The Past and Present Society

Aoka and Buddhism

Author(s): Romila Thapar
Source: Past and Present, No. 18 (Nov., 1960), pp. 43-51
Published by: Oxford University Press on behalf of The Past and Present Society
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ASOKAAND BUDDHISM
THE CULT OF ASOKA HAS BEEN POPULAR IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY

India. Duringthe last ten yearsit hasinereasedeonsiderably. Not

only have Asokan symbols been adoptedby the Governmentof
India,but muehof modernIndianpolitiealthinkingis beingrelated
to Asokanideas. As is the ease with all heroes of the past, the
moderndelineationis not alwayshistorieallyaeeurate. The initial
diffieulty is that of distinguishingbetween the man and the
statesman.
This eonfusion is frequent in reeent studies on the emperor
Asoka,andis due in partto the eireumstanees
in whiehthe evidenee
abouthim beeameknown. Priorto I837, Asokawas largelya mere
name in the genealogiesof Indian kings ineluded in the aneient
texts, the Puranas.l
We are told that he belongedto the Mauryan
dynasty, was the grandsonof Candragupta,the founder of the
dynastyandthathe reignedfor thirty-sixyears. Candragupta
began
his eareerin circa 32I B.C. He was thus a near eontemporaryof
Alexanderof Maeedon,and is believedas a youngmanto havemet
Alexanderduring the latter's campaignin north-westernIndia.2
Furtherinformationaboutthe first two Mauryanrulersis available
from Greek and Latin sourees3whieh deseribethe elose relations
between CandraguptaMauryaand Seleueus Nieator, who on the
cleathof Alexander,foundedthe Seleueiddynastyat Babylon. There
is little refereneeto ANokaandhis work,in the post-Mauryan
period.
A few inseriptionsof the twelfth eenturyA.D. refer to him in a
generallyvaguemanner.
The emperorAioka in his lifetime issued a series of ediets and
proclamations,whieh were inseribedon roeksurfaeesand on finely
polished sandstonepillars throughouthis vast empire. Most of
theseinseriptionsarein Brahmi,the earliestIndianseriptso farknown
to havebeenusedforthe writingof SanskritandPrikrit.4 Asthe seript
developedand ehangedthroughthe eenturies,the earlierversions
becamearchaic.As no systematicstudyofthis seriptwasmaintained,
it
eventuallybecameunreadable,
andtheinseriptionsof Aiokatherefore
made no impressionon later writingof history. It was not until
I837 that they weredeeipheredby JamesPrinsep.
The emphasison their Buddhisteontenteameaboutin a curious
way. In the inscriptions,the authoris deseribedas Devanampiya
Piyadassiraja, The Belovedof the Gods, the king Piyadassi. The
kingseldomusedhis personalname,Asoka,andgenerallyreferredto

