The shadow of the vast Mauryan Empire once stretched across the Indian subcontinent, ruled by a man who would redefine the relationship between humans and the animal kingdom. Emperor Asoka, formally known as Asokavardhana, reigned from 274 to 232 B.C. His family name, Moriya, meant peacock, and that bird served as his imperial symbol. He inherited a vast empire from his father, establishing a domain so influential that he even exchanged embassies with several Greek kingdoms in the West. Yet, the early years of his reign gave little hint of the humanitarian legacy he would leave behind. In his Hindu youth, Asoka was noted as a ferocious warrior and a cruelly cunning hunter.
A profound transformation occurred when the emperor converted to Buddhism. He recoiled in revulsion from both war and hunting, never engaging in these activities again. His former hunting expeditions were replaced by visits to Buddhist holy men and pilgrimages to Buddhist holy sites. Driven by his conversion, Asoka took it upon himself to alleviate human and animal suffering in every way possible. He became an ideal ruler, embodying the Buddhist ethical ideal of compassionate action in numerous ways.
To spread his message, the emperor ordered the setting up of what he called pillars of life. These columns, erected everywhere throughout his territory, had Buddhist precepts for right living inscribed upon them. In these inscriptions, he particularly emphasized Ahimsa and the sanctity of life, both human and animal. Asoka did not merely suggest kindness. He implored his subjects to treat all sentient beings with kindness and compassion and to cease being the cause of any form of suffering.
The emperor backed his words with a many-faceted example. He built hospitals for people and for animals alike, ensuring that free medicines and treatment were provided for all in need. To ease the journeys of travelers and beasts, he built hostels and had watering places created throughout the country. On a personal level, Asoka adopted a strictly vegetarian diet himself, and he encouraged his subjects to do the same.
His reforms challenged long-standing traditions and vested interests. Early in his reign, Asoka made hunting strictly illegal. In his Rock Edict 1, he forbade the practice of animal sacrifice on the part of the orthodox Hindu priesthood. This edict resulted in considerable enmity towards him on the part of the Hindus, whom he had already alienated through his conversion to Buddhism. Even so, the emperor was extremely tolerant of other religions and schools of thought. One of his Rock Edicts even forbade the disparagement of religions in general, but he remained firm in his demand that his subjects refrain from harming animals.
The death of the great emperor marked a turning point for his reforms. Although Buddhism continued to exist for many centuries in India after Asoka passed away, it ceased to retain the privileged status it possessed under his patronage. With Hindu rulers once again in control, the brahman priesthood strove to oppose the spiritual perspectives of Buddhism, which were radically different from its own in every way possible. Nevertheless, the legacy of his pillars carved a permanent place for animal protection in human history.
Bibliographic Information
- Title: Vegetarianism: A History
- Subtitle: None explicitly published on cover, though titled “Vegetarianism: A History” in standard cataloging
- Author: Jon Gregerson
- Publisher: Jain Publishing Company
- City of Publication: Fremont, California
- Publication Year: 1994 (Copyright © 1994 by Jon Gregerson)
- Edition: First Edition
- ISBN: 0-87573-030-2
- Historical Period Covered: Deep Prehistory / Mythological “Golden Age” to the Late 20th Century (c. 1993–1994)
- Main Subject Areas: History of vegetarianism, ethical philosophy, comparative religion, Eastern and Western religious philosophies (Pythagoreanism, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Taoism, early Judeo-Christian theology, Hassidism), Renaissance Humanism, the Victorian and pre-Victorian British dietary reform movements, animal rights history, and contemporary global vegetarian practices.
[Ch. 4, p. 19-20]