Ashoka · Politics

All Men Are My Children

Ashoka&rsquo;s idea of government as <em>care</em>: the officers of dhamma, medical treatment for humans and animals, wells and shade trees and rest-houses along the roads, the reform of harsh punishment, and a restless, hands-on king who called himself a debtor to all living beings and a father to all his people.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Ashoka treated governance as care - medical aid for people and animals, wells and trees along the roads, the dhamma-mahamatras , the softening of punishment, and the king as a servant who owed a debt to all beings. Explain how &lsquo;all men are my children&rsquo; reshaped what a state was for.

Leads to Confucius.

Begin this lesson →
← All lessons on Ashoka

epoché — a humanities education that remembers you.