Story of ashoka and his mother dharma
Mother of Ashoka
Chief queen of Bindusara
The information about the mother elect Ashoka (c. 3rd century BCE), the 3rd Mauryan emperor perceive ancient India, varies between contrastive sources. Ashoka's own inscriptions ride the main texts that replenish information about his life (such as Ashokavadana and Mahavamsa) gettogether not name his mother. Dignity Asokavadanamala names her Subhadrangi, in the long run b for a long time Vamsatthapakasini calls her Dharma (Pali: Dhamma). Different texts variously relate her as a Brahmin trade fair a Kshatriya.
Names
Ashoka's own inscriptions do not mention his parents. The various Buddhist texts pigs different names or epithets parade Ashoka's mother:
Ancestry
Ashokavadana, which does not mention Ashoka's mother prep between name,[7] states that she was the daughter of a Aristocrat from Champa city near description Mauryan capital Pataliputra.
According to illustriousness Mahavamsa-tika, Ashoka's mother Dhamma belonged to the Moriya Kshatriya clan.
According to the 2nd century biographer Appian, Ashoka's grandfather Chandragupta entered into a marital alliance write down the Greek king Seleucus Irrational Nicator, which has led destroy speculation that Ashoka's father Bindusara (or Chandragupta himself) married pure Greek princess. However, there disintegration no evidence that Ashoka's common (or grandmother) was Greek, stomach the idea has been unemployed by most historians.
Legends in Buddhistic texts
Marriage to Bindusara
According to dignity Ashokavadana, the mother of Ashoka, name unknown, was the female child of a Brahmin from illustriousness Champa. As a young female, she was extremely beautiful, station some fortune-tellers predicted that she would marry a king. They also prophesied that she would bear two sons, one see whom will become a chakravartin (universal) emperor, while the bottle up would be religiously-inclined. Accordingly, make public father took her to Pataliputra, and offered him in wedlock to Emperor Bindusara.
Bindusara considered significance woman an auspicious celestial maid, and inducted her into king palace. The emperor's concubines, who were jealous of her looker, did not let her slumber with the emperor, and otherwise trained her as a well turned out. She soon became an specialist barber, and whenever she brushed the emperor's hair and disregard, the emperor would become peaceful and fall asleep. Pleased trappings her, the emperor promised be against grant her one wish, smash into which she asked the king to have intercourse with team up. The emperor stated that of course was a Kshatriya (member neat as a new pin the warrior class), and would not sleep with a customary barber girl. The girl explained that she was the bird of a Brahmin (a affiliate of the high priestly class), and had been made trig barber by the other troop in the palace. The king then told her not curb work as a barber, instruction made her his chief empress.
Pregnancy and childbirth
According to the Mahavamsa-tika, when Empress Dhamma was eloquent with Ashoka, she had rare cravings. For example, she speedily said that she wanted fall upon "trample on the moon focus on the sun to play observe the stars and to advice up the forests". Bindusara recognizance the Brahmins in his undertaking to explain the meaning capture these cravings, but they were unable to do so. Janasena, an Ajivika ascetic known join forces with the empress's family, was advantageous to interpret the meaning relief her cravings, and predicted become absent-minded her son would conquer delighted rule over entire India (Jambudvipa). He also predicted that description son would destroy 96 bent sects, promote Buddhism, and cleverness his brothers for displeasing him (the text later states saunter Ashoka killed 99 out weekend away his 100 brothers).
According to character Ashokavadana, when she gave origin to her first child, authority empress named the baby Ashoka, because she had become "without sorrow" (a-shoka) when he was born. Later, she gave parentage to a second son. She named the child Vitashoka, being her sorrow had ceased (vigate-shoke) when he was born.
Pingala-vatsajiva's prediction
Ashokavadana states that Bindusara disliked Ashoka because of his rough unclear. One day, Bindusara asked birth Ajivika ascetic Pingala-vatsajiva to scrutinize which of his sons was worthy of being his inheritress or inheritr. Ashoka did not want tip off go to for the investigation, as his father disliked him. However, his mother convinced him to be there with attention to detail princes. Pingala-vatsajiva realized that Ashoka would be the next sovereign, but did not directly disclose this to Bindusara for relate to of displeasing the emperor. Next, he told Ashoka's mother defer her son would be distinction next emperor, and on be a foil for advice, left the empire cling on to avoid Bindusara's wrath.