Kalinga edicts
Also called: Separate Kalinga edicts · Topic: The Mauryan Empire · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 5 "The Rise of Empires"
Meaning
The Kalinga edicts are two special rock edicts of Ashoka. They are also called the Separate Kalinga edicts. They are found only at Dhauli and Jaugada, in the conquered land of Kalinga (coastal Odisha). They are addressed to the officers who ran the region. They tell these officers to be fair to everyone and not to jail or torture people without reason. They also tell the officers to win the trust of the forest and border people. In Kalinga they take the place of the usual edicts, including the one where Ashoka admits his sorrow over the war.
Example
In these edicts Ashoka (c. 268–232 BCE) says "All men are my children." He wants the same good for his people that a father wants for his children. He also orders that an officer be sent on tour every five years to check that justice is done.
Don't confuse with
- Rock Edict XIII: the edict that describes the Kalinga war and Ashoka's regret: 150,000 people deported and 100,000 killed. It is missing from Kalinga itself, where the Separate edicts stand instead.
Related concepts
- Bindusara
- Ashoka
- Kalinga war
- Rock Edict XIII
- Dhauli
- Ashoka's dhamma
- Dhamma mahamatta
- Pativedaka
- Devanampiya
- Ashoka's religious tolerance