20 Interesting Facts About Ashoka The Great

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  • One of the most interesting facts about Ashoka the Great is that he was the Mauryan Empire’s third king.
  • King Ashoka was the third emperor of the Indian Mauryan Empire, reigning from 304 to 232 BCE.
  • Asoka swiftly developed into a formidable warrior. The Mauryan army began to develop day by day under Ashoka.
  • Ashoka presided over one of the largest empires in Indian history, as well as one of the world’s largest empires at the time.
  • In the Buddhist tradition, he became a paradigm of kingship.
  • India had a population of 30 million people under Ashoka, the greatest figure ever computed for a kingdom.
  • Ashoka’s support for Buddhist monastic groups, as well as his decision to create numerous Buddhist pilgrimage sites.
  • According to one legend, Ashoka erected 84,000 stupas, which are Buddhist structures used for meditation.
  • Many Chinese and Japanese kings followed Ashoka’s lead and built stupas in his honour.
  • Following his successful but bloody conquest of the Kalinga kingdom on India’s east coast, Ashoka abandoned armed conquest in favour of “conquest by dharma” (Means principles of right life).
  • King Ashoka was the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, the Maurya Dynasty’s founder monarch.
  • After the death of Indian emperor Ashoka, the Maurya empire began to decline.

Kalinga War:

  • He conquered Kalinga, which was regarded one of his greatest achievements, as it had not been done by his forefathers.
  • King Ashoka waged a war against the feudal state of Kalinga in 261 BCE with the purpose of expanding their territory; it is now regarded as one of the most violent and bloody battles in world history.
  • After the Kalinga War, Ashoka ruled over the entire Indian subcontinent, with the exception of the far south.
  • Ashoka defeats Kalinga in this conflict. However, the death of 100,000 to 150,000 people renders him mute, and he turns to nonviolence.

Some Ashoka declaration:

  • Medical care for both humans and animals across his Empire.
  • Respect for one’s parents, priests, and monks should always be maintained.
  • Humane treatment of prisoners is required.
  • All religions, he said, are welcome because they all seek self-control and purity of heart.
  • Giving the dharma to others, he believed, was the greatest gift anyone could receive.
  • Ashoka carved 14 edicts into stone pillars and distributed them strategically throughout his dominion.

Also Read – The History Of The Elephanta Caves

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