Essentials of Asoka's Dhamma
by: Chris Sims

Introductory Thoughts and Credits

I have chosen Asoka as the topic for this paper because he was perhaps the greatest emperor of India. This is based on his reputed concern for the well being of his subjects, renunciation of violence, devotion to his faith, and especially his tolerance and even promotion of other faiths.

In preparing for this paper I have made use of the following books:
Asoka the Great, D.C. Ahir, 1995
Asoka and his Inscriptions, Beni Madhab Barua, 1968
Inscriptions of Asokam, D.C. Sircar, 1967
The Odyssey of Emperor Asoka Maurya, Manmath Nath Das, 1992
A History of India - Volume One, Romila Thapar, 1990
Sources of Indian Tradition, Ainslie T. Embree - Volume One, 1988

Additionally, the following on-line sources were used:
The Biographical Scripture of King Asoka
HyperHistory Online
Asoka from BUDDHANET
Asoka by Graeme Lyall

The edicts quoted come from:
The Edicts of King Ashoka, An English rendering by: Ven. S. Dhammika

In doing the research for this paper I have discovered that there is much discrepancy in the details regarding Asoka, down to the spelling of the name! (I shall use the spelling Asoka, commonly found in the texts published in India). It appears that all knowledge of him disappeared for over 700 years. In 1837 James Prinsep, a British Civil Servant, succeeded in deciphering the inscription on an Asokan Pillar, now standing at Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi. Over the next hundred years other discoveries eventually led scholars to conclude that Asoka, once considered a mythical figure, had indeed ruled much of India.

The corner stone of Asoka's rule appears to have been his policy of Dhamma. The word has several translations including universal law and righteousness. Asoka's Dhamma appears to have been based heavily on Buddhist philosophy and belief.

Through an examination of the edicts of Asoka we are able to discover various aspects of this Dhamma. More interestingly, the main themes that can be found in the edicts still have great relevance today. I have found three major themes that occur in the edicts:
1. respect for other people and beliefs
2. concern for the welfare of others
3. the importance and difficulty of working towards high goals


Respect for Other People and Beliefs

A reoccurring theme in the edicts is respect for other people. Asoka makes a point on several occasions to list groups of people that should be respected. In the Third Rock Edict we find: Respect for mother and father is good, generosity to friends, acquaintances, relatives, Brahmans and ascetics is good The Ninth Rock Edict states:
What does bear great fruit, however, is the ceremony of the Dhamma. This involves proper behavior towards servants and employees, respect for teachers, restraint towards living beings, and generosity towards ascetics and Brahmans. These and other things constitute the ceremony of the Dhamma.
Very similar statements are found again in Rock Edict Eleven, the Second Minor Rock Edict as well as the Seventh Pillar Edict. Clearly respect for and respectful treatment of others was an important component of Asoka's Dhamma.

I don't think this respect extends to unconditional trust for, or unconditional obedience to authority figures. The evidence for this argument can be found in the existence of several sets of instructions to his officials, in the proper treatment of citizens and prisoners. These instructions, carved into rock, where displayed in public. This way his subjects knew that Asoka expected his official to treat the people well. If he felt that authority figures should be unconditionally trusted, I don't think that he would have placed these instructions in public view. By placing these instructions in public view, he gives people the authority to question authority if need be. We shall return to these instructions later in this paper.

