Ashoka, the ambassador of peace

[1]

Sharon Lowen

Emperor Ashoka is one historical character who fascinates me the most. He created the largest empire that anyone could have ever imagined.
His works and commitments were very substantial. The earliest book that I read on Ashoka was by Professor Arthur Llewellyn Basham. It was a college textbook that gave me an insight into the works and life of Ashoka. I was fascinated by the writings of Romila Thapar and Revenge & Reconciliation by Rajmohan Gandhi, which gives a complete insight into the reign of Ashoka. In this remarkable study, he traces the role played by reconcilers up to present times, beginning with Gautam Buddha, Mahavira and Ashoka.
Whereas Romila in her book Asoka and the Decline of the Mauryas throws light on Ashoka’s connection with Buddhism and shows how he was able to make use of a general movement of social and spiritual change for political and moral integration of his empire.
As a triumphant emperor, Ashoka renounced violence. Whether it was spreading the word of ahimsa or other developmental measures like planting trees along the road, minimising the killing of animals even for the royal kitchen or building hospitals.
Ashoka has played a key role in spreading the message of Buddha throughout the world. I was surprised to see Ashokan edicts in Takshila written in Aramaic, the language of the Old Testament, when I went to Pakistan. It means that the people of the Middle East and Israel were able to read Ashokan edicts.

As told to Priyanka Bhadani