Emperor Ashoka
The great Indian emperor, Ashoka, was born in 265 B.C. He was the grandson of Changragupta Maurya and he ruled over an empire that covered two-thirds of the Indian continent. He was the most famous of the Mauryan kings and was one of the greatest rulers of India.

The capital of the empire was in the city of Pataliputra (modern day Patna) , where Buddha had lived.

Emperor Ashoka was very courageous and a good administrator. Though he was the younger son of the king he was given the throne after the kings death because he was loved and respected by his subjects and by his ministers. In 268 B.C., Ashoka was crowned the king of Magadha.

8 Years after being crowned the king, Ashoka decided to annex Kalinga(Orissa) into his kingdom. This was the first and last battle that Ashoka ever fought. Though Ashoka won the battle he was horrified by the loss of life and death of so many soldiers.
Did You Know. This experience changed him and he swore that he would never wage war again. He took-up Buddhism, and he vowed to practice only virtuous actions in the future. After instructions by members of the Buddhist community, Ashoka began to resemble the ideal leader, promoting prosperity and peace within society. He religiously followed the principles of Buddhism - that of truth, charity, kindness, purity and goodness.
  • The national emblem of India has been taken from the Ashoka Pillar at Sarnath.

  • The wheel, which represents kingship and earthly rule, is featured on the Indian flag.
Ashoka also asked his followers to take the path of virtuous action. He believed in non-violence and banned the sacrifice of animals. Besides this he opened clinics for birds and animals too. His good works earned him the name of Devanamapriya Priyadarshi.

He also propagated Buddhism by engraving it's principles on pillars throughout his kingdom. The Ashoka pillars, as they are now called, were over 40 feet high and extremely heavy. He also attempted to spread this religion to Syria, Egypt and Macedonia, and sent his son Mahendra and daughter Sangamitra to Sri Lanka for this purpose.
 
Ashoka died in 232 BC and is amongst the greatest rulers in the history of the Indian Subcontinent and he is respected for being the 'Ideal' ruler.