Ashoka+the+Great



__**Early Life as Emperor:**__ Ashoka the Great was the grandson of Chandragupta. Ashoka's early life he was judged on being "wicked and bad tempered" and "violent". When he set conquest on India's eastern coast, Kalinga, it was the last war that he fought. The conquest was proven to be a turnaroud in his life. __**Buddhist Conversion:**__ After the fall of Kalinga, Ashoka became upset with himself. He saw all the destruction he had caused and he wanted to make a change. He started with converting all of the Mauryan Empire to Buddhism. Later he was making Buddhism a worldwide religion like Chrisitanity and Islam. Buddhism never became a primary religion but it spread in the country during Ashoka's life. Ashoka sent out people, "Officers of Righteousness", to go into the center of the Empire and take over the position of local officers.Officers of Righteousness were on the lookout for people who didn't follow the rules and tried to prevent people from being imprisoned.

__**Change in Ashoka:**__ Ashoka started providing for his kingdom's people. He got medical herbs to prevent sickness, dug wells to provide them with water, etc. He started practicing and teaching non-violence. He gave up hunting and prohibited anyone to hunt or eat animals.The only animals that were allowed to be hunted were peacocks and antelope; only purpose was for meat. Ashoka Golden Rule was that everyone should be treated equally. media type="youtube" key="xH63aG1af5E" width="425" height="350" align="center"

 __**After Life:**__ After Emperor Ashoka died, the Mauryan Empire and the practice of Buddhism died as well. Many of the people tried to forget about him and others still worshoped him and followed his footsteps. Ashoka's achievements were not clear to everyone. Others still judge him as being a horrible Emperor and leading the Empire into destruction. Jawaharlal Nehru gave a tribute to Ashoka the Great that changed some peoples thoughts. "..the memory of Ashoka lives over the whole continent of Asia, and his edicts still speak to us in a language we can still learn from".

"Ashok: A Short Biography of Ashoka the Great of India." //Larryfreeman on HubPages//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. []. "Who Inspires You Most? by Tinyteddy." //Tinyteddy on HubPages//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. .[] "The Edicts of Ashoka - The Story of India - BBC - YouTube." //YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.// Web. 05 Feb. 2012. []. Basham, A. L. "Ashoka." //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 05 Feb. 2012. [].
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