44

PAST AND PRESENT

himselfby the abovetitle. The identificationof the king Piyadassi

was madeon the basisof a comparisonwith the Buddhistchronicles
6 The discovery
of Geylonin whichAsokais referredto as Piyadassi.
of an inscriptionin I9I5 (andothersmorerecently),containingboth
the title aIld the personalname, however confirmedthe identification. It is clear from ANoka'sedicts that he was a Buddhist.6
Buddhist sources from Ceylon, Tibet and China contain fairly
detailed accounts of his life. The Asokan edicts weretherefore
interpretedon the basis of informationprovidedby these sources.
his life and activities
It is indeedunfortunatethat in reconstructing
these and other religious sources were regardedas reliable and
complementaryevidence to that of his own inscriptions. The
Buddhistsources,naturallywishingto takeadvantageof the fact that
of piety,
Asokawas a Buddhist,madehim out to be a personification
a picturewhichis not endorsedby his owninscriptions.
In the studies of Asokahe is generallydepictedas havingbeen
suddenlyconvertedto Buddhismas a result of his remorseat the
crueltyinflictedon the peopleof Kalingaduringhis campaignin that
country,in the ninth year of his reign. Conformityto Buddhist
ethics then appearsto becomethe sole concernof the king's life.
Smith (the first historianto write a monographon ANoka),has
describedhim as a monk and monarchat the same time.7 This
approach,thoughnot acceptedliterallyby all historians,has neverof Asoka'sreign. Amongthe
thelessconditionedhistoricalanaNysis
moreextremeviews is that of Fritz Kern,who tried to examinethe
of
intlerspringsof Asoka'sactionsagainstthe theologicalbackground
existenceboth in this worldand the afterlife, as well as of whathe
believes to be a widespreaddesire on the part of Indiansof this
periodto becomeasceticsand to escapefrom life by other means.
He depictsat greatlength the supposedconflictin the mind of the
king who wishesto free himselfof earthlyties and yet is conscious
of his responsibilityas a ruler to society.8 ANokawas certainly
attractedto Buddhismand becamea practisingBuddhist. But his
was not an eccentricor suddenconversionas is clearfrom his own
edicts. Buddhismin the contextof societyas it was then, was not
just anotherreligion. It was the resultof a widespreadmovement
towardschangewhich affectedmany aspectsof life from personal
ofthe
beliefsto socialideas. Any statesmanwith an understanding
periodwouldhavehadto cometo termswith such an importantnew
development.
The inscriptionsare of two kinds. The smallergroupconsistsof
declarationsof the kingas a lay Buddhistto his church,the Buddhist

ASOKA AND BUDDHISM

45

Samgha.9 These describe his own acceptance of Buddhism and his

relationship with the Samgha. Here the somewhat intolerant and
wholly credulous believer appears, as in one inscription where he
proclaims in no uncertain terms that dissident monks and nuns must
be expelled from the Order. Another inscription in a less fanatical
vein speaks of the various scriptures with which all good Buddhists
should be familiar. By far the most important inscriptions are
those of the larger group which may be described as proclamations
to the public at large. This group consists of the Major and Minor
Rock Edicts and the Pillar Edicts.l? These inscriptions explain his
well-known policy of Dhamma. (Dhammais the Prakritform of the
Sanskrit word Dharma,virtually untranslatableinto English. It has
been variously translated as Morality, Piety, Righteousness, etc.
Since the precise nuance of the word cannot be conveyed, I prefer
to keep it in the original.) It was in the conception of this policy,
seen in the context of Mauryan India, that the true achievement of
Asoka lay. He did not see Dhammaas piety resulting from good
deeds inspired by formal religious beliefs, but as an emphasis on
social responsibility.
In the past historians have generally interpreted Asoka's Dhamma
almost as a synonym for Buddhism, suggesting thereby thatAfoka
was concerned with making Buddhism a state religion. It is doubtful
if this was his intention although he himself, as a firm believer in
Buddhism, was convinced that it was the way to personal salvation.
The policy of Dhammawas a policy of social responsibility. It
aimed at building up an attitude of mind in which social behaviour,
the behaviour of one person towards another, was considered of great
importance. It was a plea for the recognition of the dignity of man,
and for a humanistic spirit in the activities of society.
In examining this policy it is necessary to analyse the conditions
which gave rise to it. It was in part a policy which was nurtured in
the mind of Asoka, but since he saw it largely as a solution to existing
problems, it is in the light of these problems that its true value can be
assessed. Afoka's private beliefs and his immediate environment of
course had their share in moulding the policy. As a family, the
Mauryas did not conform to the accepted religion of most royal
families of the time, Brahmanism. Candraguptais said to have been
a Jaina, and Bindusara the father of ANokafavoured the Ajlvikas.
Both of these were non-orthodox sects and if anything antagonistic
to Brahmanicalideas. The teachings of Mahavlra,who preached in
the sixth century B.C. and who was a near contemporaryof the Buddha,
came to be called Jainism. It began as a protest against certain

