Kalinga War

Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire ruled like no other. Ashoka Maurya built the largest empire in Indian history, paved the road for Buddhism’s entrance as a major world religion, and strengthened the Silk Roads for trade.[1] Many people believe that he ruled tyrannically, like a despot who enjoyed bloodshed and war, such as those accounts translated by Dr. Pradip Bhattacharya. Even though Ashoka admitted to his poor leadership skills in the beginning, he went through a spiritual revival that led him to become a great leader in history. Afterwards, Ashoka promoted Buddhism, gave up war and violence, and made laws to endorse peace and justice in his kingdom, and beyond.[2] Ashoka the Great inspired the Mauryan Empire to its zenith through his leadership, compassion, dedication, and integrity, as well as his visionary optimism for equality and goodwill throughout his realm. Ashoka 's original methods of ruling his empire followed the mannerisms of his ancestors, especially emulating his grandfather 's ways: efficient but cruel. Prior to Ashoka’s rule, the Mauryan Empire consisted of Pakistan and India, minus the east coast and southernmost tip.…

From the remorse over the death and violence of wars, to providing medicine to his people, Asoka deeply cared about his people. “I have decreed that prisoners who have been consulted and sentenced to death shall be granted a respite of three days when their relatives may appeal to the officials for the prisoners’ lives.” (Document D). Even through the bad deeds they have done, Asoka still gave the criminals a chance to prove their innocence and defend themselves so that their lives could be…

the Maurya Dyansty. He was said as one of the greatest king in the Indian history. Under his control, the empire extended its territories and became the largest to have ever existed in the acient Indian subcontinent, The Maurya Empire(322-185 BCE) was ruled by the Mauryan dynasty. The empire is known for its military strength, highly organized and powerful political in ancient India. Ashoka was better leader than previous kings due to the fact that he used his military power to expand the…

brother Sumisa. Afterwards, the Tarantha texts state that Asoka killed six of his other brothers. It was then that Asoka’s youngest brother, Tissa, realized that the only way to spare his own life would be to desert his home and join a sect of Buddhist monks, in the process throwing away any chance he once had at claiming the throne. Finally, after four years of quarrelling and killing, Asoka thought himself safe from treason and formally crowned himself as the King of the Mauryan dynasty, with…

an army, expecting Asoka to die. Susima attemted to kill his half-brother, again. Asoka kills the assassin. His mother expresses concern and tells Asoka to leave the city. At his mother’s request Asoka leaves his father’s empire because of the life threatening sibling opposition for the throne. He hides his identity and demerits himself to a Magadha soldier. While Asoka is off in the wilderness he comes across the prince and princess of Kalinga who had been orphaned and were in hiding from their…

he violently took over regions, greedily took over places for economic reasons, and because he tries earning forgiveness by giving rich gifts to the poor, how selfish. Lastly, Asoka tries to be enlightened by telling people that he is. Now let's find out why Asoka was a ruthless conqueror. For one thing, Asoka was a ruthless conqueror because in 261 B.C.E, Asoka completed his empire by violently taking over Kalinga. “As a result of this battle, there was 100,000 Kalingans killed during battle,…

I chose the reign of Ashoka as the most important event in World History. Ashoka was the grandson of Chandragupta. He reigned as the governor of two Buddhism provinces while being a young prince. After his father died, he was at war with his brothers for the throne. He won the throne after four years and ruled intelligently and energetically. What made this event stand out to me as the most important was the conquering and slaughtering of Kalinga on the east coast of India. Ashoka himself…

Water, a natural resource deemed to be a right, is fast depleting. Our planet’s fresh water reserves present an unfavorable picture, with only 1% out of 3% accessible for direct human use. This scarcity, fueled by unequal distribution amongst countries caused by geographical and political obstacles, raises the potential of “water wars”. Such concerns are exacerbated by uncontrollable population growth, pollution due to industrialization and modernization, and climate change. A new approach to…

It is rare to have wars based solely on religion, although they make up about 40% of all other wars fought. Religious wars are motivated by a higher power or idol that is said to have commanded radical groups to kill in an unjust manner. Ethnic cleansing, for instance, is one aspect of war against religion. The Holocaust, for example, was a war against millions of Jewish men, women, and children were killed because of their ethnic background. Hitler’s affirmation of dominance of his race was…

The students talk about the prevalence of these practices in elementary school right through to high school, where some claim that “everyone gets beaten up by him (a teacher)...even the Advanced Level boys get beaten up”. Meaning older and stronger boys are also susceptible to being struck, not just those who are in younger grades. However, the girls point out how teachers are somewhat cautious about disciplining older boys. This statement is also interesting because it points out how these…