Ashoka's policy of Dhamma

at |title =Maurya Samrat |image =Indian_relief_from_Amaravati,_Guntur._Preserved_in_Guimet_Museum.jpg |caption = A "Chakravartin" ruler, 1st century BCE/CE. Andhra Pradesh, Amaravati. Preserved at Musee Guimet |reign = 268–232 BCE |coronation = 268 BCE |religion = Buddhism |predecessor = Bindusara |successor = Dasharatha |dynasty = Maurya |birth_date = 304 BCE, Close to 7th Aug |birth_place = Pataliputra, Patna |death_date = 232 BCE (aged 72) |death_place = Pataliputra, Patna |date of burial = Cremated 232 BCE, less than 24 hours after death |place of burial = Ashes immersed in the Ganges River, possibly at Varanasi }}

Dhamma is a set of edicts that formed a policy of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka Maurya (Devanāgarī: अशोक, IAST: Aśoka), who succeeded to the Mauryan throne in modern-day India around 269 B.C. Many historians consider him as one of the greatest kings of the ancient India for his policies of public welfare. His policy of Dhamma has been debated by intellectuals.

The word Dhamma is the Prakrit form of the Sanskrit word Dharma. There have been attempts to define and find equivalent English words for it, such as "piety", "moral life" and "righteousness" but scholars could not translate it into English because it was coined and used in a specific context. The word Dharma has multiple meanings in the literature and thought of ancient India. The best way to understand what Ashoka means by Dhamma is to read his edicts, which were written to explain the principles of Dhamma to the people of that time throughout the empire.

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