46

PAST AND PRESENT

aspects of Brahmanism,the prevailing religion. There was a

considerablestress on non-violenceto the extent of insisting that
even the accidentalkillingof minuteinsectswassinful. All creation
was said to functionin accordancewith a universallaw, thus the
powerof the gods (who were the prime moversof the universein
Brahmanicalbelief) was greatlyreduced. In fact Mahavlrararely
refersto the gods in this capacitywhich has led to Jainismbeing
describedas atheistic. The transmigration
of soulswasfundamental
to Jaina thinking. Like the Buddhists,the Jainas also aimed at
Nirvana,or the "ceasingof being reborn". The Ajlvikamovement
wascontemporary
withJainism. This againtendedto be atheisticand
maintainedthatthe actionsandeventsof one'slife cannotbe changed
since they are predeterminedby one's karmaor destiny. This
determinismwas in conflictwith the Brahmanical
belief that a man
couldimprovehis lot in his nextlife by beingvirtuousandconforming
to Brahmanicallaws in his present life. These were considered
hereticalbeliefs,andit is thereforenot surprisingthat Asokahimself
did not conformto Brahmanical
theoryand preferredto supportthe
Buddhists.
The sixth centuryB.C. in Indiamay be describedas a centuryof
questioning. The existenceof a variety of sects concernedboth
with religiousbeliefandphilosophicalspeculationtestifiesto a period
of vigorousdebateanddiscussion. Not onlywerethe existingvalues
questionedbut each newly developedtheory was put through a
severe test of criticism. The uncompromisingmaterialismof the
early Carvakasbattled with the metaphysicalsubtleties of the
Upanisadicthinkers. The Brahmanicalstrongholdgraduallybuilt
up throughthe later Vedic period (from circa 900 B.C. onwards),
was being attackedby the new forces. The privilegesof the priests
werebeing questioned,so too the efficacyof the ceremoniesand the
ritualswhich they performed. The castesystem,whichhad begun
to assumethe featuresof its later rigidity,also came under attack,
thoughoften not in a directway.ll Generallythe less fortunateof
the fourcastestendedto favourthe newsectsas againsttheirprevious
allegianceto Brahmanism. This was particularlythe case with the
third caste, the vaisyas. Though technicallyincluded among the
highlyfavouredtwice-born(i.e. firstwith theirnaturalbirthandthe
secondtime on theirinitiation),in the practicalmattersof dailylife
theytendedto be excludedfromthe privilegesof the firsttwo castes.12
Buddhismwas, as it were,the spearheadof thesedissidentgroups.
It demandeda relaxingof the socialrigidityencouragedby the caste
system. As it did not favourthe privilegesof the uppercastes,it

ASOKA AND BUDDHISM

47

hada tremendousappealamongthe othersectionsof society.13 The

ritualisticside of Buddhismassociateditself with the popularcults,
such as those connectedwith tree-worshipand the fertilitycults.l4
The conceptionof the "MiddleWay"propagateda code of ethics
which took into considerationthe practicalnecessitiesof daily life
and did not demandthe impossible. This must have provideda
workablesolutionto the many who could not or did not have the
leisure to find salvationthroughbecomingascetics in the best of
Brahmanical
traditions. Addedto this was the fact that there was
a large element of democracyin the organisationof Buddhist
monasteriesduring this period.l5 Thus Brahmanismwas seeking
to establishitself with the rigidityin social ideas and emphasison
temporalcontrolwhichwereto characteriseit in the early centuries
A.D., while at the sametime the dissidentgroupstriedto keepback
this force.
These religiousand socialtrendswererelatedto certaineconomic
changesof a fundamentalnaturewhichhad occuredin the centuries
immediatelybefore the Mauryanperiod. The Aryaneconomyin
northernIndia, a semi-nomadicpastoraleconomyduringthe early
Vedicperiod(up to circa 900 B.C.), waschangingto a settledagrarian
village economy. This was the naturalstep after the forests had
been clearedand agrarianvillage communitiesbecamethe general
patternin the Gangesvalley. However,thesechangesdid not occur
at a uniformpacethroughoutthe sub-continent. Areasin the Deccan
for instanceremainedat a pastoralstage for a longerperiod. The
new economyin the northernregionbroughtwith it the institution
of bureaucracyin the rural officersand the tax-collectors. The
expansionof the agrarianeconomy at this stage acceleratedthe
realisation that a single predominanteconomy facilitated the
evaluationof taxes. There was also much to be gainedfrom such
an economyby those who governed,since it would permit more
easilythananyotherthe almostpermanentfixingof taxationsystems
and tax rates. The predictabilityof revenuein the form of taxes
created a feeling of economic security. These ideas are clearly
expressedin a text on policy which dates from this period, the
Arthasaslra. It waswrittenby Kautalyathe ministerof Candragupta.
The authorassumesthat monarchyis the idealformof government
andelaboratesin greatdetailon the processesof administration
under
such a system. State supervisionof practicallyevery activity is
advised. The rightof the stateto tax all possiblesourcesof income
is claimed.
Together with the establishmentof an agrarianeconomy, the

