A Study on Ashoka's Inscriptions with Special Reference to Karnataka
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Notes and Topics: Synopsis of Taranatha's History
SYNOPSIS OF TARANATHA'S HISTORY Synopsis of chapters I - XIII was published in Vol. V, NO.3. Diacritical marks are not used; a standard transcription is followed. MRT CHAPTER XIV Events of the time of Brahmana Rahula King Chandrapala was the ruler of Aparantaka. He gave offerings to the Chaityas and the Sangha. A friend of the king, Indradhruva wrote the Aindra-vyakarana. During the reign of Chandrapala, Acharya Brahmana Rahulabhadra came to Nalanda. He took ordination from Venerable Krishna and stu died the Sravakapitaka. Some state that he was ordained by Rahula prabha and that Krishna was his teacher. He learnt the Sutras and the Tantras of Mahayana and preached the Madhyamika doctrines. There were at that time eight Madhyamika teachers, viz., Bhadantas Rahula garbha, Ghanasa and others. The Tantras were divided into three sections, Kriya (rites and rituals), Charya (practices) and Yoga (medi tation). The Tantric texts were Guhyasamaja, Buddhasamayayoga and Mayajala. Bhadanta Srilabha of Kashmir was a Hinayaist and propagated the Sautrantika doctrines. At this time appeared in Saketa Bhikshu Maha virya and in Varanasi Vaibhashika Mahabhadanta Buddhadeva. There were four other Bhandanta Dharmatrata, Ghoshaka, Vasumitra and Bu dhadeva. This Dharmatrata should not be confused with the author of Udanavarga, Dharmatrata; similarly this Vasumitra with two other Vasumitras, one being thr author of the Sastra-prakarana and the other of the Samayabhedoparachanachakra. [Translated into English by J. Masuda in Asia Major 1] In the eastern countries Odivisa and Bengal appeared Mantrayana along with many Vidyadharas. One of them was Sri Saraha or Mahabrahmana Rahula Brahmachari. At that time were composed the Mahayana Sutras except the Satasahasrika Prajnaparamita. -
Predictive Modelling for Archaeological Sites: Ashokan Edicts from the Indian Subcontinent
GENERAL ARTICLES Predictive modelling for archaeological sites: Ashokan edicts from the Indian subcontinent Thomas W. Gillespie*, Monica L. Smith, Scott Barron, Kanika Kalra and Corey Rovzar This article focuses on the stone inscriptions ascribed to Ashoka, the 3rd century BC ruler of the Mauryan dynasty in ancient India. The locations of 29 known inscriptions and 8 environmental predictors at 1 km pixel resolution were entered into a species distribution model, that reliably pre- dicted the distribution of known Ashokan edicts (AUC score 0.934). Geologic substrate (33%), population density in AD 200 (21%), and slope (13%) explained majority of the variance in the Ashokan edict locations. We have identified 121 possible locations in the Indian subcontinent that conform to the same criteria where yet undiscovered inscriptions may be found. Keywords: Archaeology, edict locations, environmental metrics, species distribution models, stone inscriptions. TWO factors have combined that could increase the use of provide confirmation that people found the locations suit- modelling in archaeology: the availability of global land- able and worthy of investment. scape geographic information system (GIS) datasets, and The predictability of archaeological site location is the need to identify and protect sites in areas jeopardized by based on a variety of criteria, not all of which are imme- development and other human impacts. An important po- diately apparent. For example, our earliest ancestors hun- tential contributor to this process is species distribution dreds of thousands of years ago utilized caves as shelters modelling, which has been increasingly used across a va- prior to the development of built architecture, but not all riety of fields, including biogeography, ecology, conserva- known caves were occupied within a given region due to tion biology, and climate change science to identify metrics additional factors of selection, such as the preference for that define and predict species and ecosystems ranges1–4. -
Ghfbooksouthasia.Pdf
