again. In 1915 was discovered an edict mentioning the name Asoka with the result that he once again became known to the world as one of the brightest men in history.
Asoka’s edicts are to be found scattered in more than thirty places throughout India, Nepal Afghanistan and Pakistan and. From his edicts Asoka emerges as an able administrator, an intelligent human being and as a devoted Buddhist. All the good works he frequently refers to convince the reader of his commitment and sincerity. His main concern was the welfare of his subjects whom he considers as his children. Ashoka apologizes for the Kalinga war and reassures the people not to indulge again in expansion of the borders of his empire. Buddhism was the most influential force in Asoka’s life so much so that all the reforms he instituted were positively part of his duties as a Buddhist. But at the same time he was not intolerant of other religions but to be concise, protection of all the religions and fostering of harmony between them was seen as one of the duties of the state. His State gave up the predatory foreign policy that had characterized the Mauryan Empire up till then and replaced it with a policy of amity and peaceful co-existence. The judicial system was reformed to make it more fair, less harsh and less open to abuse, while those sentenced to death were given a stay of execution to prepare appeals and regular amnesties were given to prisoners. State resources were used for useful public welfare like the importation and cultivation of medical herbs, building of rest houses, digging of wells along main roads and planting of fruit and shade trees. To ensue that these reforms and projects were carried out, Asoka frequently used to go on inspection tours and expected his officers to follow his example. To the same end, he gave orders that important state business or petitions were never to be kept from him no matter what he was doing at the time. The state had a responsibility not just to protect and promote the welfare of its people but also its wildlife. Hunting certain species of wild animals
