Asoka 268 B.C. till 232 B.C.

Asoka

        Asoka ruled over what is now India from 268 B.C. till 232 B.C. After Asoka had conquered Kalinga he began to look for a teacher in order to obtain enlightenment. After finding what he was searching for Asoka became a more complete and aware leader. By creating the edicts, seeking Buddha and fulfilling what he felt was best for his people, Asoka proved that he was an enlightened ruler.

        Asoka changed immediately after the war in Kalinga was finished. Historian Michael woods stated, “When the war in Kalinga was over…and the people [were] conquered, he [Asoka] felt inside him a great crisis, a stirring for meaning and a remorse.” Asoka had now felt regret for the amount of deaths he had caused and lives he had ruined. Asoka went on a pilgrimage in order to find a guru that would replace his regret with a new purpose in life. On his pilgrimage Asoka met a Buddhist monk who advised him to sit under the Bodhi tree. The same tree where Buddha had found enlightenment. There Asoka found the knowledge he had been looking for. He converted himself to Buddhism.

        The newly enlightened ruler had returned to his empire a changed man. In nineteen ninety-four Former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharial Nehru said. “This astonishing ruler, beloved still In India and in many other parts of Asia, devoted himself to the spread of Buddha’s teachings, to righteousness and goodwill, and to public works for the good of the people.” Asoka was no longer focused on violence and conquering but was now focused on his people and their well-being. In order to preserve this for his people Asoka created the thirty-three edicts. The edicts were engraved on pillars called pillar edicts and on walls or boulders called rock edicts. The edicts stated Asoka’s focuses and laws for his empire. Rock Edict six reads, “I consider that I must promote the welfare of the world.” A map of the Mauryan Empire, under Asoka, shows how the edicts were spread throughout the whole empire. This proves how committed Asoka really was about the state of his people and his empire.