1000 BC 500 BC AD 500 AD 1000 AD 1500 AD 2000 TAXILA Pakistan SANCHI India AJANTA CAVES India PATAN DARBAR SQUARE Nepal SIGIRIYA Sri Lanka POLONNARUWA Sri Lanka NAKO TEMPLES India JAISALMER FORT India KONARAK SUN TEMPLE India HAMPI India THATTA Pakistan UCH MONUMENT COMPLEX Pakistan AGRA FORT India SOUTH ASIA INDIA AND THE OTHER COUNTRIES OF SOUTH ASIA — PAKISTAN, SRI LANKA, BANGLADESH, NEPAL, BHUTAN —HAVE WITNESSED SOME OF THE LONGEST CONTINUOUS CIVILIZATIONS ON THE PLANET. BY THE END OF THE FOURTH CENTURY BC, THE FIRST MAJOR CONSOLIDATED CIVILIZA- TION EMERGED IN INDIA LED BY THE MAURYAN EMPIRE WHICH NEARLY ENCOMPASSED THE ENTIRE SUBCONTINENT. LATER KINGDOMS OF CHERAS, CHOLAS AND PANDYAS SAW THE RISE OF THE FIRST URBAN CENTERS. THE GUPTA KINGDOM BEGAN THE RICH DEVELOPMENT OF BUILT HERITAGE AND THE FIRST MAJOR TEMPLES INCLUDING THE SACRED STUPA AT SANCHI AND EARLY TEMPLES AT LADH KHAN. UNTIL COLONIAL TIMES, ROYAL PATRONAGE OF THE HINDU CULTURE CONSTRUCTED HUNDREDS OF MAJOR MONUMENTS INCLUDING THE IMPRESSIVE ELLORA CAVES, THE KONARAK SUN TEMPLE, AND THE MAGNIFICENT CITY AND TEMPLES OF THE GHF-SUPPORTED HAMPI WORLD HERITAGE SITE. PAKISTAN SHARES IN THE RICH HISTORY OF THE REGION WITH A WEALTH OF CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AROUND ISLAM, INCLUDING ADVANCED MOSQUE ARCHITECTURE. GHF’S CONSER- VATION OF ASIF KHAN TOMB OF THE JAHANGIR COMPLEX IN LAHORE, PAKISTAN WILL HELP PRESERVE A STUNNING EXAMPLE OF THE GLORIOUS MOGHUL CIVILIZATION WHICH WAS ONCE CENTERED THERE. IN THE MORE REMOTE AREAS OF THE REGION, BHUTAN, SRI LANKA AND NEPAL EACH DEVELOPED A UNIQUE MONUMENTAL FORM OF WORSHIP FOR HINDUISM. THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF CONSERVATION IS THE PLETHORA OF HERITAGE SITES AND THE LACK OF RESOURCES TO COVER THE COSTS OF CONSERVATION. -
ANSWERED ON:25.11.2014 TOURIST SITES Singh Shri Rama Kishore
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA TOURISM LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO:403 ANSWERED ON:25.11.2014 TOURIST SITES Singh Shri Rama Kishore Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state: (a) whether tourist sites have been categorised grade-wise in the country and if so, the details thereof; (b) the details of tourist sites covered under Buddhist circuit and developed as world heritage tourist sites during the last three years and the current year; (c) whether the Government has any tourism related proposals for Vaishali in Bihar including financial assistance; and (d) if so, the details thereof? Answer MINISTER OF STATE FOR TOURISM (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) (DR. MAHESH SHARMA) (a): Madam. At present there is no grade wise categorization of tourist sites. (b): The Ministry of Tourism has identified following three circuits to be developed as Buddhist Circuits in the country with the help of Central Government/State Government/Private stake holders: Circuit 1: The Dharmayatra or the Sacred Circuit - This will be a 5 to 7 days circuit and will include visits to Gaya (Bodhgaya), Varanasi (Sarnath), Kushinagar, Piparva (Kapilvastu) with a day trip to Lumbini in Nepal. Circuit 2: Extended Dharmayatra or Extended Sacred Circuit or Retracing Buddha's Footsteps - This will be a 10 to 15 day circuit and will include visits to Bodhgaya (Nalanda, Rajgir, Barabar caves, Pragbodhi Hill, Gaya), Patna (Vaishali, Lauriya Nandangarh, Lauriya Areraj, Kesariya, Patna Museum), Varanasi (Sarnath), Kushinagar, Piparva (Kapilvastu, Shravasti, Sankisa) with a day trip to Lumbini in Nepal. Circuit 3: Buddhist Heritage Trails (State Circuits). i. Jammu and Kashmir - Ladakh, Srinagar (Harwan, Parihaspora) and Jammu (Ambaran). -
The Edicts of King Ashoka
THE EDICTS OF KING ASHOKA An English rendering by Ven. S. Dhammika THE EDICTS OF KING ASHOKA Table of Contents THE EDICTS OF KING ASHOKA........................................................................................................................1 An English rendering by Ven. S. Dhammika.................................................................................................1 PREFACE......................................................