Ashokavadana

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The Ashokavadana (Sanskrit: अशॊकवदन, "Narrative of Ashoka") is a 2nd century CE book related the legend of the Maurya emperor Ashoka. The legend was translated into Chinese by Fa Hien 300 CE.

Book cover of "The legend of King Asoka, A study and translation of the Asokavadana", John Strong, Princeton Library of Asian translations.

The Ashovadana is essentially similar to the accounts of Ashoka contained in the Divyavadana ("Divine narrative"), suggesting a common origin.

The Ashokavadana gives a rather detailed account of the birth and reign of king Ashoka. According to the legend, the birth of Ashoka was foretold by the Buddha, in the story of "The Gift of Dust":

"A hundred years after my death there will be an emperor named Ashoka in Pataliputra. He will rule one of the four continents and adorn Jambudvipa with my relics building eighty four thousand stupas for the welfare of people. He will have them honored by gods and men. His fame will be widespread. His meritorious gift was just this: Jaya threw a handful of dust into the Tathaagata's bowl." Sayings of the Buddha according to the Ashokavadana ^[1]

Following this prophecy, the Ashokavadana further states that Ashoka was finally born as the son of the Maurya Emperor Bindusara by a relatively lower ranked queen, the daughter of a poor Brahmin who introduced her into the harem of the Emperor as it was predicted that her son would be a great ruler. Although she was of priestly lineage, the fact that she was not royal by birth made her a very low-status consort in the harem.^[2]

The Ashokavadana is also often quoted for its description of the 180 BCE Sunga king Pusyamitra Sunga as en enemy of the Buddhist faith, which before him had been supported by the Mauryan Empire:

"Then King Pusyamitra equipped a fourfold army, and intending to destroy the Buddhist religion, he went to the Kukkutarama. (...) Pusyamitra therefore destroyed the sangharama, killed the monks there, and departed.

After some time, he arrived in Sakala, and proclaimed that he would give a hundred dinara reward to whomever brought him the head of a Buddhist monk" Ashokavadana, 133, trans. John Strong.

These accounts are regarded by many secular historians as exaggerated. For details on this topic see Decline of Buddhism in India.

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[edit] References

"The Legend of King Asoka, A study and translation of the Asokavadana", John Strong, Princeton Library of Asian translations, 1983, ISBN 0-691-01459-0