Ashoka and the Spread of Buddhism

Buddhism might have remained a regional Indian movement without the patronage of Ashoka, the Mauryan emperor who ruled most of the subcontinent in the 3rd century BCE. According to his own rock inscriptions, Ashoka was horrified by the bloodshed of his conquest of Kalinga (c. 261 BCE) and turned to dhamma, a policy of moral rule stressing non-violence, tolerance of all sects, and care for people and animals. He built stupas, sent envoys abroad and, according to Sri Lankan tradition, sent his son Mahinda to bring Buddhism to Sri Lanka.

Historians caution that the edicts are royal propaganda and that Ashoka did not abolish his army or the death penalty, yet they remain remarkable early statements of humane government. Later, merchants and monks carried Buddhism along the Silk Roads to Central Asia and China, and by sea to Southeast Asia. Royal patronage and trade networks together turned a local teaching into a world religion.