Powerful, ambitious and aggressive, He fought and won many battles He was always on the offensive. He became great, within a short period The Emperor of a great stretch of land, Like his father, who defeated Greeks Rival kingdoms he couldn t stand. One last tiny kingdom stood Between him and ultimate glory, On the eastern border of his empire Kalinga, controlled its own territory. Scene was set for a great battle Never heard or seen in the history, Ashoka, was merciless and ruthless He slaughtered his way to victory. There was complete and total destruction Of Kalinga s people and its kingdom, Victorious was the great emperor The cost was innocent lives and freedom. As he surveyed the battlefield after battle He saw the dead men and their grieving wives, Saw the spilled blood, flesh and scavenging vultures Saw the ghosts of the dead, the cries of dying lives. He asked himself, what did he achieve? In grief and sorrow his heart sank, He renounced everything, for his sins Found solace in Buddhism and became a monk. He became truly great, for what he did Not for his victories or for his empire But for his renouncing of all pleasures Living, rest of his life without desire.
Ashoka was the second emperor of the Mauryan dynasty which ruled India during 2n d Century BC. He became a buddhist after the battle of Kalinga. He was the perso n who spread buddhism to rest of Asia.