Why did the Great King Ashoka invaded Kalinga ?

Hello dear readers, welcome in the third article of Gaurav Sangrah. Today in this article, we are going to talk about the Great King Ashoka

• who abdicated the throne and embraced Buddhism.
• who did such works for the welfare of people that people remember him even today.
• who had a change of heart after the battle of Kalinga.
• also known as last major emperor of Mauryan dynasty.

So let us begin with his story.

Great King Ashoka

Who was the Great King Ashoka ?

Emperor Ashoka is said to be the most powerful king of India. It is believed that there was no other king like Emperor Ashoka and will never be. Ashok was grandson of King Chandragupta Maurya. He was born in Paatliputra to mother Subhaprangi and father Bindushah. Ashoka grew up facing many struggles since his childhood just as his grandfather under the guidance of Acharya Chanakya.

Even father Bindushah loved Ashoka less than his other sons. But the royal astrologer Pingal Vatsh predicted that Ashoka would go on to become a very great emperor and make his name bright in the world. Ashoka earned his right by fighting with his brothers. And the people installed Ashoka on the throne.

Why did King Ashoka invaded Kalinga ?

Ashoka becomes the king of Magadha after his father's death. One day suddenly Ashoka comes to know that one of his rebel brothers has gone to Kalinga and he is hiding. So Ashoka writes to the King of Kalinga telling him that "Our enemy is hiding in your region. I am sending three soldiers with my Commander-in-Chief, so you hand over our enemy to our general".

Kalinga Invasion

But the King of Kalinga did not do that but instead killed the soldiers and cut off the head of the general and tied it to a horse and sent it to Pataliputra. Seeing this behavior of the King of Kalinga, Emperor Ashoka was very angry. So Ashoka invaded Kalinga which is also known as Invasion - Kalinga.

Why did Emperor Ashoka change after the battle of Kalinga?

The battle of Kalinga was very violent. Even Ashoka, when he invaded Kalinga, did not think that the outcome of the war would be so dire. Even women and children were not spared in the terrible war of Kalinga. Bloody corpses were visible everywhere on the battlefield.

Seeing all this, Ashoka felt very sad and after that he adopted the path of non-violence.

Why was Emperor Ashoka given the name "chand (ચંડ)  Ashoka" or "Krur Ashoka" ?

Destruction

When Ashoka invaded Kalinga,

• many soldiers died in the battle,
• 1,50,000 soldiers died in the war.
• 1,00,000 civilians were killed.
• 1,50,000 people were forced to migrate to other places for farming, business, etc.
• About 5 lakh people lost their lives in the war.

due to this reason Ashoka was called as "chand (ચંડ ) Ashoka" or "Cruel Ashoka".

How Ashoka propagated Dhamma Vijaya (Religion):

After the battle of Kalinga many people were killed and the loss was also huge. So Ashoka's mind starts to change. He started to think of 'Dhamma Vijaya' instead of 'Ghons Vijaya'. Ghons Vijay means to expand the extent of one's kingdom by conquering different territories. And Dhamm Vijaya means propagating the Dharma.

Ashoka did not want to conquer territories after the battle of Kalinga. Ashoka now wanted to promote culture. So he used to go to other countries to preach religion and give information about religion to people. He also sent his son Mahendra and daughter Sandhamitra to propagate Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

Ashoka also built four caves on Barabar hill for the Buddhist monks in which the monks could sit comfortably and do penance without any fear.

Names of these caves are:

1. Chopper
2. Debt
3. World hut and
4. Sudama

Why did Emperor Ashoka adopted Buddhism?

After the battle of Kalinga there was a change in Ashoka. Emperor Ashoka turned from violence to the path of non-violence. In order to atone for the violence he had done in the battle of Kalinga, Ashoka considered adopting Buddhism. And if we go to see, already in Ashoka's family Vigatashoka who was Ashoka's close brother had become a Buddhist monk.

So Ashoka also took initiation from the Buddhist monk Upagupta and embraced Buddhism. After his conversion to Buddhism, Ashoka had many works for the people. At first, Ashoka organized a Buddhist assembly in his capital Pataliputra.

What changes did Emperor Ashoka make in the country?

Ashoka enforced a uniform law throughout the Magadha Empire. All over India Ashoka installed 14 inscriptions and 19 pillar inscriptions on which Ashoka talks about region, country and hypocrisy. Ashoka knows that in his country there are people who speak different languages.

So Ashoka wrote the inscriptions in four languages:

1. Brahmi
2. Kharorist
3. Ermike
4. Greek

Respecting all sadhu saints be they of any religion. Ashoka did many things for the benefit of the people like stopping animal cruelty.

Emperor Ashoka implemented Saptaga Siddhanta in his kingdom.

Saptanga Siddhanta means the main seven limbs of the state.

1. Raja - Raja means that the king should be powerful and influential.
2. Amatya - Amatya means Prime Minister who must be right.
3. Janapada - Janapada means kingdom of king.
4. Durga - Durga means the place or palace where the king lives should be protected.
5. Treasury – Treasury should be full.
6. the army - In case of invasion, army is necessary.
7. Friends - Relations with neighboring countries should be good.

Conclusion:

We have seen how Emperor Ashoka avenged his insult with the King of Kalinga. We also see that the outcome of war was very violent. Emperor Ashoka also propagated Buddhism abroad. I would like to conclude my article about Samrat Ashoka till here.

If I have forgotten anything in this article, you can let me know in the comment section.

Thank you very much for reading the article till end.

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See you back soon in a new article with more Ancient Indian Kings of Indian History, until then take care and stay connected with Gaurav Sangrah.