The Pillar Edicts of Indian Emperor Ashoka refer to seven consecutive important Edicts of Ashoka engraved on columns, known as the Pillars of Ashoka. They are among the earliest dated inscriptions of any Indian king and are among the most extensive. These edicts are chronologically before the Minor Rock Edicts and Major Rock Edicts, and they are the most technically exquisite of Ashoka's inscriptions. This article will explain to you the Pillar edicts of ashoka which will be helpful in Ancient History preparation for the UPSC Civil service exam.

Pillar edicts of Ashoka

• The Ashoka pillars are a collection of monolithic columns scattered over the Indian subcontinent that were constructed or at least engraved with edicts by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka between c. 268 and 232 BCE.
• The Ashoka pillars are among India's earliest known stone sculptural relics.
• The Pataliputra capital, the only other pillar component, may be from a somewhat earlier period.
• It is considered that until the 3rd century BCE, wood rather than stone was the primary material utilised in Indian architectural projects, and that stone was used after contact with the Persians and Greeks.
• All of Ashoka's pillars were erected in Buddhist monasteries, as well as several important sites from the Buddha's life and pilgrimage destinations.
• Inscriptions addressed to the monks and nuns may be seen on several of the columns.

Pillar edicts of Ashoka

Pillars of Ashoka - Features

• Seven pillar edicts exist.
• Spotted white sandstone (from Mathura) and buff-colored sandstone and quartzite (from Amaravati) are both used. They are typically composed of sandstone mined in Chunar. They are practically identical in terms of shape and size.
• All of the pillars are monoliths (stone carvings) with a well-polished surface.
• They were discovered in Kandahar (Afghanistan), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Pakistan), Delhi, Vaishali, and Champaran (Bihar), Sarnath and Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh), Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh), and Sanchi (Bihar).
• Fragments of the same decree have been discovered in several locations.
• Many of the pillars are up to 50 feet tall and weigh up to 50 tonnes.
• They have no bases and a cylindrical shaft that tapers gently upwards to a height of 12-14 metres.
• The tip of the shaft is connected to the capital by a cylindrical bolt, and the capital is shaped like a bell (a stone carved in the shape of an inverted lotus).
• The crowned animal is supported on a platform (abacus) on the top of the bell capital.
• Elephants and lions, as well as wheels and lotuses, are depicted on the pillars, which are all important Buddhist symbols.
• On the pillars, just one language was used: Prakrit written in the Brahmi script.
• In Aramaic, a few derivative inscriptions have been found on rock in Afghanistan. The edicts are written in non-standard and ancient Prakrit forms.
• Topra, Rampurva, Nigali Sagar, Lauriya-Araraj, Lauriya Nandangarh, Sarnath, and Meerut have all discovered grand pillar edicts.
• Feroz Shah Tughlaq moved two pillars to Delhi, one from Topra and the other from Meerut.

Important Pillar Edicts

Minor Pillar Edicts

• The Minor Pillar Edicts of Ashoka relate to five unique minor Edicts carved into Ashoka's Pillars.
• Minor Rock Edicts predate these edicts chronologically, and they may have been issued concurrently with the Major Rock Edicts.
• The inscription technique is generally poor when compared to the later Major Pillar Edicts.
• But the Minor Pillar Edicts are frequently associated with some of Ashoka's most artistically sophisticated pillar capitals, such as the renowned Lion Capital of Ashoka that crowned the Sarnath Minor Pillar Edict, or the very similar, but less well preserved Sanchi lion capital that crowned the Sanchi Schism Edict.
• These edicts were most likely issued from the year 12 of Ashoka's rule, that is, from 256 BCE, at the start of his reign (268-232 BCE).
• The Minor Edict, which warns of penalty for dissent in the Sangha, the Queen's Edict, and the Rummindei Edict, as well as the Nighali Sagar Edict, which records Ashoka's trips and Buddhist dedications in the area that is today's Nepal, are among the Minor Pillar Edicts.
• The Rummindei and Nigali Sagar edicts, engraved on pillars constructed later in Ashoka's reign (19th and 20th years), show a high degree of inscriptional skill and writing uniformity.

Languages of the Edict

• Three languages were used: Ashokan Prakrit, Greek, and Aramaic.
• From early Gandhari in the northwest to Old Ardhamagadhi in the east, when it was the court's "chancery language," Prakrit had regional variants.
• The Prakrit inscriptions have a relatively casual or colloquial linguistic level.
• There were four different scripts utilised. Brahmi and Kharosthi scripts were used to write Prakrit inscriptions, with the latter being used in modern-day Pakistan.
• In the northern portions of Ashoka's realm, in modern Pakistan and Afghanistan, Greek and Aramaic inscriptions were written in their own scripts.
• The majority of the Edicts were written in Ashokan Prakrit, however there were a handful that were written in Greek or Aramaic.

Conclusion

The Pillar Edicts of Indian Emperor Ashoka refer to the seven Pillars of Ashoka, which are seven successive major Edicts of Ashoka carved on columns. Wood, rather than stone, was thought to have been the predominant material utilised in Indian architectural endeavours until the 3rd century BCE, and stone was employed following contact with the Persians and Greeks.