Ashoka the Great: The Kalinga War, Dhamma and the Spread of Buddhism
The Kalinga War of 261 BCE transformed Emperor Ashoka from a conquering Mauryan ruler into the greatest patron of Buddhism in history. Learn about Dhamma, Buddhist missions, and Ashoka's enduring edicts.
The Ashoka Kalinga War Dhamma Buddhist missions edicts mark one of history's great transformations: Emperor Ashoka (r. 268–232 BCE), the third Mauryan ruler, launched a devastating war against Kalinga in 261 BCE, witnessed its horrific aftermath, embraced Buddhism, and propagated Dhamma through inscribed rock and pillar edicts across the subcontinent.
Who Was Ashoka and How Did He Rise to Power?
Ashoka Maurya was the third emperor of the Mauryan dynasty, ruling from approximately 268 to 232 BCE. In his own inscriptions, he referred to himself as Devanampiya Piyadasi — "Beloved of the Gods, of Gracious Countenance." For nearly two millennia, these inscriptions were known but not understood. It was the British scholar James Prinsep who, in 1837, deciphered the Brahmi script in which most of them were composed, allowing historians to identify the historical Ashoka behind the royal epithet.
Ashoka's path to the throne was not peaceful. Ancient sources — including the Divyavadana and Sri Lankan chronicles — record that he waged a bloody succession war against his brothers following the death of his father, Bindusara. Some traditions claim he killed 99 half-brothers to secure the throne, though these figures are considered legendary. The contrast between this violent rise and his later advocacy for non-violence forms one of history's most striking personal arcs.
What Happened During the Kalinga War and Why Did It Change Ashoka?
Kalinga — roughly corresponding to modern Odisha and parts of Andhra Pradesh — was the only major kingdom in the Indian subcontinent that had not been absorbed into the Mauryan Empire. Around 261 BCE, in approximately the eighth year of his reign, Ashoka launched a full-scale military campaign to conquer it.
The consequences were catastrophic. In his 13th Major Rock Edict, Ashoka himself recorded the toll with remarkable candour: 100,000 people killed in battle, 150,000 deported as prisoners, and many more who perished from disease and famine in the aftermath. In what may be the earliest surviving expression of royal war guilt, he wrote: "When an independent country is conquered, the slaughter, death, and deportation of the people is extremely grievous to the Beloved of the Gods, and weighs heavily on his mind."
This profound remorse triggered Ashoka's formal conversion to Buddhism and a complete reorientation of imperial policy. He renounced further conquest by the sword — abandoning Bherighosha (the sound of war drums) — and replaced it with Dhammaghosha, the sound of Dhamma. He declared that henceforth his only true conquest would be the conquest of hearts through righteousness.
What Was Ashoka's Dhamma?
Ashoka's Dhamma was not simply Buddhism repackaged as state ideology. It was a deliberately broad, syncretic ethical code designed for a multi-religious, multi-ethnic empire. Its key principles included:
- Ahimsa (non-violence) toward all living beings, including animals
- Respect for all religious sects (Pasanda) — the 12th Major Rock Edict explicitly prohibits attacking other faiths
- Obedience to parents, elders, and teachers
- Generosity, compassion, and truthfulness in all dealings
- Welfare of prisoners, the elderly, the sick, and animals
To implement Dhamma, Ashoka created a new class of officers called Dhamma-mahamatras — welfare commissioners who toured the empire to ensure these principles were being upheld. He also undertook extensive public works: planting Banyan trees along roads for shade, digging wells approximately every eight kos (roughly 16 miles) for travellers, constructing rest houses (dharamshalas), and establishing hospitals for both humans and animals — making his reign one of the earliest documented examples of state-funded veterinary medicine. Officers called Rajjukas were specifically appointed to oversee rural welfare.
What Were Ashoka's Major Edicts and Where Are They Found?