48

PAST AND PRESENT

pre-Mauryanperiod saw the openingup of trade on an extensive

scale. This also resultedin the increasingimportanceof the Vaisyas
whoormed the majorityof the tradersandmerchants. The material
improvement
of the Vaisyas throughtradestrengthenedtheirposition
in urban life and fanned their resentmentagainstthe unjustified
privilegesof the uppercastes. The establishmentof guildsushered
in a new factorin urbansociety. City life cameto dependon them
to a high degreeand the sociallymorefavouredhad now to contend
witha new opposition. Tradedevelopedinternally,with neighbouring countriesand with those acrossthe seas. The penetrationof
Aryan culture into south India increasedduring this period and
followedthe various trade routes. These were usually along the
rivervalleys. The volumeof tradealongthe overlandroutesacross
modernAfghanistanandPersiato the Mediterranean
ports,increased
greatly. For the many Greeksettlersalongthese routes,who were
desertersfrom Alexander'sarmy and others, this east-west trade
becamea highlylucrativebusiness. Regulartradewasalsoconducted
between Broachon the west coast of India, and Babylon.l6 The
communicationof ideas must also have accompaniedthe trade in
spices,textiles,preciousstonesand go]d.
Up to a point these economicfactorsassis.edin the evolutionof
the politicalpattern. The Mauryanperiod saw the impositionof
imperial control over an extensive area of small kingdoms and
republics. During the reign of ANoka,the empireincludedalmost
the entire sub-continentof India and parts of Afghanistan. This
imperialsystemwas a comparatively
new featureto Indianpolitics.
The previousdynasty,the Nandas,had ruledan empirefor a short
period,but it wasnot nearlyas extensiveas that of the Mauryas,nor
did it includesuch a varietyof peoplesand cultures. The Mauryan
empirewasnot restrictedto the Gangesvalleyandits neighbourhood,
wherethe populationwas eitherAryanin cultureor was acquainted
with Aryanculture. It includedmore diverseelements,many of
whom were thrown togetherfor the first time. The hub of the
empirewasthe highlyAryanisedregionof Magadhain modernBihar.
The extremitieshoweverwere quite foreign to each other. The
cosmopolitanIndo-Greekregion of Gandharain the north-west,
belongedto an almosttotally differentculturefrom the Dravidian
south. The size and scope of the imperialstructure,togetherwith
the diversityof its constituents,led to the emergenceof a political
form that placed an overwhelmingemphasis on governmental
machineryand authority.
It would seem that the people of the Mauryanempireneededa