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................................................2 THE FOURTEEN ROCK EDICTS...............................................................................................................4 KALINGA ROCK EDICTS..........................................................................................................................8 MINOR ROCK EDICTS...............................................................................................................................9 THE SEVEN PILLAR EDICTS..................................................................................................................10 THE MINOR PILLAR EDICTS..................................................................................................................13 NOTES.........................................................................................................................................................13 -
Cape Comorin Volume II Issue II July 2020
ISSN: 2582-1962 Cape Comorin Volume II Issue II July 2020 An International Multidisciplinary Double-Blind Peer-reviewed Research Journal Maurya Dynasty. Myth, Legend or History Daya Dissanayake, Novelist, Poet and Blogger, Udumulla Road, Battaramulla, Sri Lanka Abstract: Over the past two centuries we have created a Maurya dynasty, or which should have been called a Chandragupta dynasty. Though Rama was deified, and the deification extended to Hanuman and Valmiki as we find at Ram Tirth in Amritsar, even Asoka Maurya has not been deified yet, leaving us the freedom to discuss the historicity of the Mauryas. In India Buddha and Mahavira have become founders of two great religious traditions. They are accepted as historical characters, and their biographies cannot be questioned, because it would amount to questioning the faith of people. About other people we come across in the long history of India, specially those who are believed to have lived Before the Common Era, we do not have any solid evidence of writing or archaeological remains to determine their historicity, chronology or about their lives. Their biographies are accepted by many as history, by a few as legends, and could even be considered myths only. We call him Chandragupta assuming he is the same Sandracottus of the Greeks. Bindusara is claimed to be his son, identified as Amitrocades. Aśoka/Devanampiya/Piyadassi is accepted as his grandson, but never mentioned by the Greeks, by any name, Greek or Indian. Chandragupta‟s biography was created by the British, selectively picking from secondary and tertiary Greek sources, and from a drama produced about eight centuries after Chandragupta. -
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Directory2019 YJCCI DHARMA CHAKRA at Village Topra Kalan, Distt. Yamunanagar YAMUNANAGAR - JAGADHRI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Yamunanagar, Haryana, INDIA C/o. ORIENTAL ENGG. WORKS PVT. LTD., INDUSTRIAL AREA, YAMUNA NAGAR -135001 (HARYANA) Tel. : +91 1732-251750 • E-mail : [email protected], [email protected] • Web : www.yjcci.com Special Steel Components Corporation · AN ISO 9001, ISO 14001 & OHSAS 18001 CERTIFIED COMPANY · Process Control Solutions & Turnkey Instrumentation Projects for Oil and Gas Refineries and Petrochemical Industries. World Class & Hightech Equipment, Safety Fittings, Valves / Gauges and Computerized System For Large LPG Storage & Bottling Plants. TM BSI OF MULTI ER LAT B ER M A E L M R E T C IAF N O E GN EM ACCREDITED ITION ARRANG INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT SYSTEM In Technical Collaboration With: MIDLAND ROCHESTER GAUGES MANUFACTURING CORPORATION INTERNATIONAL S.A. USA & EUROPE TOKYO KEISO CO., LTD. JAPAN USA METAL GOODS M A N U F O PRODUCTS A C T M U MGM LP-GAS EQUIPMENT R GI N G M EXCESS FLOW CHECK VALVES Engineered Controls COMPANY USA International, Inc. SCG (Thailand) Germany With Best Compliments From: NK Gupta, Vinod Gupta & Vishal Gupta M-9, Industrial Area, Yamunanagar - 135 001 (Haryana) INDIA Tel.: +91-1732-255055 to 60 • Fax: +91-1732-255057 • E-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.specialsteel.net 1 2 UPPER INDIA Mfrs of ZINC OXIDE 382715: +91-9978629532, +91-8572800368 UPPER INDIA 9215822418 3 EXECUTIVE COUNCIL For the Year 2018-2019 ATUL GUPTA RAJESH KHARBANDA MUNISH DHIMAN President Vice President Secretary ISH ANAND SAMIRA SALUJA VARINDER MEHANDIRATTA Treasurer Secretary General Joint Secretary EXECUTIVE MEMBERS Arun Oberoi Jaideep S. -
