#PDF_Download Ashoka the Ungreat by Subhodeep Mukhopadhyay
Ashoka Maurya. A great king. Master strategist. A legend. The inheritor of the greatest kingdom in Indian-subcontinent. One war, the bloody Kalinga War, however changes him forever. He makes a clean break with the past. Ashoka gives up Hinduism. He gives up war. He embraces Buddhism. He becomes a humanist. A messenger of peace and religious tolerance. This is what we are taught in schools and colleges. But how much of this is really true? We worship Rama. We venerate Krishna. Our country is named after King Bharat. We recall Mandhatri when we talk of the old. We talk of Yudhistira's truthfulness. Bhima's strength. Arjuna's valor. Vikramaditya, Chandragupta, Raja Bhoja, Prithviraj Chauhan, Shivaji, Maharana Pratap, Guru Gobind Singh. They are our heroes. They are a part of our daily lives. Ashoka is not. We never talk about Ashoka conversationally. Our ancestors never talked about Ashoka. Ashoka was forgotten and unknown in I
Ashoka Maurya. A great king. Master strategist. A legend. The inheritor of the greatest kingdom in Indian-subcontinent. One war, the bloody Kalinga War, however changes him forever. He makes a clean break with the past. Ashoka gives up Hinduism. He gives up war. He embraces Buddhism. He becomes a humanist. A messenger of peace and religious tolerance. This is what we are taught in schools and colleges. But how much of this is really true? We worship Rama. We venerate Krishna. Our country is named after King Bharat. We recall Mandhatri when we talk of the old. We talk of Yudhistira's truthfulness. Bhima's strength. Arjuna's valor. Vikramaditya, Chandragupta, Raja Bhoja, Prithviraj Chauhan, Shivaji, Maharana Pratap, Guru Gobind Singh. They are our heroes. They are a part of our daily lives. Ashoka is not. We never talk about Ashoka conversationally. Our ancestors never talked about Ashoka. Ashoka was forgotten and unknown in I
6 months ago
