Biography of Ashoka The Great complete biography or paragraph for Class 10, Class 12, and Graduation and other classes.
India : Mauryan Emperor and Patron of Buddhism
Birth : About 294 B.C. Death : 232 B.C.
By all considerations, Ashoka is one of the greatest kings not only in the history of India but in the whole world. In the beginning, like all other Kings, Ashoka was also given kingly pleasures and military conquests but after the battle of Kalinga, a powerful Kingdom on the Bay of Bengal, Ashoka was completely transformed. In this battle, lakhs of people were slain, and wounded, which produced a profound reaction in the mind of Ashoka. The era of military conquests was now over and an era of spiritual conquests as Dharma Vijay began. Ashoka was converted to Buddhism and devoted the rest of his life to spreading and putting into practice the teachings of Buddhism. For the welfare of his subjects, Ashoka planted trees along the roads for providing shade, built rest houses for travelers, and established hospitals for human beings and animals. He also opened a separate department for distributing charity to the poor.
Ashoka also followed the Law of Piety or Dharma in his personal life; he gave up hunting and curbed the slaughter of animals for the royal kitchen. A new class of officials called the `Dharma-Mahamatras’ was created for enforcing the Law of Piety among people. For spreading Buddhism, Ashoka also despatched missions to foreign countries like Egypt, Syria, Macedonia, etc. Ashoka’s son Mahendra and daughter Sanghmitra went to Ceylon where they became successful in converting the Ceylonese king to Buddhism. Ashoka also got the teachings of Buddhism engraved on many rocks and pillars in different parts of his empire.
Ashoka was the son of the Mauryan emperor Bindusara. He ascended the Magadha throne in 273 B.C., Buddhist records tell that he captured the throne after killing his 99 brothers, but this is hotly supported by any other evidence. It seems certain that he had to contend with his elder brother Susima.
For his qualities and character, Ashoka as a king is still unparalleled in the history of the world.