ASOKA AND BUDDHISM

focus or some commonstand for all these conflictingor divergent

forces, somethingthat would draw them togetherand give thema
feelingof unity. Such a focus wouldnaturallyhavegreatersuccess
if supportedby the emperor,since the structureof MauryanIndia
invested control in the ruler at the centre. In fact the empero
himself was the authorof a movementwhich aimed at this very
object. In seekinga groupof unifyingprinciples,Asokaconcentrated
on the fundamentalaspects of each issue, and the result was his
policyof Dhamma.
It is apparentthat the principlesof Dhammawere acceptableto
peoplebelongingto anyreligioussect.l7 The policywasnot defined
in termsof rulesandregulations. It seemsto havebeendeliberately
left vaguein details,andonly the broadpolicyis given,whichwasto
mouldbehaviour. Of the basicprinciples,the one on whichAfoka
laid most stress and which he repeated frequentlywas that of
toleration. Toleration according to him was of two kinds: a
tolerationof people themselvesand also a tolerationof people's
beliefs and ideas. He sums it up as follows:
". . . considerationtowards slaves and servants, obedience to mother and
father, generositytowards friends, acquaintancesand relatives,and towards
priests and monks . . ."
"But the Beloved of the Gods does not consider gifts or honour to be as
importantas the advancementof the essential doctrine of all sects,. . . Its
basis is the control of one's speech, so as not to extoll one's own sect or
disparagethat of anotheron unsuitable occasions. . . On each occasion one
should honouranotherman's sect, for by doing so one increasesthe influence
of one's own sect and benefitsthat of the otherman, while by doing otherwise
one diminishesthe influenceof one's own sect and harmsthe other man's . . .
Thereforeconcordis to be commended,so that men may hear one another's
principles . . ."

Anotherprinciplefundamentalto the practiceof Dhammawas

non-violence. Asoka did not insist upon it as a religiousprecept
likethe BuddhistsandJainas,but becauseviolencewasnot in keeping
with socialbehaviour. The practiceof non-violenceconsistedboth
in the renunciation
of warandconquestby violence,anclin a restraint
on the killingof animals. But his was not a stubborninsistenceon
completenon-violence. He did recognisethat therewere occasions
when violencemight be unavoidable,as for instancewhenthe more
primitiveforest tribes were troublesometo his officers. In a very
movingpassageon the generalsuffering,physicalandmental,caused
by war,he declaresthat in adheringto Dhammahe will not conquer
by force in the future. Withoutdoubtinghis sincereintentionsin
this matter,it mayhoweverbe pointedout thattherewaslittle in the
way of territoryleft for him to conquerin the sub-continent. He
also states that he would preferhis descendentsnot to conquerby

49

5o

PAST AND PRESENT

force but if they should have tO3 then he hopes that it will be
conductedwith a maximumof mercyand clemency.
The policyof Dhammaalsoincludedmeasureswhichtodaywould
be describedas CCsocial
welfare". The emperorclaimsthat:
"On the roads I have had banyan trees planted, which will give shade to
beasts and men. I have had mango groves planted and I have had wells
dug and rest houses built every nine miles . . . And I have had many
watering places made everywherefor the use of beasts and men. But this
benefit is important)and indeed the world has enjoyed attention in many
ways from formerkings as well as from me. But I have done these things in
order that my people might conformto Dhamma'>.

