You must have seen the emblem of the Indian Government. The image of three lions with the fourth hidden at the back. Yes, for one thing, it is at the left bottom of our currency notes. This is a handsome and lasting homage to a king who lived over 2,200 years ago. We are talking about King Ashoka.
No one like him
He was called the Great King as he had never been bested in battle. His kingdom extended almost over the entire Indian subcontinent. He reigned for 37 years from 269 to 232 BC. H.G. Wells said that amid tens of thousands of names of monarchs, “Ashoka shines, shines almost alone, a star”.
Ashoka was the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya and was ruthless in eliminating his half-brothers in order to capture the throne. He was the first king to attack Kalinga (present-day Odisha).
He emerged victorious. But the river nearby turned crimson with the blood of slain soldiers numbering over 1,00,000. The haunting sight of countless women and children weeping over the dead moved him deeply. He resolved never to wage a war again.
In the words of the famous monologue “What have I done? Is this a victory or a defeat? Is this justice or injustice? Is it valour to kill innocent children and women?”
After this he was drawn to the teachings of the Buddha and soon became a devout Buddhist. He called himself Piyadasi, meaning “beloved of the gods”. There was a sea change in the monk-king. He now said: All men are my children. I am like a father to them. I wish that all men should be happy always”
During his 20th year of reign, Ashoka undertook his second pilgrimage with his daughter Sanghamitra. Wherever he went pillars and stupas were built. A stupa is a mound-like hemispherical structure which contains Buddhist relics. Besides these, Ashoka also built cave dwellings, rest houses and Buddha viharas.
Four lions
In Saranath was the Lion Capital of Ashoka. It is a sculpture of four lions standing back to back. A graphic representation of it was adopted as the official emblem of India in 1950. The wheel on the capital, below the lions, is the model for the dharma chakra in the centre of the national flag. Whenever the emblem is used by the State Governments, the words Satyameva Jayate have to accompany it.
