Christianity And Politics Essays - Monotheistic Religions

Christianity And Politics Christianity as a Way of Life The descriptions of the Roman Empire and state authority offered in Christian texts seems to be one that is oppressive. Since the state often punished Christians for disturbing the peace, the Empire is often shown as merciless and callous. However, texts seem to suggest that the Empire did not treat Christians any differently from the other citizens of the state. Christianity in itself was not illegal under Roman law, so Christians were not targeted specifically as a group. Then, the popular portrayal of early Christianity as a mass political movement that the Romans dedicated much resources to thwart seems implausible. Although popular knowledge of early Christians emphasize their persecution and severe ostracism within the Roman Empire, a closer study of Roman law reveals that Christianity and being Christian were not crimes in and of themselves. As a matter of fact, citizens of the Roman Empire were free to worship any god. Even their proclamations about Jesus were not considered heretical. On the contrary, it was not out of the ordinary to declare a human to be divine. After all, the emperor himself was thought by many to have been divine. In addition, the secret meetings of Christians to celebrate the Lords Supper often portrayed, as highly covert and something the Christians attended in fear of being found out, also were not illegal. As a matter of fact, most of the rituals and beliefs associated with being a Christian in ancient times were not deemed criminal. In actuality, the Roman Empire punished Christians for breaking laws that were applicable to every Roman citizen. While Christians were not sought out as a group in particular, it is true that individual Christians did suffer punishment in the hands of Roman authorities. Much of the punishments imposed on them were for criminal activities. As Bart Ehrman points out, while civil law was very developed, criminal legislation was rarely created. For the most part, governors were responsible for exacting punishment as they deemed necessary. For instance, Christians were not reprimanded for worshiping God but for violating laws on worshiping the emperor and the state gods. Most often, Christians were persecuted for disturbing the peace. Christians in the ancient world seem to project an image of exclusivity and isolation. Their communities were tight-knit and exacted extreme demands on their members. Early Christians were called to abandon their families to join the family of Christ. People left their families to join other brothers and sisters in their faith. Thecla is an example of this phenomenon as she is seen abandoning everything to be a disciple of Paul. As Ehrman points out, while this alternative way of life showed Christians new possibilities, the citizenry saw this as disturbing. While, it is documented that Christians suffered directly or indirectly for their beliefs as time passed, in its beginnings, Christianity was not considered a movement of mass proportions and influence that merited much attention from the state. On the contrary, Christianity was seen as just another cult that may cause some disruptions but would ultimately fade away. It can be argued that it was Nero who made it legitimate to criminalize being Christian even though he himself persecuted Christians for criminal acts only, as he was the one who punished Christians widely. He simply took advantag e of the growing distrust and disdain for Christians. Historical data seems to show that, at least in its inception and very early years, Christianity was not considered a politically motivated movement. First, they lacked the influence to command such attention. And secondly, they lacked the sheer number of people necessary to create a political movement at the time. For the most part, Christians were persecuted for breaking the law and not for their heretical ideas. Perhaps this can be further illuminated by a study of early Christian texts which laid out rules of conduct for early Christians. According to Christian texts, God instructed his followers to obey the law. Romans 13 proclaims Let every person be subject to the governing authoritiesfor those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists authority resists was God has appointed This passage shows that Paul, a leader of the ancient Church

