Question

Even though Ashoka fought many wars before invading Kalinga, what do you think changed him after the war of Kalinga?

• A. Ashoka liked the people of Kalinga who died in the war.
• B. Ashoka wanted to capture the people of Kalinga alive.
• C. The number of lives lost in the Kalinga war was huge and Ashoka was devastated after seeing this.
• D. Ashoka was of the view that he had grown old enough to give up violence.

Answer 1

The correct option is C The number of lives lost in the Kalinga war was huge and Ashoka was devastated after seeing this.

Although Ashoka had fought battles before invading Kalinga, the damage caused on both the sides during the war of Kalinga was massive. The war was the cause of the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people including monks, children and women, apart from soldiers. This had a great impact on Ashoka who then gave up violence and started practising the idea of 'Dhamma'.