Friday, November 27, 2009

RELIGION

RELIGION

Hinduism, Buddhism and ]ainism were the popular reli­gions at the time and there existed some rivalry between them. However, on the whole, religious toleration was the order of the day. Hinduism underwent changes. Krishna, Balaram, Siva, Indra and rivers like Ganga, Yamuna were worshipped as gods and goddesses. Yajnas were 'performed but animal sacrifices had lost much of their importance. Image worship was still not in vogue.

Asoka's Dhamma Asoka's personal religion was Bud­dhism, as he has admitted in the Bhabru edict, but he did not thrust it on the population. In fact, he evolved an ethical code which was the essence of all religions and propagated it as 'Dhamma'. The Dhamma consisted of such principles as respecting and obeying one's elders and teachers, treat­ing the young with affection, maintaining good relations with neighbours, treating animals kindly, tolerating others' religions, adhering to truth, practising charity, simplicity and piety, and leading a virtuous life.

Why did Asoka fonnulate Dhamma? Chandragupta's well organised administrative machinery and Asoka's dhamma policy were the two remarkable features of the Mauryan rule in ancient India. In fact, Asoka's dhamma is even more remarkable than Chandragupta's administrative set-up. It is dhamma that has made Asoka one of the greatest rulers in Indian history.
There were several factors that prompted Asoka to
formulate the policy.
(i) The Mauryan imperial set-up encompassed various cultures, beliefs and social and political trends. So Asoka was left with only two options to control so complex an empire: maintaining the structure by force or defining a set of social order which would be acceptable to all. Asoka wisely opted for the latter. Hence the policy of dhamma.
(ii) The rise of Buddhism, Jainism and Ajivikism-all opposed to the domination of the Brahmans-generated tensions in society. These heterodox sects had a growing number of followers. But Brahmans still commanded a strong hold on society. Given the situation, hostility among different sects seemed inevitable. Hence Asoka developed dhamma to bring about a climate of harmony and mutual trust in society.
(iii) Within the empire, there were some areas where neither the Brahmanical system nor the heterodox sects had an access. The example of the Yavanas country, as referred by Asoka himself, may be mentioned in this context. Hence, the need of a mechanism envisaging some common pattern of social behaviour and common approach to the problems of society was felt.

5 comments:

  1. This article was really useful for my AP World History Class! Thanks!

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  2. Anda butuh UANG ?? Datang kesini kami bagi UANG "UANG PESUGIHAN"

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  3. I found the information very helpful and the its explanation of Ashoka. Thank you.

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