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Critically examine the contributions which Ashoka made to the early development of Buddhism.
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(a) Critically examine the contributions which Ashoka made to the early development of Buddhism. At the beginning of Ashoka's reign (c.269 BCE) Buddhism had been in existence and expansion for about two hundred years. The Second Council had already occurred by that time, and there were disagreements over the Vinaya (rules for the monks). Buddhism had only spread throughout North India and was widely seen as a religion for monks, which was supported by the lay people (those who were not monks). Ashoka's grandfather, Chandragupta, had created the Mauryan Dynasty, which extended the Kingdom of Magadha to cover the whole of Northern India. Since Ashoka's father, Bindusara, was a powerful monarch, Ashoka would have been educated and trained in the Brahminical religion and brought up to be a militaristic ruler. The Brahminical concept of kingship involves conquest and enlargement of land ownership, which is greatly different to the Buddhist promotion of...
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