In addition to respecting other people, respecting other beliefs and religions is important. Rock Edict Twelve says:
Growth in essentials can be done in different ways, but all of them have as their root restraint in speech, that is, not praising one's own religion, or condemning the religion of others without good cause. And if there is cause for criticism, it should be done in a mild way. But it is better to honor other religions for this reason. By so doing, one's own religion benefits, and so do other religions, while doing otherwise harms one's own religion and the religions of others. Whoever praises his own religion, due to excessive devotion, and condemns others with the thought "Let me glorify my own religion," only harms his own religion.
Asoka showed tolerance of beliefs and ceremonies, even those that he himself did not believe in, or thought frivolous. In the Ninth Rock Edict he says of such ceremonies: These types of ceremonies can be performed by all means Beyond simple tolerance, Asoka displayed support for religions other than his own. The Seventh Rock Edict addresses this: Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, desires that all religions should reside everywhere. Asoka goes even further by encouraging people to actively learn about other religions and beliefs. The Twelfth Rock Edict proclaims:
Therefore contact (between religions) is good. One should listen to and respect the doctrines professed by others. Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, desires that all should be well-learned in the good doctrines of other religions.

Concern for the Welfare of Others

One of the most basic elements of being concerned with the welfare of others is to strive to reduce suffering. Asoka took many steps to reduce the suffering of both humans and animals. The second rock edict describes an initiative to provide medical treat for both humans and animals. It appears that these services where provided to citizen and non-citizen alike. Facilities where even built outside of the empire: Everywhere within Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi's domain, and among the people beyond the borders, the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Satiyaputras, the Keralaputras, as far as Tamraparni and where the Greek king Antiochos rules, and among the kings who are neighbors of Antiochos, everywhere has Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, made provision for two types of medical treatment: medical treatmentfor humans and medical treatment for animals. Wherever medical herbs suitable for humans or animals are not available, I have had them imported and grown. Wherever medical roots or fruits are not available I have had them imported and grown. Along roads I have had wells dug and trees planted for the benefit of humans and animals.
This type of action supports the statement, found in the first of the Kalinga Rock Edicts that Asoka felt that all people where his children. It is significant that he should claim all people and not just his subjects. This is evidence of genuine compassion, as opposed to the purely political motivation.

Asoka was pioneering in his concern for the well being of animals. The first of Asoka's fourteen rock edicts addresses the killing of animals directly:
Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, has caused this Dhamma edict to be written. Here (in my domain) no living beings are to be slaughtered or offered in sacrifice.

The Fifth Pillar Edict specifically list a number of animals that are to be protected. Perhaps this is one of the earliest protected species list. In addition to the enumeration of the list of protected species, the edict concerns itself with the treatment of domestic animals and encourages humane treatment of them.

The next logical step beyond the reduction of suffering is the active promotion of the well-being of others. We now explore the evidence that this was also part of Asoka's Dhamma.

In Rock Edict Six Asoka states very plainly: There is no better work than promoting the welfare of all the people The first of the Kalinga Rock Edicts was a particularly clever device for letting his subjects know how important their welfare was to him. The Edict, placed where all the public could see, contains directives to Asokas official. In this edict he tells his officials:
All men are my children. What I desire for my own children, and I desire their welfare and happiness both in this world and the next, that I desire for all men. You do not understand to what extent I desire this, and if some of you do understand, you do not understand the full extent of my desire.
In this same edict he states that he will send out auditors to see that the local officials are treating the people justly, and are acting to promote the welfare of the populace.

In the Second of the Kalinga Rock Edicts Asoka makes it clear that his policy of Dhamma, of treating people well and promoting their welfare extends beyond the boundaries of his kingdom:
The people of the unconquered territories beyond the borders might think: "What is the king's intentions towards us?" My only intention is that they live without fear of me, that they may trust me and that I may give them happiness, not sorrow.

The Fourth and seventh Pillar Edict are also extensively concerned with showing what Asoka as done, the lengths that he has gone to, to promote the welfare of others. The Sixth Pillar Edict declare that the public welfare was Asoka's motivation for creating these many rock and pillar edicts: Twelve years after my coronation I started to have Dhamma edicts written for the welfare and happiness of the people.

So we have found ample evidence to support that the welfare of other people was paramount to Asoka. It was also his wish that others take up this concern as well. It is hard to argue with the thought that this world becomes a better place as more people become concerned with the welfare of their fellows.

