Ashoka’s Dhamma: Principles, Implementation and Evidence

Ashoka’s Dhamma was a moral policy and ethical code formulated by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka during the third century BCE to promote social harmony and religious tolerance across his vast empire.

Principles of Ashoka’s Dhamma

The core principles of Dhamma were derived from universal ethical values rather than any specific religious dogma.

Core Ethical Teachings

• Respect for elders, teachers, parents, and all superiors.
• Compassion towards animals, servants, and slaves.
• Practice of ahimsa, meaning non-injury and non-violence towards living creatures.
• Truthfulness, purity of heart, and liberality towards friends, relatives, and ascetics.
• Minimization of sin and promotion of good deeds through self-examination.

Social Harmony and Tolerance

• Promotion of religious harmony among different sects through mutual respect for other faiths.
• Avoidance of excessive attachment to one’s own sect while denigrating others.
• Emphasis on moral restraint over ritualistic sacrifices and ceremonies.

Implementation and Administrative Machinery

Ashoka instituted specific administrative measures and public welfare initiatives to put the principles of Dhamma into active practice across his territories.

Administrative Appointments

• Creation of a special cadre of officials called Dharmamahamatras in the fourteenth year of his reign.
• Entrusting Dharmamahamatras with the task of spreading Dhamma, supervising moral welfare, and releasing prisoners.
• Deployment of existing officials such as Rajukas and Pradesikas to propagate moral codes during administrative tours.

Public Welfare and Infrastructure

• Planting of shady trees, digging of wells, and construction of rest houses along main trade routes.
• Establishment of medical treatment facilities for both humans and animals across the empire.
• Prohibition of animal slaughter in royal kitchens and restrictions on unnecessary festive gatherings.

Epigraphic and Archaeological Evidence

The principles and propagation of Dhamma are preserved through an extensive network of rock edicts, pillar edicts, and cave inscriptions distributed across the Indian subcontinent.

Classification of Edicts

• Major Rock Edicts: Fourteen distinct edicts detailing social policies, administrative directives, and moral principles.
• Minor Rock Edicts: Early inscriptions outlining Ashoka’s personal conversion to Buddhism and personal devotion to Dhamma.
• Pillar Edicts: Seven polished stone pillars located at sites such as Topra, Meerut, and Lauria Nandangarh reiterating royal commitments.

Key Epigraphic Sites

• Kalsi: Located in Uttarakhand, containing Major Rock Edicts numbered one to thirteen.
• Girnar: Located in Gujarat, preserving the complete set of fourteen Major Rock Edicts.
• Shabazgarhi and Mansehra: Located in present-day Pakistan, inscribed in the Kharosthi script.
• Kandahar Bilingual Inscription: Written in Greek and Aramaic, illustrating the outreach of Dhamma to foreign populations.

Comparative Overview of Edict Types

Key Historical Facts

• The term Dhamma is the Prakrit form of the Sanskrit word Dharma, signifying a moral code of conduct rather than religious worship.
• James Prinsep deciphered the Brahmi script in 1837, successfully reading the inscriptions of Devanampiya Piyadassi, which identified Emperor Ashoka.
• The Barabar Hill cave inscriptions in Bihar record donations made by Ashoka to the ascetic Ajivika sect, demonstrating religious impartiality.
• Major Rock Edict XIII provides direct historical evidence of the Kalinga War and Ashoka’s subsequent remorse.
• The Lion Capital of Sarnath, featuring four Indian lions, serves as the national emblem of India and was erected by Ashoka to mark the site of the first sermon of Buddha.
• The Maski Minor Rock Edict in Karnataka explicitly uses the personal name Ashoka alongside his royal title.
• Edicts found in the northwestern frontiers of the empire were written in Aramaic and Greek to cater to local administrative populations.