King Asoka and Buddhism - Urban Dharma

5Aśoka and the Emergence of a SinhalaBuddhist State in Sri LankaANURADHA SENEVIRATNA1. IntroductionIn the annals of the history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka thereis no event of greater significance recorded than the foundingof Buddhism as the religion of the state in the third centuryB.C. It was none other than Emperor Aśoka of India whowas responsible for introducing Buddhism to this island. Asa result Sri Lanka later became the most important centre ofTheravāda Buddhism and came to be known as the dhammadīpa,the Island of Righteousness.Aśoka, who is often referred to as Dhammāsoka in thechronicles of Sri Lanka, was a firm believer in dharmavijaya,the concept of conquering the world by righteousness withoutthe use of weapons; he was also by his personal actions a perfectexample of the Buddhist ideal of a cakravartin, a UniversalMonarch. After the disastrous Kalinga war in which thousandsof people died, he established a kingdom of righteousness.As a Buddhist upāsaka or faithful lay devotee he gaveroyal patronage for the spread of the Buddha’s teachings andfurther helped to transform the Buddha’s Dispensation froma local belief system into a world religion. Though himself aBuddhist he supported other faiths and urged his subjects torespect sincere followers of all religions. The morality that hepreached was of a universal nature. He shared his faith and111