3,99 €
Emperor Ashoka ruled over an Indian empire from 268 to 232 BCE that would have stretched from present-day Afghanistan to Bangladesh, with only a small piece of southern India missing. His reign began very cruelly until the Battle of Kalinga in 261 BCE, in which approximately 100,000 people died and approximately 150,000 people were deported. No ruler before him and, unfortunately, no ruler after him managed to bring about a U-turn for himself and thus for his people. After this battle, he decided to follow the Buddhist path of tolerance and non-violence and brought the empire to prosperity. He had his instructions to his people carved into rocks and pillars. This book, which was actually intended to be a lecture, recounts Ashoka's life and his extraordinary projects and how he managed to turn himself from a cruel ruler into a statesmanlike and wise one. His appreciation for all people and animals, his tolerance and non-violence can be a great inspiration to us, especially in today's world, to see ourselves more as a global community and to face up to our responsibility for future generations
Das E-Book können Sie in Legimi-Apps oder einer beliebigen App lesen, die das folgende Format unterstützen:
Seitenzahl: 79
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025
This book is dedicated to my late husband, who showed me the traces left behind by Ashoka on many of our trips together and had even begun to write a lecture about this great ruler before he died. It was through my interest in Ashoka’s personality and increasing appreciation of him that the lecture my husband had planned became the book you are reading now.
May this “lecture in book form” not only bring joy but also encourage its readers to cultivate the courage to practice tolerance and to pursue the path of peace. May Ashoka’s appreciation for all beings take root in you all!
Evelyn Haferkorn-Müller
The Courage of making a U-Turn
The greatness of Emperor Ashoka
© 2025 Evelyn Haferkorn-Müller
Title of the original German Edition:
“Mut zur Kehrtwende – die Größe von Kaiser Asoka“
(2024 tredition GmbH)
ISBN
Softcover
978-3-384-65734-3
Hardcover
978-3-384-65735-0
e-Book
978-3-384-65736-7
Printing and distribution on behalf of the author:
tredition GmbH, Heinz-Beusen-Stieg 5, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany
This work, including all parts thereof, is protected by copyright. The author is responsible for the content. Any use without her consent is prohibited. Publication and distribution are carried out on behalf of the author, who can be reached at: tredition GmbH, “Impressumservice” department, Heinz-Beusen-Stieg 5, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany.
Contact address in accordance with the EU Product Safety Regulation: [email protected]
Cover
Dedication
Title Page
Copyright
Preface
Part 1. Emperor Ashoka
1.1. the Setting in which Ashoka was Born
1.2 Ashoka's Youth until the Battle of Kalinga, 261 BCE
1.3 the Teaching of the Buddha
1.4 Ashoka and the Buddhist Teachings
1.5 the Sources of Our Knowledge of Ashoka
1.6 the U-Turn
1.7 Repentance and Salvation
1.8 Stupas for the Relics of the Buddha
1.9 the Rock and Pillar Edicts
1.10 Ashoka’s Social and Buddhist Projects
Part 2. Emperor Ashoka
2.0 Preface to Part 2
2.1 Appreciation and Tolerance
2.2 Compassion and Ethics
2.3 the Mutual Dependence and Connectedness of All Things
2.4 Our Tasks
Afterword
Bibliography
Cover
Dedication
Title Page
Copyright
Preface
Preface
Afterword
Bibliography
Bibliography
Cover
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
Preface
Humanity has seen many rulers – and their empires – come and go. Only very few of them have stayed in our collective memory over the centuries: the particularly brutal and the wise – the latter, sadly, being the rarer category. And only one has managed to negotiate the tricky path between the two extremes: Emperor Ashoka.
It’s thanks to my husband that, on my travels in India and Pakistan, I encountered Emperor Askoka through his rock inscriptions: the famous rock and pillar edicts. These aroused my interest, leading me to try to fathom who he was and what moved him to make an abrupt U-turn from brutal conqueror to great statesman; a statesman who went on to proclaim a doctrine of non-violence and teach other ethical foundations to his people, building up his empire socially and economically while also maintaining good relations with neighbouring states.
