000 01846nam a22002057a 4500
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020 _a9789356993228
040 _cAACR-II
082 _a934.045 OLI
100 _aOlivelle, Patrick
_92728
245 _a Ashoka: Portrait of a Philosopher King
260 _aGurugram
_bHarperCollins
_c2023
300 _a356p.
440 _aIndian Lives Series Book 1
_92729
520 _aThis is the first book in the Indian Lives series, edited and curated by Ramachandra Guha. Ashoka, the last great Mauryan emperor, is one of the most iconic figures in Indian history. Under his rule (268-232 BCE) the Mauryan empire extended across almost the entirety of the Indian subcontinent. Apart from his effective reign over his vast kingdom, Ashoka is well known for his renunciation of war, his development of the concept of dhamma, his patronage of Buddhism, and his promotion of religious harmony. Ashoka has been imagined, and reimagined, many times over. It has been said that there are at least two Ashokas: the historical Ashoka (whom we know mainly through his inscriptions), and the legendary Ashoka, who is largely a construct of the popular imagination. The distinguished scholar Patrick Olivelle's new book resists the temptation to blend the two-a temptation that many writers have succumbed to-as it seeks to gain an insight into the emperor's world. Based primarily on the inscriptions (which is where Ashoka 'speaks for himself'), Olivelle constructs a fascinating portrait of India's first great ruler, where the figure of Ashoka comes vividly alive notwithstanding the elusiveness and fragmentary nature of the sources.
650 _aAncient History- India; India during 1500 B.C.- 647 B. C.; Ashoka Period- 274 B. C.
_92730
942 _2ddc
_cB
999 _c355525
_d355525