The Importance and Difficulty of Working Towards High Goals

To be concerned with, and have respect for others is good. It is much greater to act upon these noble principals. Asoka recognized this and action was a vital part of his Dhamma, as I will now attempt to show.

In the sixth rock edict we find:
Truly, I consider the welfare of all to be my duty, and the root of this is exertion and the prompt dispatch of business. There is no better work than promoting the welfare of all the people and whatever efforts I am making is to repay the debt I owe to all beings to assure their happiness in this life, and attain heaven in the next.

In the First Minor Rock Edict he encourages everyone to be zealous in following their beliefs. He seems to be saying that by following his Buddhist beliefs with zeal, he has caused good things to happen. Further, it is not the fact that he is a king that has made great things happen, rather, it is his active pursuit of his beliefs. from the First Minor Rock Edict:
I have become very zealous. Now the people in India who have not associated with the gods do so. This is the result of zeal and it is not just the great who can do this. Even the humble, if they are zealous, can attain heaven. And this proclamation has been made with this aim. Let both humble and great be zealous

Asoka explores the things that can interfere with a persons attempts to do good deeds in the first of the Kalinga Rock Edicts:
envy, anger, cruelty, hate, indifference, laziness or tiredness. . . your aim should be: "May these things not be in me." And the root of this is non-anger and patience

While Asoka strives to live by his ideals and to set an example for others to follow, he admits his own short comings. In the first of the fourteen rock edicts, right after he states that animals should not be slaughtered, he states:
Formerly, in the kitchen of Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, hundreds of thousands of animals were killed every day to make curry. But now with the writing of this Dhamma edict only three creatures, two peacocks and a deer are killed, and the deer not always. And in time, not even these three creatures will be killed.
Here he admits that he has not yet completely achieved this ideal, though he is committed to it. The example here would seem to be, that we should strive to achieve our goals, without becoming discouraged when we fall short. Further, we should not be satisfied with a partial achievement, but continue to strive for the full achievement of our goals.

In the Thirteenth Rock Edict we find Asoka expressing remorse for using force, and thus causing suffering when he conquered the Kalingas. Once again he admits that he is not perfect, and that he has done things which he considers incorrect and counter to the ideals that he strives for. Of course, the conquest of the Kalingas was prior to his adoption of the policy of Dhamma. Asoka tells how he learned from this mistake and used his error to find a better direction when he says:
Now Beloved-of-the-Gods feels deep remorse for having conquered the Kalingas. . . Now it is conquest by Dhamma that Beloved-of-the-Gods considers to be the best conquest.

The Tenth Rock Edict deal with the concept that it is difficult to do good things, but that they are the only things worth doing. It also would seem to state that Asoka considers Dhamma to be much greater than himself, and that he is only a servant of Dhamma, that he can only hope to be regarded as great if he serves this cause well. This is very noble for someone who could easily make claims of greatness, he is a king after all, but he seems to be saying that: his material achievements are of little value, he could only be great if he helps others to be fulfilled in this world and the next.
Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, does not consider glory and fame to be of great account unless they are achieved through having my subjects respect Dhamma and practice Dhamma, both now and in the future. For this alone does Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, desire glory and fame. And whatever efforts Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, is making, all of that is only for the welfare of the people in the next world, and that they will have little evil. And being without merit is evil. This is difficult for either a humble person or a great person to do except with great effort, and by giving up other interests. In fact, it may be even more difficult for a great person to do.

Conclusion

Through an exploration of the legacy of Asoka and his concept of Dhamma I have found three core values:
1. respect for other people and beliefs
2. concern for the welfare of others
3. the importance and difficulty of working towards high goals

I have shown that hard evidence, in the form of Asoka's Rock and Pillar Edicts,exists to support the idea that these themes where of central importance to Asoka. I think his reputation as a great emperor is firmly based. Additionally, these ideals of Dhamma are no less valid today than they were in Asoka's time.

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Questions or comments? Send e-mail to Chris Sims