Long History Short with Ranjit

Listen to the story of Mughal Emperor Akbar's experiments with philosophy and religion that led him to create a beautiful assembly known as the Ibadat Khana, that could accomodate hundreds of scholars from all religions and sects. 

The lion capital which is synonmous with Ashok in India, used to cap pillars that also carried his edicts. Listen to this episode to know all about Ashok's pillar edicts, and some interesting facts related to this phase of Ashokan history.  

#history #podcasts #listening #buddha #ashoka #india #zen #historybuff #historygeek 

In this episode, continue to explore Ashokan edicts, with a special focus on the edict that made Ashok and Indian culture synonymous with peace across the world. But did it truly reflect Ashok's commitment to peace or a brilliant political tactic? Listen to some theories and form your own view ! 

Listen to the edicts of Ashok that give a first person account of his own ideas about following the path of change. The minor edict presented in Ashok's own language, of course, accompanied with a translation !

In this episode, listen to what the Sri Lankans had to say about Ashok. The Mahavamsa, a chronicle of all the rulers of Sri Lanka, traces the history of Ashok in context of an important Sri Lankan ruler, Devanampiya Tissa, and also the establishment of Buddhism on the island. Does this legend agree with the Ashokavadana, the Indian legend of Ashok? Find out that and other interesting memories of Ashok from this 1500 year old epic. 

In this brand new episode, meet the Ashok of the ancient Indian legend - Ashokavadan - written sometime in the 2nd or 3rd century CE. This legend tells of Ashok's transformation from a cruel version of 'Chandashok' to the pious image of 'Dharamashok'. This episode will tell you why, and how he undergoes this transformation. But even more importantly, it will show you how legends create larger-than-life images of their heroes and their purposes. Written in the 2nd-4th century CE, the Ashokavadan carries that image of Ashok which had survived for nearly 500 years after Ashok's death. Most of the sculptures in Sanchi and other Buddhist sites are inspired by the stories of the Ashokavadan, and the larger collection of stories, Divyavadan, that it is part of. 

The first in a series of episodes that will take you through the journey of Ashok, his edicts, and the philosophy that he desired to blend into his ruling style. In this episode, you will know why Ashok matters, what kind of edicts he issued, and how the edicts are classified in history. The next episodes will take you through his political background, the circumstances that forced him to change, and the contents of the edicts. There will be some shorter episodes that would also tackle some of the interesting stories associated with Ashok and his edicts. 

If you have ever wondered what these terms mean and how they differ as fields, this podcast will explain to you what each of these fields does to tell the story of the human journey !