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The Mauryan Age

 Ashoka's Foreign Policy

After the Kalinga war, Ashoka was filled with grief and remorse in his heart because the war witnessed the death of hundreds of thousands of people including women, old men and children. Ashoka, as a result adopted pacific policy, i.e. policy of peace, non-aggression and cultural conquest. He adopted Buddhism. His rest of life spent in spreading Buddhism within and outside the country. His foreign palicy may be summed up as follows: 

  • He sent ambessadors of peace to the Greek kingdoms in West Asia and Greece.
  • He sent Buddhist missionaries for the propagation of Buddhism to Sri Lanka and Central Asia.
  • His policies had great impact in Kandhar where the hunters and fishermen gave up killing animals and took a agricultural life. 
  • Ashoka's inscriptions have been found in Nepal, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. His inscriptions carries royal orders and his career, and his external and domestic policies and the extent of his empire. 
  • Ashoka favored not only Indian script Brahmi, but also respected non-Indian scripts such as Kharshthi, Aramaic, and Greek.

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