KV AFS AKKULAMERNAKULAM REGION

ASHOKATHE EMPEROR WHO GAVE UP THE WAR

Done by : ANNATH ROSHNITGT (SST)

THE LION CAPITAL

The lions that we see on our notes and coins have a long history. They

were carved in stone, and placed on top of a massive stone pillar at Sarnath.

Asoka was one of the greatest rulers known to history and on his instructions

inscriptions were carved on pillars, as well as on rock surfaces.

THE LION CAPITAL

The empire that Asoka ruled was founded by his grandfather, Chandragupta

Maurya, more than 2300 years ago. Chandragupta was supported by a wise

man named Chanakya or Kautilya.

Many of Chanakya’s ideas were written down in a book called the Arthashastra

When members of the same family become rulers one after another,the family is often called a dynasty. The Mauryas were a dynasty withthree important rulers — Chandragupta, his son Bindusara, andBindusara’s son, Ashoka.

Ashoka was born to the Mauryan emperor Bindusara and a

relatively lower ranked wife of his, Dharmā [or Dhammā]. He was the

grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, founder of Mauryan dynasty.

Empress Subhadrangī was a Brahmin of the Ajivika sect, and was found to be a suitable match for Emperor Bindusara.

Though a palace intrigue kept her away from the emperor, this eventually ended,

and she bore a son.

It is from her exclamation "I am now without sorrow," that Ashoka got his name.

Ashoka had several elder siblings, all of whom were his half-brothers from other

wives of Bindusara.

The Divyāvadāna tells a similar story, but gives the name of the queen as

Janapadakalyānī

The Ashokavadana states that his mother was an queen named Subhadrangī, the daughter of

Champa of Telangana.

He had been given the royal military training knowledge which was greatly apparent as he was known as a fearsome hunter, and according to a legend, killed a lion with just a wooden rod. He was very adventurous and a trained fighter, who was known for his skills with the sword. Because of his reputation as a frightening warrior and a heartless general, he was sent to curb the riots in the Avanti province of the Mauryan empire.

The Ashoka Chakra is a depiction of the Buddhist Dharmachakra, represented with 24 spokes. It is so called because it appears on a number of edicts of Ashoka, most prominent among which is the Lion Capital of Sarnath.

ASHOKA IN BUDDHISMAround the year 260 Ashoka fought great battles and imposed his rule on people southward along the eastern coast of India – an area called Kalinga. The sufferings created by the war disturbed Ashoka. He found relief in Buddhism and became an emperor with values that differed from those of his father, grandfather and others. Buddhism benefited from the association with state power that Hinduism had enjoyed – and that Christianity would enjoy under Constantine the Great.

KALINGA WARKalinga War was a war fought between the Maurya Empire under Ashoka the Great and the state of Kalinga, a feudal republic located on the coast of the present-day Indian state of Orissa and nothern parts of Andhra pradesh.The Kalinga city is capital of Kalinga kingdom, it is situated in present day Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh. . The Kalinga war, the only major war Ashoka fought after his accession to throne, is one of the major and bloodiest battles in the history of World. Kalinga put up a stiff resistance, but they were no match for Ashoka's brutal strength. The bloodshed of this war is said to have prompted Ashoka to adopt Buddhism. However, he retained Kalinga after its conquest and incorporated into the Maurya Empire.

QUESTIONS

Q. 1. What do you mean by an empire ?Ans. Large kingdom where different types of people live in different parts of the kingdom is known as empire. Q. 2. What are provinces ?Ans. Big cities of an empire. Empires were divided into provinces to administer them efficiently. Q. 3. Who wrote Arthashastra ?Ans. Chanakya wrote Arthashastra

Q. 4. What was important about South India during Mauryan period ?Ans. South India was important for its gold and precious stones. Q. 5. Who was Megasthenes ?Ans. Megasthenes was an ambassador who was sent to the court of Chandragupta by the Greek ruler Selcucur Nicator. Q. 6. Which language and script was used for Ashoka’s inscriptions ?Ans. Ashoka’s inscriptions were in Prakrit and were written in the Brahim script.

QUESTIONS

Q. 1. Explain the term tribute.Ans. Tributes were the payments that was not collected regularly but at the times when it was possible tribute could be in the form of a variety of things. Q. 2. Why Ashoka gave up wars ?Ans. Ashoka had fought a famous war called Kalinga. Although he had won the war but the violence and bloodshed of the war made him restless. So he decided to give up wars. Q. 3. What was Ashoka’s dhamma ?Ans. Ashoka’s dhamma was not a new religion. Ashoka was inspired by the teaching of Buddha and his dhamma contained mostly the teaching of Buddhism. He considered it was his duty to solve the problems of his subjects by instructing them. So he appointed dhamma mahamatta to teach people about dhamma. Q. 4. How are empires different from kingdoms ?Ans. Emperors need more resources than kings because empires are larger than kingdoms, and need to be protected by big armies.

QUESTIONS

Q.Who is the son of Chandragupta Maurya?

Ans. Bindusara

Q. Who is the son of Bindusara?

Ans. Ashoka

Q. Who followed Buddhism in the mauryan dynasty?

Ans. Ashoka

Q. Which war made Ashoka change in his life?

Ans. Kallinga War.

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