Ashoka's edicts are the oldest surviving written records in India after the undeciphered Harappan script. They were inscribed in multiple scripts: Brahmi (used across most of the empire), Kharosthi (in the northwest), and Greek and Aramaic (at Kandahar, Afghanistan) for western audiences. The edicts fall into several categories:
| Edict Category | Key Locations | Primary Content |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Major Rock Edicts | Shahbazgarhi & Mansehra (Pakistan), Girnar (Gujarat), Dhauli & Jaugada (Odisha), Yerragudi (Andhra Pradesh), Sopara (Maharashtra), Kalsi (Uttarakhand) | Dhamma principles; welfare measures (RE 2); Kalinga War remorse (RE 13); religious tolerance (RE 12); ban on animal sacrifice (RE 1) |
| Minor Rock Edicts | Bairat, Maski, Brahmagiri, Rupnath, Siddapur, Jatinga-Rameshwar, Gujarra | Ashoka's personal declaration of Buddhist faith; record of his tours to Buddhist sites; encouragement for Sangha members |
| 7 Major Pillar Edicts | Delhi-Topra, Delhi-Meerut (both moved by Firoz Shah Tughlaq to Delhi), Allahabad (Prayagraj), Lauriya-Araraj, Lauriya-Nandangarh, Rampurwa | Detailed Dhamma code; appointment of Dhamma-mahamatras; welfare activities; religious tolerance; freedom for prisoners on festival days |
| Bhabru (Calcutta-Bairat) Edict | Originally at Bairat, Rajasthan; now in Indian Museum, Kolkata | Ashoka's personal declaration of faith in the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha (the Three Jewels); recommends specific Buddhist canonical texts to be studied |
| Kandahar Edicts | Kandahar, Afghanistan | Bilingual inscriptions in Greek and Aramaic; Dhamma rendered as eusebeia (piety/virtue) in Greek — evidence of outreach to the Hellenistic world |
| Schism Edict (Minor Pillar Edict) | Sarnath, Sanchi, Allahabad, Kosambi | Forbids schism within the Buddhist Sangha; threatens expulsion of monks or nuns who cause sectarian division |
The Ashokan pillars are extraordinary feats of ancient engineering. Each pillar was carved from a single block of polished Chunar sandstone, transported hundreds of miles from the quarries, and erected to heights of up to 50 feet (roughly 15 metres). The mirror-like finish on the stone, achieved without modern abrasive technology, remains a subject of scholarly wonder. The most celebrated is the Lion Capital at Sarnath — four lions seated back-to-back atop a circular abacus bearing the Dhamma Chakra (Wheel of Law) and four animals (lion, elephant, bull, horse). This capital was adopted as the National Emblem of India upon independence in 1950. The Dhamma Chakra itself forms the blue wheel at the centre of the Indian national flag. Sarnath is additionally significant as the site where the Buddha delivered his first sermon (Dhammachakkappavattana Sutta) after attaining enlightenment at Bodh Gaya.
How Did Ashoka Spread Buddhism Through Missions?
Ashoka's patronage of Buddhism extended far beyond personal piety. Around 250 BCE, he convened the Third Buddhist Council at Pataliputra (modern Patna) under the presidency of the monk Moggaliputta Tissa. The Council compiled and purified Buddhist doctrine, resolved internal disputes, and authorised a programme of missionary activity across the known world:
- Sri Lanka: Ashoka's son Mahinda and daughter Sanghamitra led the most consequential mission; Sanghamitra brought a cutting of the original Bodhi tree, which still grows at Anuradhapura; Buddhism became the state religion of Sri Lanka.
- Kashmir and Gandhara: Madhyantika
- Suvarnabhumi (possibly Myanmar or Thailand): Sona and Uttara — this mission is credited with establishing Buddhism in mainland Southeast Asia
- Macedonia and Corinth: Maharakkhita
- Egypt and Cyrene: Maharakkhita (a different monk of the same name)
- Aparantaka (western India): Yonaka Dhammarakkhita
According to Buddhist tradition, Ashoka ordered the construction of 84,000 stupas across his empire — a symbolic number corresponding to the 84,000 teachings of the Buddha. While this figure is legendary, archaeological evidence confirms his patronage at major sites. The Great Stupa at Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh) was originally built by Ashoka; the magnificent stone gateways (toranas) that make it famous today were added later by the Satavahana dynasty.
What Was Ashoka's Legacy and Why Was He Forgotten?
Ashoka died in 232 BCE. The Mauryan Empire fragmented rapidly in the decades after his death, and Brihadratha, the last Mauryan emperor, was assassinated by his commander-in-chief Pushyamitra Shunga around 185 BCE. Historians have long debated whether Ashoka's emphasis on ahimsa and reduced military expenditure weakened the empire's defences against the Bactrian Greeks pressing from the northwest.
