Books & Authors podcast with Colleen Taylor Sen, author, Ashoka and the Maurya Dynasty

"One of the principles of Ashoka's dhamma is tolerance and respect for all religions and that really impressed me. Also, the whole idea of inscribing messages on rocks may have come from the Middle East. The Persians did this, but when they did it, they were bragging. They said things like, 'I, Darius, conquered all these people; I slaughtered these people; I built these cities.' They were bragging about it but Asoka uses the same medium not to brag but to tell people to live better lives and he's kind of sad that they don't do so. He's really unique in history. I can't think of any other ruler who's done this," - Coleen Taylor Sen, author, Ashoka and the Maurya Dynasty talks to Manjula Narayan about Ashoka, his grandfather Chandragupta, the Arthashastra, the rock edicts, the figure of Ashoka in Buddhist texts, the colonial effort that reinstated him as a major figure in Indian history, and his significance and place in contemporary India.