Major Pillar Edicts of Ashoka | |
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![]() Major Pillar Edicts on the Delhi-Topra pillar. | |
Material | Sandstone |
Created | 3rd century BCE |
Present location | Indian subcontinent, Afghanistan |
Part of a series on the |
Edicts of Ashoka |
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The Major Pillar Edicts of Indian Emperor Ashoka refer to 7 separate major Edicts of Ashoka inscribed on columns (the Pillars of Ashoka), which are significantly detailed and are among the earliest dated inscriptions of any Indian monarch. An English translation of the Edicts was published by Romila Thapar. [1]
These edicts are preceded chronologically by the Minor Rock Edicts (11th year of his reign), Major Rock Edicts (12th year of his reign), and Minor pillar edicts (12th year of his reign) and constitute the most technically elegant of the inscriptions made by Ashoka. They were made at the end of the reign of Ashoka (during the 26th and 27th years of his reign), that is, from 237 to 236 BCE. [2] Chronologically they follow the fall of Seleucid power in Central Asia and the related rise of the Parthian Empire and the independent Greco-Bactrian Kingdom c. 250 BCE, and Hellenistic rulers are not mentioned anymore in these last edicts.
Edict No.7, the last Major Pillar Edict, appears exclusively on the Delhi-Topra pillar, and is testamental in nature, making a summary of the accomplishments of Ashoka during his life.
Ashoka was the third monarch of the Maurya Empire in the Indian subcontinent, reigning from around 269 BCE. [3] Ashoka famously converted to Buddhism and renounced violence soon after being victorious in a gruesome Kalinga War, yet filled with deep remorse for the bloodshed of the war. Although he was a major historical figure, little definitive information was known as there were few records of his reign until the 19th century when a large number of his edicts, inscribed on rocks and pillars, were found in modern-day India, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan. These many edicts were concerned with practical instructions in running a kingdom such as the design of irrigation systems and descriptions of Ashoka's beliefs in peaceful moral behavior. They contain little personal detail about his life. [3]
The Major Pillar Edicts of Ashoka were exclusively inscribed on the Pillars of Ashoka or fragments thereof, at Kausambi (now Allahabad pillar), Topra Kalan, Meerut, Lauriya-Araraj, Lauria Nandangarh, Rampurva (Champaran), and fragments of these in Aramaic (Kandahar, Edict No.7 and Pul-i-Darunteh, Edict No.5 or No.7 in Afghanistan) [4] [5] However many pillars, such as the bull pillar of Rampurva, or the pillar of Vaishali do not have inscriptions.
These pillar edicts include: [1]
Major Pillar Edict I
Asoka's principle of protection of the people
Major Pillar Edict II
Defines dhamma as a minimum of sins, many virtues, compassion, liberality, truthfulness and purity
Major Pillar Edict III
Preach to avoid practices of harshness, cruelty, anger, pride and other sins among the subjects
Major Pillar Edict IV
Prescribe duties and responsibilities of Rajukas, who would go every five years to different parts of empire to spread Dhamma
Major Pillar Edict V
A list of animals and birds which should not be killed on certain days, and another list of animals which have not to be killed at all occasions. Describes the release of 25 prisoners by Ashoka.
Major Pillar Edict VI
Dhamma Policy
Major Pillar Edict VII
Works done by Asoka for Dhamma Policy. He says that all sects desire both self-control and purity of mind. This edict only appears on the Delhi-Topra pillar.
Only one language was used on the pillars: Prakrit in the Brahmi script. A few derived inscriptions were made on rock in Aramaic, in areas of Afghanistan. The edicts are composed in non-standardized and archaic forms Prakrit.
