Lessons from the Past

Many of you must have heard the name of King Ashoka the Great. He ruled India towards the end of the Maurya dynasty. It was an era when Buddhist monks (called Bhikshu) had cast a spell on this area. Bhikshus roamed around different territories spreading the message of Buddha. Ashoka had a brother named Tissa. Tissa was completely materialistic engrossed in consuming the luxuries the palace accorded to him. He could not digest Buddha's message of renouncing worldly pleasures and abstention from momentary material delights. He cajoled Buddhist monks thinking that they approached the palace only when they needed money. He thought they wanted the King to host feasts in their honour. The King would foot the bill while the monks enjoyed. Tissa could never understand why these monks were so serious in their facial expressions. They lived on charity. Others pay for them and yet they do not enjoy life? Their life is free from worries yet they do not freak out.

It was a normal day for Tissa. He was enjoying himself with a mug of booze while looking at the glory of his brother's thrown. Ashoka's minister, Radha gupta, observed Tissa closely. For amusement, the minister provoked Tissa to sit on the thrown and imagine that he was the King. Tissa could not resist the temptation and mounted the thrown. While Tissa imagined himself as the monarch and the minister stood by, Ashoka entered the court. He informed his bother that mounting a King's thrown during his lifetime was equivalent to treason. Treason attracts a death penalty. Hence, Tissa had to be hanged. The minister explained that it was only an amusement and should not be taken so seriously. Tissa too apologised for offending his elder brother. Finally, Ashoka made a concession. For seven days, Tissa would be a deemed monarch. He could consume all the luxuries of kingship. However, on the eighth day, he had to die. Everything Tissa cherished was to be showered at him for seven days and on the eighth day, Tissa would be hanged.

On his very first day as the monarch, Tissa realised that all worldly pleasures are momentary. If they are not permanent then why should be run after them. He renounced his royal status, left the palace, and became a Buddhist monk.

Destiny had something else in store for Ashoka. He had to lead a war that would change his life forever. In order to conduct trade with South, traders of Magadh (Ashoka's territory now known as Bihar) had to cross Kalinga. Rulers of Kalinga attacked traders and looted their goods or made them pay heavy taxes as a levy for using the route. These rulers were very strong and posed a formidable challenge to Ashoka's army. Ashoka had to clear this mess and the two clashed. A hundred thousand troops were killed and another hundred thousand were injured. Ashoka won but when he came back, he found that his offspring had died in his wife's womb. He felt as if the pleasure of winning the biggest and toughest war of his era was snatched away from him in moments. Was it a curse on him? Was he being punished for killing so many? He found his brother who by now was immersed in Buddhism deeply. Tissa told him that though Ashoka had won Kalinga, he would have to maintain a huge army to sustain his victory. Else, his opponents would take it back by force. No empire was permanent. No happiness is eternal.

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