Paradoxically, despite his enormous historical significance, Ashoka was virtually absent from Indian literary and historical memory for nearly two millennia. He featured in Buddhist chronicles preserved in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, but not in the Brahmanical or Jain traditions of the subcontinent. It was only through James Prinsep's 1837 decipherment of Brahmi — and the subsequent identification of "Devanampiya Piyadasi" as Ashoka by the scholar George Turnour — that his identity re-entered public consciousness.
His rediscovery prompted widespread admiration. H.G. Wells described Ashoka in The Outline of History (1920) as "the greatest of kings." Jawaharlal Nehru celebrated him at length in The Discovery of India (1946). The founders of independent India drew on Ashokan imagery with deliberate intent: the Lion Capital became the national emblem, the Dhamma Chakra entered the flag, and the aspiration toward Dhammavijaya — conquest through righteousness rather than violence — became a founding ideal of the republic.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Kalinga War and when did it take place?
The Kalinga War was a military campaign fought by Emperor Ashoka around 261 BCE to conquer Kalinga (modern Odisha), the only major kingdom not yet part of the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka's own 13th Major Rock Edict records that 100,000 people were killed, 150,000 were deported, and many more died from disease and famine. The war's devastation prompted Ashoka's conversion to Buddhism and his adoption of the policy of Dhamma.
What is Dhamma in the context of Ashoka's rule?
Dhamma, as conceived by Ashoka, was not identical to Buddhist doctrine but a broader ethical code for imperial governance. It emphasised non-violence (ahimsa) toward all living beings, respect for all religious sects, obedience to parents, generosity, truthfulness, and compassion. Ashoka appointed Dhamma-mahamatras (welfare officers) to propagate these principles across the empire and undertook public welfare works such as planting trees, digging wells, and building hospitals for humans and animals.
What are Ashoka's edicts and in which scripts were they written?
Ashoka's edicts are inscriptions on rocks and stone pillars distributed across the subcontinent and beyond, constituting the oldest surviving written records in India. They were primarily written in Brahmi script (used across most of the empire), Kharosthi (in the northwest), and Greek and Aramaic (in Afghanistan/Kandahar). The 14 Major Rock Edicts cover topics such as welfare, religious tolerance, and the aftermath of the Kalinga War; the 7 Major Pillar Edicts provide a detailed ethical code.
What is the significance of the Ashoka Lion Capital?
The Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath — four lions seated back-to-back atop a circular abacus — was adopted as the National Emblem of India after independence in 1950. The Dhamma Chakra (Wheel of Law) depicted on the abacus forms the blue wheel in the centre of the Indian national flag. Sarnath is also the location where the Buddha delivered his first sermon after attaining enlightenment, making it doubly significant as a Buddhist site.
How did Ashoka spread Buddhism outside India?
Following the Third Buddhist Council at Pataliputra (c. 250 BCE), Ashoka dispatched missions to spread Buddhism across Asia and the Hellenistic world. His son Mahinda and daughter Sanghamitra led the mission to Sri Lanka, where Buddhism became the state religion. Other missions went to Kashmir, Gandhara, Southeast Asia (Suvarnabhumi), Macedonia, and Egypt. Ashoka also patronised the construction of stupas — Buddhist tradition credits him with building 84,000 — and the original Great Stupa at Sanchi.
Sources and Further Reading
According to IGNOU's BHIC-131 (History of India from the Earliest Times to c. 300 CE), Ashoka's edicts are the primary source for Mauryan administrative history and the most reliable evidence for the emperor's own policies. The standard academic treatment remains Romila Thapar's Ashoka and the Decline of the Mauryas (Oxford University Press, 1961; revised 1997). For translations of the edicts, N.A. Nikam and Richard McKeon's The Edicts of Ashoka (University of Chicago Press, 1959) is authoritative. Vincent Smith's Asoka: The Buddhist Emperor of India (1901) was the first major English-language biography. The Sri Lankan chronicles — the Mahavamsa and Dipavamsa — preserve the tradition of Ashoka's missions to Sri Lanka. For the Sarnath Lion Capital and its adoption as the national emblem, the Archaeological Survey of India's site reports and the National Museum, New Delhi, are essential. H.G. Wells' assessment appears in The Outline of History (1920), and Jawaharlal Nehru's discussion is in The Discovery of India (1946).