His empire stretched from today’s Afghanistan to Bangladesh, with only a small part of the south of the Indian subcontinent holding out against him. How was he able to peacefully unite so many different cultures, religions, customs, languages, landscapes and economic locations?
How did his U-turn come about? There are lots of legends, stories and research findings – and, depending on which side you examine them from, you end up with different conclusions. But I can summarise the basics for you before we start: He felt deep remorse for the suffering he had caused and turned to the Buddha’s teachings.
I have drawn on the many books written about Emperor Ashoka to compile a short summary of his life, his U-turn and the Buddhist teachings.
Based on all of these, I end this book with a suggestion which I hope will show how his strength of character and appreciation for all living beings can inspire us today. Please excuse me if I omitted to mention something, if I’ve only chosen one version of the stories or for any mistakes you may find. My summary is based on English- language literature and information from the Internet, which is listed in the bibliography.
The Indian people are still proud of “Ashoka the Great” - so much so that the capital of the Lion Pillar at Sarnath serves as the national emblem, and the Ashoka Chakra, or wheel of Ashoka, adorns the country’s flag. The Ashoka Chakra refers to the “Wheel of the Dharma”, a symbol of the Buddhist teachings which Ashoka was fond of depicting.
Although Ashoka lived from about 304 to 232 BCE, “birthday celebrations” in his memory are still held in Bihar – always on 14 April (Source: https://www.officeholidays.com/holidays/india/bihar/ashokas-birth-anniversary (accessed 07.05.2024). Not every ruler is still celebrated with such enthusiasm after more than 2000 years!!
This particular ruler is truly extraordinary, and I look forward to giving you some idea of what he accomplished ! Let’s start by taking a trip to India together.
Part 1
Emperor Ashoka
His life and reign
1.1. The setting in which Ashoka was born
Let’s start with a little historical review:
Alexander the Great (born 356 BCE in Pella, Macedonia), king of Macedonia and conqueror, first subjugated the great Achaemenid Empire (Old Persian Empire) in 333 BCE, going on to conquer Bactria (in modern-day Afghanistan) in 330 BCE before moving on to India. In what is now Pakistan, he founded the province of Gandhara and defeated the small kingdom of Paurava (in the Indus Valley). Even though King Poros of Paurava was defeated by Alexander, but in the battle the king won the respect of the Macedonian invader, who took over his territory but showed him respect by appointing him as a governor.
During the Diadochi battles (in which former generals of Alexander the Great fought among themselves for territory) after Alexander’s death (323 BCE), Poros himself was killed. Chandragupta Maurya, the grandfather of Ashoka and founder of the Mauryan dynasty, annexed Poros’s territory. Seleucus I (Macedonian general) wasn’t pleased by this and tried to take the territory back from Chandragupta. After 2 years of war (305-303 BCE), Chandragupta Maurya took over the territories of the Seleucids east of the Indus; in return Seleucus I was offered one of Chandragupta’s daughters and 500 war elephants, which would go onto help him in the later Diadochi battles, with their focus on the western territories.
Chandragupta Maurya, who had already killed the last king of the Nanda Empire in 323 BCE, ruled the former Nanda Kingdom as his successor. With the addition of the territories of Seleucus I (including Gandhara and Baluchistan), his empire grew considerably. He ruled from Magadha.
Chandragupta’s son Bindusara succeeded him around 298 BCE. He ruled from Pataliputra, modern day Patna. Bindusara was able to suppress some uprisings and preserve the greatness of the empire. He supported the Brahmins (mostly Hindu priests) and was in contact with Antiochus I Soter, the son of Seleucus I.
Bindusara is key to the further course of the story, being none other than Ashoka’s father.
At this point, I’d like to tell a little story:
In the city of Campa, a Brahmin had an extremely beautiful daughter called Subhadrangi. Her father consulted a seer, who told him that his daughter would marry a king and have two sons who would be as important to the world as jewels. One would be a ruler of the world, the other would go forth and fulfill his religious vows. Enthralled by this miraculous prophecy, the Brahmin dressed his daughter in very expensive clothes and adorned her with jewels; he then took her to Pataliputra, where King Bindusara resided. He offered his beautiful daughter to the king as his wife. King Bindusara gladly accepted this gift and placed her in his harem.