this advisory panel.

He followed the guidelines in the Arthashastra for the Perfect King’s characters. King Ashoka instituted legislative reforms such as Vyavahara Samahara and Danda Samahara, explicitly stating the style of life that his subjects should follow. Amatyas, or civil servants, were in charge of the general judicial and administrative tasks, which the Emperor precisely defined.

King Ashoka’s Religious Policy: Dhamma

Around 260 B.C, King Ashoka declared Buddhism the state religion. Ashoka mandated the practice of Dhamma, which became the foundation of his generous and tolerant administration, based on the ten principles espoused by Lord Buddha. Dhamma was not a new religion. It was not a new form of political philosophy either. Dhamma was a way of life enshrined in a code of behaviour and a set of ideals that he advised his subjects to follow to live in peace and prosperity. He propagated these ideals through the issuance of 14 edicts. He disseminated all of these edicts throughout his realm during his reign.

Conclusion

King Ashoka was among the most influential monarchs who ruled in the ancient Indian subcontinent. The initial years of his reign were full of manslaughter, torture, and vandalism. This is why he was also known as ‘Chandashoka’. However, after the Kalinga war, he gave up conquests and adopted the path of ahimsa (non-violence). To maintain social order, King Ashoka developed the notion of Dhamma and encouraged everyone to obey it.

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