8. States After the Maurya Empire
8. States after the Maurya Empire 8.1 The Shunga dynasty 8.1 The Shunga dynasty 8.2 Indo-Greek kings After Emperor Ashoka, Maurya power 8.3 Kushana kings started declining. The last Maurya Emperor 8.4 The Gupta dynasty was called Brihadratha. The Maurya 8.5 The Vardhan dynasty General Pushyamitra Shunga revolted against Brihadratha, killed him and 8.6 Powers in Northeast India became the king himself. 8.2 Indo-Greek kings Emperor Kanishka : Kanishka’s During this period, there were several empire extended from Kabul in the west small kingdoms ruled by Greek kings to to Varanasi in the east. Gold and copper the northwest of the Indian subcontinent. coins minted by him have been found in Those kings are known as Indo-Greek North India. The fourth Buddhist kings. In the history of the coins of ancient Council was held in Kashmir during his India, the coins of these kings are very reign. He established the city of important. They had a tradition of putting Kanishkapur in Kashmir. It is believed the picture of the king on one side and that the village of Kampur near Srinagar that of a deity on the other side. This today could be Kanishkapur. tradition later took root in India. One of The well-known poet Ashvaghosh the famous Indo-Greek kings was lived during the reign of Kanishka. He Menander, who discussed Buddhist wrote the texts ‘Buddhacharita’ and philosophy with the Buddhist bhikkhu, ‘Vajrasuchi’. The famous vaidya Nagasena. Menander is also referred to as Charaka was also in Kanishka’s court. -
6. Art of Mauryan Period
ASHOKA THE GREAT : REPRESENTING THE ACME OF INDIAN CULTURE 1 ARTS OF THE MAURYAN PERIOD 3 Royal Palace 4 Pillars, Sculptures and Rock-cut Architecture 5 Pillars 5 LION CAPITAL, SARNATH 6 Bull Capital , Rampurva 8 Sculptures 9 DIDARGUNJ YAKSHINI 9 Yaksha, Parkham, Mathura 11 Rock Cut Cave- Lomus Rishi 12 Chaitya, karle 14 Stupas 15 Pottery 19 Coins 20 Donors and Patronage 21 ASHOKA THE GREAT : REPRESENTING THE ACME OF INDIAN CULTURE Ashoka occupies a unique place in the history of India. His policies of universal peace, non-violence and religious harmony find no parallel in the monarchs of the world. Ashoka stands out as a monarch who combined successful kingship with idealism and philosophy. Like other rulers, Ashoka too began his reign with war - the conquest of Kalinga. However, the mindless destruction of life and property in this war shattered him so greatly that he vowed never to wage any war again. Instead he adopted the policy of Dhamma Vijaya that is conquest through dhamma. Page !1 of !22 In his thirteenth major Rock Edict, Asoka states that true conquest is by piety (the quality of being religious or reverent) and virtue. Such a decision taken by a king, who lived in an era where military might was the measure of power, earned him a unique place in history. Ashoka was a true humanist. His policies were oriented towards the welfare of his people. His dhamma was based on social responsibility. Besides giving importance to respecting brahmins, and servants, obedience to elders, abstention from killing living beings, dhamma also asked people to live in religious harmony. -
Depiction of Asoka Raja in the Buddhist Art of Gandhara
Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan Volume No. 54, Issue No. 2 (July - December, 2017) Mahmood-ul-Hasan * DEPICTION OF ASOKA RAJA IN THE BUDDHIST ART OF GANDHARA Abstract Asoka was the grandson of the Chndragupta Maurya, founder of one of the greatest empires of the ancient India (321-297 BC). The empire won by Chandragupta had passed to his son Bindusara, after his death, it was again transmitted to his son Asoka. During early years of his kingship he was a very harsh ruler. But after witnessing the miseries and suffering of people during the Kalinga War (260 BCE.) Ashoka converted to Buddhism and decided to substitute the reign of the peace and tranquility for that of violence. Due to his acts of piety and love for the Buddhist faith he become the most popular and personality after Buddha for the Buddhists. Many legends associated with him i.e. “a handful dust”, “redistribution of Relics”, “ his visit of underwater stupa at Ramagrama” are depicted in