The Major Pillar Edicts are generally attributed to Ashoka. [6] Strictly speaking though, the inscriptions of the Major Pillar Edicts, just as those of the Major Rock Edicts, are not inscribed in the name of "Ashoka", but in the name of "Devanampriya" ("Beloved of the God", thought to be a general regnal title like "Our Lord"), "Devanampriya Priyadasi" ("Our Lord Priyadasi", or literally "Our Lord who glances amicably") or "Devanampriya Priyadasi Raja" ("Our Lord the King Priyadasi"). [6] This title also appears in Greek in the Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription, when naming the author of the proclamation as βασιλεὺς Πιοδασσης ("King Piyodasses"), and in Aramaic in the same inscription as "our lord, king Priyadasin". [7]
The association of the Major inscriptions with "Ashoka" is only a reconstruction based on the 3rd-4th century CE Dipavamsa which associates the name "Ashoka" with the name "Priyadarsi", and an extrapolation based on the fact that the name "Ashoka" appears with the title "Devanampriya" ("Beloved of the Gods") in a few of the Minor Rock Edicts. [6] Christopher Beckwith has suggested that "Priyadarsi" was a king in his own right, probably the son of Chandragupta Maurya known to the Greeks as Amitrochates, and Ashoka was either a Buddhist legend or a much later king who authored the Buddhist Minor Rock Edicts around the 1st century CE. [6]
Conversely, the Major Pillar Edicts in the name of King Priyadasi do not have a clear Buddhist character, being mainly codes of conduct gathered under the name of "Dharma" (translated as Eusebeia ("Piety") in Greek and "Truth" in Aramaic in the Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription), and never mentioning Buddhism, the Buddha or the Samgha (except for Edict no 7 which mentions the Samgha, but the authenticity of which has been doubted by Christopher Beckwith). [6]
The Major Pillar Edicts of Ashoka are exclusively inscribed on the Pillars of Ashoka or fragments thereof, although many pillars, such as the bull pillar of Rampurva, or the pillar of Vaishali do not have inscriptions. A few other pillars (the pillars of Sanchi, Sarnath, Rummindei and Nigali Sagar) only have very short inscriptions (the "Schism Edicts", the "Queen's Edict", the "Rummindei Edict" and the "Nigali Sagar Edict"), forming the Minor Pillar Edicts.
The Major Pillar Edicts (excluding the two fragments of translations found in modern Afghanistan) are all located in the Gangetic Plain, in contrast with the Major Rock Edicts, which appear exclusively at the borders of the Maurya Empire. [8]
Name | Map | Location | Pillar | Capital/ Close-up | Rubbing |
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Lauriya-Navandgarh | Bethia, Bihar, India Google map Major Pillar Edicts 1–6. [9] 26°59′55″N84°24′31″E / 26.998479°N 84.408476°E | Located in Lauriya-Nandangarh, ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | |
Allahabad | Allahabad Fort, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. Major Pillar Edicts 1–6. [9] Also has one Schism Edict and the "Queen Edict" Former location in Kosambi: 25°21′02″N81°23′22″E / 25.350588°N 81.389549°E Current location in Allahabad: 25°25′52″N81°52′30″E / 25.431111°N 81.87500°E | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | |
Delhi-Topra | Delhi, originally from Topra in Yamunanagar district, Haryana. Major Pillar Edicts 1–7. [9] Former location in Topra: 30°07′31″N77°09′44″E / 30.1252°N 77.1623°E Current location in New-Delhi: 28°38′09″N77°14′43″E / 28.635739°N 77.245398°E | Located in ![]() | | ![]() | |
Delhi-Meerut | Delhi, originally from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. Major Pillar Edicts 1–6. [9] Former location in Meerut: 28°59′N77°42′E / 28.99°N 77.70°E Current location in Delhi: 28°40′26″N77°12′43″E / 28.673853°N 77.211849°E | Located in | ![]() | ![]() | |
Lauriya-Araraj | Bethia, Bihar, India. Major Pillar Edicts 1–6. [9] 26°33′01″N84°38′51″E / 26.550227°N 84.647581°E | Located in Lauriya near Areraj, ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | |
Rampurva | Rampurva, Bethia, Bihar, India Major Pillar Edicts 1–6. [9] Another pillar of Rampurva, the bull pillar, does not have inscriptions. 27°16′12″N84°29′58″E / 27.2699°N 84.4995°E | Located in ![]() | | ![]() | |
Asoka's principle of protection of the people.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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Defines dhamma as a minimum of sins, many virtues, compassion, liberality, truthfulness and purity.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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Abolishes sins of harshness, cruelty, anger, pride etc.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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Deals with duties of Rajukas.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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A list of animals and birds which should not be killed on some days, and another list of animals which have not to be killed at all occasions. Describes the release of 25 prisoners by Asoka.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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Dhamma Policy.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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Works done by Asoka for Dhamma Policy. He says that all sects desire both self-control and purity of mind. This edict only appears on the Delhi-Topra pillar, at the fortress of Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi.
English translation | Prakrit in Brahmi script |
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The authenticity of the 7th Edict is generally not disputed, but Christopher Beckwith has challenged it, and he suggests it is a later inscription, possibly made as late as the 5th century CE, when the old Brahmi script had not yet evolved much, and was still readable for any literate person. [11] [12] He gives numerous reasons for his doubts: [11]
There are several inscriptions in Aramaic, which seem to be translations or interpretations of passages of the Major Pillar Edicts in the Aramaic language. They were not written on pillars, but on stone blocks. The extent of their similarity with the Major Pillar Edicts is disputed.
