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Ashoka’s influence on the development of Buddhism in India

Ashoka was perhaps the most important king in Indian history. He was the third monarch of the Mauryan Dynasty and the grandson of Chandragupta, the founder of the dynasty. Chandragupta was an Indian military leader who established the first major empire in Indian history by conquering much of northern India in the years following Alexander the Great’s expeditions.

The date of birth and death of King Ashoka is unknown, perhaps 300 BC. After a brutal slaughter among brothers, Ashoka ascended the throne around 273 BC.

At the beginning of his ascension to the throne, King Ashoka was tyrannical and violent. He reused cruel officials, set up “hell on earth”, and punished “sinners” in the world. At first he followed in the footsteps of his grandfather, trying to expand his territory through military force. In the eighth year of his reign, he victoriously ended a conquest of the Kalinga kingdom on the east coast of India.

But he was horrified when he realized that his victory had taken human toll. 100,000 people lost their lives and many more were injured and disabled. The Kalinga War had a great impact on Ashoka. Shortly after the end of the Kalinga War, King Ashoka had many long talks with the eminent Buddhist monk Upamdo. Finally, under his inspiration, he converted to Buddhism and became a devout believer.

In shock and remorse, King Ashoka decided not to use violence to complete the conquest of India, and to give up all aggressive military operations. Adopting Buddhism as his religious philosophy, he strives to practice “Dharma” norms, including honesty, kindness, and non-violence.

He once issued an edict in which he said he had “deep sorrow and remorse” for the suffering of the Kalinga people during the war. Later, he once again announced to the people of the whole country: “The sound of the drums of war” has been silenced, and it will be replaced by “the voice of the law”. In the future, instead of violent domination and aggression, we will spare no effort to preach the Dharma.

From now on, he will no longer send troops to neighboring countries, but will become an eminent monk preaching the Dharma.

King Ashoka soon declared Buddhism as the state religion of India , and ordered stone pillars to be erected in the palace and all over India, and stone walls to be excavated, and his edicts to be engraved on them. He also convened a large number of Buddhist monks across the country, compiled Buddhist classics, and built many Buddhist monasteries and pagodas in various places.

Ashoka first led by example. He gave up hunting and went vegetarian. What is more significant is that he adopted a variety of humane political policies. He established hospitals and political protection zones, softened many harsh laws, built roads, and built water conservancy. He also appointed special government officials—Dharma officials—to teach people to be religious and to foster friendly relations with each other.

In Ashoka’s land, all religions are allowed to be practiced, but he pays special attention to the development of Buddhism, so the prestige of Buddhism will naturally increase. Buddhist missionary groups were sent across the country and in many countries, with great success in Ceylon in particular.

King Ashoka visited Buddhist holy places under the leadership of the national teacher. There are four famous holy places: Kapilavastu, where the Buddha was born, Gaya, where he attained enlightenment, Branas, where the wheel of Dharma was first turned, and Kushinagar, where he was born.

Around 249 BC, the Asoka Dynasty worshipped the birthplace of Buddha and left stone pillars inscribed in Lumbini Garden. King Ashoka made offerings to recluses on a large scale. It is said that there are tens of thousands of monks who only make offerings in Jiyuan Temple every day, of course, including recluses outside Buddhism. King Ashoka built Buddhist pagodas to promote Buddhism.

It is said that the bones of the Buddha found by him were divided into 84,000 parts, and the same number of pagodas were built for them. Although this is an exaggeration, it shows that the wind of building towers has prevailed at that time. The building of the pagoda marked the climax of the worship of Buddhist sacred objects, which promoted the deification of the Buddha.

During the more than 40 years of his reign, King Ashoka has enjoyed a high reputation both at home and abroad. In the historical writings of India and some other countries, he is called “the great Ashoka”. The Mauryan Dynasty in India also became the first powerful unified empire in Indian history. Even Ningbo in my country once had Ashoka Temple, which shows that Ashoka was also influential in China.

King Ashoka ordered his life and policies to be engraved on the rocks and pillars of his vast land. Many of these monuments still exist today, and their geographic distribution provides reliable information about Ashoka’s sphere of influence, and the inscriptions on them are the main source of insight into his career.

Less than 15 years after Ashoka’s death, the Peacock Empire fell apart and has never recovered since. But Buddhism was supported by King Ashoka, and his long-term impact on the world was enormous.

When he ascended to power, Buddhism was only popular in a small part of northwest India, but when he died, its followers spread all over India and quickly spread to neighboring countries. Apart from Shakyamuni himself, King Asoka played a greater role in the development of Buddhism than anyone else.