Gandhara Art. In the present article an effort has been made to identify and analyze the legends of Ashoka in the light of their historical background. Keywords: Chandragupta Maurya, Bindusara, Ashoka, Kalanga war, Buddhism. Introduction The Buddhist Art of Gandhara came in to being in the last century before the Christian era, when the Sakas were ruling in the North-West (Marshall, 1973:17) and further developed during the Parthian period (1st century A.D.). Like the Sakas, the Parthians were confirmed philhellenes and proud of their Hellenistic culture, and not only had they large numbers of Greek subjects in their empire but they were in a position to maintain close commercial contacts with the Mediterranean coasts (Ibid: 6). -
Ashoka's Edicts & Inscriptions
AsHokA’s Edicts & inscriptions The great Emperor Ashoka, the third monarch of the Maurya dynasty converted to Buddhism after witnessing the horrific effects of war in Kalinga. He became a champion and patron of Buddhism and strove to spread Dhamma throughout his empire and beyond. He erected pillars and edicts all over the subcontinent and even in modern-day Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan to spread the Buddha’s word. The Edicts of Ashoka are in total 33 inscriptions written on the Pillars, boulders and cave walls of Mauryan Period, during the reign of the Emperor Ashok that are dispersed throughout the Indian Sub-continent covering India, Pakistan and Nepal. These inscriptions are divided into three broad sections – 1. Major Rock Edicts 2. Pillar Rock Edicts 3. Minor Rock Edicts These edicts have mentioned that Buddhism as a religion had reached as far as Mediterranean under the Ashokan reign. Many Buddhist monuments had been created in the wide-spread area. In these edicts, Buddhism and the Buddha are also mentioned. But primarily these edicts focus more on social and moral precepts rather than the religious practices (or the philosophical dimension) of Buddhism during Ashoka’s reign. A notable thing in these inscriptions is, that Ashoka refers to himself in many of these inscriptions as “Devampiyaa” which means “Beloved of the Gods” and “King Piyadassi.” Language used: The inscriptions found in the eastern parts of Mauryan empire are written using the Brahmi script in Magadhi language. While in the western parts of the empire, the script used is Kharoshti, written in Prakrit. -
192. Great Stupa at Sanchi Madhya Pradesh, India. Buddhist, Maurya
192. Great Stupa at Sanchi Madhya Pradesh, India. Buddhist, Maurya, late Sunga Dynasty. c. 300 B.C.E. – 100 C.E. Stone masonry, sandstone on dome The Great Stupa at Sanchi is the oldest stone structure in India[1] and was originally commissioned by the emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE built over the relics of the Buddha It was crowned by the chatra, a parasol-like structure symbolising high rank, which was intended to honour and shelter the relics 54 feet tall and 120 feet in diameter The construction work of this stupa was overseen by Ashoka's wife, Devi herself, who was the daughter of a merchant of Vidisha. Sanchi was also her birthplace as well as the venue of her and Ashoka's wedding. In the 1st century BCE, four elaborately carved toranas (ornamental gateways) and a balustrade encircling the entire structure were added With its many tiers it was a symbol of the dharma, the Wheel of the Law. The dome was set on a high circular drum meant for circumambulation, which could be accessed via a double staircase Built during many different dynasties . An inscription records the gift of one of the top architraves of the Southern Gateway by the artisans of the Satavahana king Satakarni: o "Gift of Ananda, the son of Vasithi, the foreman of the artisans of rajan Siri Satakarni".[ o Although made of stone, they were carved and constructed in the manner of wood and the gateways were covered with narrative sculptures. They showed scenes from the life of the Buddha integrated with everyday events that would be familiar to the onlookers and so make it easier for them to understand the Buddhist creed as relevant to their lives At Sanchi and most other stupas the local population donated money for the embellishment of the stupa to attain spiritual merit.