Name | Map | Location | Overview | Capital/ Close-up | Rubbing |
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Kandahar Aramaic inscription | Found in Old Kandahar, Afghanistan ( 31°36′08″N65°39′32″E / 31.602222°N 65.658889°E ) Fragment of Major Pillar Edicts 7 in Aramaic. [9] [13] [14] | ![]() | ![]() | ||
Pul-i-Darunteh Aramaic inscription | Found in Pul-i-Darunteh, Laghman Province, Afghanistan ( 34°35′05″N70°11′00″E / 34.5846°N 70.1834°E ) Fragment of Major Pillar Edicts 5 or 7 in Aramaic. [9] [13] | ![]() | ![]() | ||
Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka, and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was Emperor of Magadha in the Indian subcontinent from c. 268 until 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynasty. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, stretching from present-day Afghanistan in the west to present-day Bangladesh in the east, with its capital at Pataliputra. A patron of Buddhism, he is credited with playing an important role in the spread of Buddhism across ancient Asia.
The Edicts of Ashoka are a collection of more than thirty inscriptions on the Pillars of Ashoka, as well as boulders and cave walls, attributed to Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire who ruled most of the Indian subcontinent from 268 BCE to 232 BCE. Ashoka used the expression Dhaṃma Lipi to describe his own Edicts. These inscriptions were dispersed throughout the areas of modern-day India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and provide the first tangible evidence of Buddhism. The edicts describe in detail Ashoka's policy on dhamma, an earnest attempt to solve some of the problems that a complex society faced. According to the edicts, the extent of Buddhist proselytism during this period reached as far as the Mediterranean, and many Buddhist monuments were created.
The pillars of Ashoka are a series of monolithic pillars dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected—or at least inscribed with edicts—by the 3rd Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great, who reigned from c. 268 to 232 BC. Ashoka used the expression Dhaṃma thaṃbhā, i.e. "pillars of the Dharma" to describe his own pillars. These pillars constitute important monuments of the architecture of India, most of them exhibiting the characteristic Mauryan polish. Twenty of the pillars erected by Ashoka still survive, including those with inscriptions of his edicts. Only a few with animal capitals survive of which seven complete specimens are known. Two pillars were relocated by Firuz Shah Tughlaq to Delhi. Several pillars were relocated later by Mughal Empire rulers, the animal capitals being removed. Averaging between 12 and 15 m in height, and weighing up to 50 tons each, the pillars were dragged, sometimes hundreds of miles, to where they were erected.
The Major Rock Edicts of Indian Emperor Ashoka refer to 14 separate major Edicts of Ashoka which are significantly detailed and represent some of the earliest dated rock inscriptions of any Indian monarch. These edicts are preceded chronologically by the Minor Rock Edicts.
Aparanta, or Aparantaka was a geographical region of ancient India. It corresponded to the northern part of the Konkan region on the western coast of India. English civil servant-turned-historian J. F. Fleet believed that the Aparanta region included Kathiawad, Kutch, and Sindh, beside Konkan. However, historical records make it clear that the extent of Aparanta was much smaller.
The Ashokan edicts in Delhi are a series of edicts on the teachings of Buddha created by Ashoka, the Mauryan Emperor who ruled in the Indian subcontinent during the 3rd century BC. The Edicts of Ashoka were either carved on in-situ rocks or engraved on pillars erected throughout the empire; examples of both are found in Delhi.
Dhamma is a set of edicts that formed a policy of the 3rd Mauryan emperor Ashoka the Great, who succeeded to the Mauryan throne in modern-day India around 269 B.C.E. Ashoka is considered one of the greatest kings of ancient India for his policies of public welfare.
Devanampriya, also called Devanampiya, was a Pali honorific epithet used by a few Indian monarchs, but most particularly the 3rd Mauryan Emperor Ashoka The Great in his inscriptions. "Devanampriya" means "Beloved of the Gods". It is often used by Ashoka in conjunction with the title Priyadasi, which means "He who regards others with kindness", "Humane".
The Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription, also known as the Kandahar Edict of Ashoka and less commonly as the Chehel Zina Edict, is an inscription in the Greek and Aramaic languages that dates back to 260 BCE and was carved by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka at Chehel Zina, a mountainous outcrop near Kandahar, Afghanistan. It is among the earliest-known edicts of Ashoka, having been inscribed around the 8th year of his reign, and precedes all of his other inscriptions, including the Minor Rock Edicts and Barabar Caves in India and the Major Rock Edicts. This early inscription was written exclusively in the Greek and Aramaic languages. It was discovered below a 1-metre (3.3 ft) layer of rubble in 1958 during an excavation project around Kandahar, and is designated as KAI 279.
The Kandahar Greek Edicts of Ashoka are among the Major Rock Edicts of the Indian Emperor Ashoka, which were written in the Greek language and Prakrit language. They were found in the ancient area of Old Kandahar in Kandahar in 1963. It is thought that Old Kandahar was founded in the 4th century BCE by Alexander the Great, who gave it the Ancient Greek name Ἀλεξάνδρεια Ἀραχωσίας.
The Vajrasana, or Enlightenment Throne of the Buddha, is an ancient stone slab located under the Bodhi tree, directly beside the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya. The slab is thought to have been placed at Bodhgayā by Emperor Ashoka The Great of the Maurya Empire between 250-233 BCE, at the spot where the Buddha meditated.
The Minor Rock Edicts of Ashoka are rock inscriptions which form the earliest part of the Edicts of Ashoka, and predate Ashoka's Major Rock Edicts. These are the first edicts in the Indian language of Emperor Ashoka, written in the Brahmi script in the 11th year of his reign. They follow chronologically the Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription, in Greek and in Aramaic, written in the 10th year of his reign, which is the first known inscription of Ashoka.
A Mahamatra was an "officer of morality" established by the Indian Maurya Emperor Ashoka. Their full title was Dhaṃma Mahāmātā, the "Inspectors of Dharma". They were apparently a class of senior officials who were in charge various aspects of administration and justice.
The Minor Pillar Edicts of Indian Emperor Ashoka refer to 4 separate minor Edicts of Ashoka inscribed on columns(Pillars of Ashoka) at 5 locations which are among the earliest dated inscriptions of any Indian monarch. A full English translation of the Edicts was published by Romila Thapar.
Priyadasi, also Piyadasi or Priyadarshi, was the name of a ruler in ancient India, most likely Ashoka the Great; literally an honorific epithet which means "He who regards others with kindness", "Humane", "He who glances amiably".
The Pul-i-Darunteh Aramaic inscription, also called Aramaic inscription of Lampaka, is an inscription on a rock in the valley of Laghman, Afghanistan, written in Aramaic by the Indian emperor Ashoka around 260 BCE. It was discovered in 1932 at a place called Pul-i-Darunteh. Since Aramaic was the official language of the Achaemenid Empire, which disappeared in 320 BCE with the conquests of Alexander the Great, it seems that this inscription was addressed directly to the populations of this ancient empire still present in northwestern India, or to border populations for whom Aramaic remained the language of use.
The Aramaic inscription of Kandahar is an inscription on a fragment of a block of limestone discovered in the ruins of Old Kandahar, Afghanistan in 1963, and published in 1966 by André Dupont-Sommer. It was discovered practically at the same time as the Greek Edicts of Ashoka, which suggests that the two inscriptions were more or less conjoined. The inscription was written in Aramaic, probably by the Indian emperor Ashoka about 260 BCE. Since Aramaic was the official language of the Achaemenid Empire, which disappeared in 320 BCE with the conquests of Alexander the Great, it seems that this inscription was addressed directly to the populations of this ancient empire for whom Aramaic remained the language of use.
The Lumbini pillar inscription, also called the Paderia inscription, is an inscription in the ancient Brahmi script, discovered in December 1896 on a pillar of Ashoka in Lumbini, Nepal by former Chief of the Nepalese Army General Khadga Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana under the authority of Nepalese government and assisted by Alois Anton Führer. Another famous inscription discovered nearby in a similar context is the Nigali-Sagar inscription. The Lumbini inscription is generally categorized among the Minor Pillar Edicts of Ashoka, although it is in the past tense and in the ordinary third person, suggesting that it is not a pronouncement of Ashoka himself, but a rather later commemoration of his visit in the area.
Ashokan Prakrit, also known as Asokan Prakrit or Aśokan Prakrit, is the Middle Indo-Aryan dialect continuum used in the Edicts of Ashoka, attributed to Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire who reigned 268 BCE to 232 BCE. The Edicts are inscriptions on monumental pillars and rocks throughout the Indian subcontinent that cover Ashoka's conversion to Buddhism and espouse Buddhist principles.