He attackedin no uncertainterms what he describesas "useless

ceremoniesand sacrifices",held as a resultof superstiiiousbeliefs,as
for examplethose which were meantto ensurea safe journeyor a
quickrecoveryfroman illness. These werethe stock-in-trade
of the
lower orderof priestswho exploitedtheir positionin orderto earn
moneyon the side.
In orderto implementthis policy Asokainstituteda categoryof
officersknownas the Dhamma-mahamattas(the officersof Dhamma).
TheywereresponsibleforpublicisingDhamma,actingas the reporters
of the kingand moregenerallyfor bringingthe kingand his government in touch with public opinion. They seem graduallyto have
developedinto a typeof priesthoodof Dhamma,withextensivepowers
of interferencein the lives of the people,thus to a degreenullifying
theirverypurpose. Theywerealsosenton missionsto neighbouring
countriesand to variousHellenickingdomsin the west. Aioka was
so convincedof the successof his Dhamma and of his attemptsat
encouragingIndian society to adjustitself to the changes,that he
appearsto have believedthat his own effortsmight be of help to
otherrulerselsewhere.
Despite the fact that the reign of Asokabroughtthirty years of
peace,andmarkedmaterialpresperity(asis evidentfromarchaeological remains),neverthelessAsoka did not succeedin attemptingto
unite the empire or producelarge scale enthusiasmfor Dhwamma.
The reasonsfor this are many. Some maybe attributedto his own
faults,suchashisearlyover-enthusiasm
andhislaterself-complacency.
Otherslay outsidethe scope of Dhammaand must be soughtin the
pattern of Indian polity. In evaJuatinghis contributionit can
certainlybe saidto his creditthathe understoodthe problemsof his
age,i.e., the needfor a unifyingfactorin a societycomposedof units
at variouslevelsof development. It is unfortunatethat his solution)
the policyof Dhamma,wastoo vague,and perhapstoo idealistic.
Schoolof OrientalandAfricanStudies,London
Romila Thapar

ASOKA AND BUDDHISM

5I

NOTES
1 F. E. Pargiter,Dynastiesof the Kali Age (London, I93I), pp. 26 ff.
Alexander,lxii.
3 These accountsmay be found in the works of the following writers, Strabo
Arrian, Megasthenes,Diodorus, Ptolemy and Pliny.
4 A few inscriptions in the north-west of India are inscribed in Kharosthi
a script derived from the Persian Aramaic. In I958 a bilingual inscriptionin
Greek and Aramaicwas discoverednear Kandaharin Afghanistan
5 Dipavamsa,ed. Oldenberg(Pali Texts Soc., I879),
Vi. I.
6 Jules Bloch, Les Inscriptions
d'Asoka(Paris, I950), pp. I45-6.
7 V.
Smith, Asoka, 3rd edn. (Oxford, I920).
8 Kern, Asoka (Bern, I956).
9 The literal meaning of Samgha is "society" or "assembly". It was the
official title adopted for the Buddhist Order of monks.
10The first group consists of the Schism Edict, BhabraEdict, Rummindei
pillar inscription and the Nigalisegar pillar inscription. (Bloch, op. cit.
pp. I52-I58).
The larger and more important group consists of the Major
and Minor Rock Edicts and the Pillar Edicts. (Bloch, Op. Cit., pp. 90-I5I,
and pp. I6I-I72).
11lthe caste sysLem divides society into four main castes. The highest
caste is that of the brahmansor priests. This is followed by the kFatrSyas,
the
aristocracy,also referred to as the warrior caste. The third in rank are the
vaisyaswhich includedthe merchants,land-ownersandthe wealthiercultivators.
The fourth caste was that of the sudras,generallythe poorerpeasantsand their
counterparts in urban centres. Beyond this four-fold division were the
outcastes and the unLouchableswho were considered impure owing to the
nature of their professions. A Hindu is born into a particularcaste and no
amount of social or economic improvementcan change the caste in a person's
lifetime.
2 AitereyaBrahmana(AnandasramaSanskritSer., Poona I896), Vii. 20.
13 Evidence for these attitudes is availablefrom the 3'atakastories. These
were currentin the Buddhist period and later, and reveal a detailed picture of
society at the time.
14 This is clear from the incorporationof cult symbols in the earliestexisting
Buddhist art at the sites sacredto the religion such as Sanchi and Bharhut.
6 The rules regardingthe Orderin the VinayaPitaka point to this.
16 These routes and tradeconnectionsare mentionedin a numberof sources:
Arthasastra,ed. G. Sastri (Trivandrurn,I924-5)' Strabo, Geography,xv. I. 50
Rhys Davids, Buddhist India (London, I903), pp. I03 ff.; W. W. Tarn,
HellenisticCivzlisation(London, I927), pp. 2 I I ff.
17 In this discussion of Dhamma,the sources are the Edicts mentioned in
note I0 above.
2 Plutarch,Life of