Strategies that Motivate Students Connected to Proverbs

Strategies that Motivate Students Connected to Proverbs A proverb is A proverb is a short, pithy statement of a general truth, one that condenses common experience into memorable form. Although proverbs are cultural statements, marking a particular time and place for their origin, they reflect the universal human experience. For example, proverbs are found in literature, as in Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet â€Å"He that is strucken blind cannot forgetThe precious treasure of his eyesight lost† (I.i) This proverb means that a man who loses his eyesight-or anything else of value- can never forget the importance of what has been lost. Another example, from  Aesop Fables  by Aesop: We should make sure that our own house is in order before we give advice to others. This proverb means we should act upon our own words, before advising others to do the same. Motivating students with Proverbs There are multiple ways to use proverbs in the 7-12 grade classroom. They can be used to inspire or to motivate students; they can be used as cautionary wisdom. As proverbs have all developed in some human experience, students and educators may recognize how these messages from the past can help inform their own experiences. Posting these proverbs around the classroom can bring about discussions in class as to their meaning and how these Old World sayings still are relevant today. Proverbs can also support motivational strategies that teachers may want to use  in the classroom. Here are eight (8) approaches to motivate students that can be implemented in any content area.  Each of these approaches is matched with supporting proverb(s) and the proverbs culture of origin, and links will connect educators to that proverb online. #1. ​​Model enthusiasm An educators enthusiasm about a specific discipline that is evident in each lesson is powerful and contagious for all students. Educators have the power to  raise students’ curiosity, even when students are not initially interested in the material. Educators should share why they first became interested in a subject,  how they  discovered their passion, and how they understand their desire to teach to share this passion. In other words, educators must model their motivation. â€Å"Wherever you go, go with all your heart.  (Confucius) Practice what you preach. (Bible) Once out of the throat it spreads over the world.(Hindu Proverb) #2. Provide relevance and choice: Making content relevant is critical to motivating students.  Students need to be shown or to establish a personal connection to the material taught in class. This personal connection may be emotional  or appeal to their background knowledge. No  matter how disinteresting a subjects content may seem, once students have determined that the content is worth knowing, the content will engage them.Allowing students to make choices increases their engagement. Giving students choice builds their capacity for responsibility and commitment. Offering choice communicates an educators respect for students’ needs and preferences. Choices also can help prevent disruptive behaviors.Without relevance and choice, students may disengage and lose the motivation to try. The road to the head lies through the heart.  (American Proverb) Let your nature be known and expressed.  (Huron Proverb) He is a fool who does not consider his own interests. (Maltese Proverb) Self interest will neither cheat nor lie, for that is the string in the nose that governs the creature.(American Proverb) #3. Praise student efforts: Everyone likes genuine praise, and educators can capitalize on this universal human desire for praise with their students. Praise is a powerful motivational strategy when it is part of constructive  feedback. Constructive feedback is nonjudgmental and acknowledges quality in order to stimulate advancement. Educators should stress opportunities that students can take to improve, and any negative comments must be associated with the product, not the student.   Praise youth and it will prosper. (Irish Proverb) As with children, there is no taking  away of what has been rightly given. (Plato) Do one thing at time, with supreme excellence.  (NASA) #4. Teach flexibility and adaptation Educators need to try to develop a students mental flexibility, or the ability to shift attention in response to changes in the environment. Modeling flexibility when things go wrong in the classroom, especially with technology, sends a powerful message to students. Coaching students to know when to let go of one idea to consider another can help each student meet success.   Its an ill plan that cannot be changed. (Latin Proverb) A reed before the wind lives on while mighty oaks do fall.   (Aesop) Sometimes you have to throw yourself into the fire to escape from the smoke  (Greek Proverb) Times change, and we with them. (Latin Proverb) #5. Provide opportunities that allow for failure Students operate in a culture that is risk-adverse; a culture where failure is not an option. However, research shows that failure is a powerful instructional strategy. Mistakes can be expected as a part of the application and experimentation taxonomy and allowing age-appropriate mistakes can increase confidence and problem solving skills.  Educators need to  embrace the concept that learning is a messy process and use mistakes as part of a discovery process in order to engage students.  Educators also need to provide safe spaces or structured environments for students to take intellectual risks to minimize some mistakes. Allowing for mistakes can give students the satisfaction  of reasoning through a problem and discovering the underlying principle on their own. Experience is the best teacher. (Greek Proverb) The harder you fall, the higher you bounce.  (Chinese Proverb) Men learn little from success, but much from failure.  (Arab Proverb)   Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up. (Chinese Proverb) Failing to plan is planning to fail  (English Proverb) #6.  Value student work Give students the chance to succeed. High standards for student work are fine, but it is important to make those standards clear and give students a chance to discover and meet them.   A man is judged by his work. (Kurdish Proverb) The achievement of all work is practice.  (Welsh Proverb) Remember that the only place where success  comes before work is in a dictionary. (American Proverb) #7. Teach stamina and perseverance Recent research on how the brain works confirms that the brains plasticity means that stamina and perseverance can be learned. Strategies for teaching stamina include repetition and sequencing activities with  increasing difficulty that offer a continual but reasonable challenge. Pray to God but continue to row to the shore.(Russian Proverb) It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.  (Confucius) There is no Royal Road to learning.  (Euclid) Though the centipede has one of its legs broken, this does not affect its movement.  (Burmese Proverb) A habit is first a wanderer, then a guest, and finally the boss. (Hungarian Proverb) #8. Track improvement through reflection Students need to track their own leaning through ongoing reflection.  Whatever form the reflection takes, students need the opportunity to make sense of their learning experiences. They need to understand what choices they made, how their work changed, and what helped them learn to track their improvement Self-knowledge is the beginning of self-improvement.(Spanish Proverb) Nothing succeeds like success (French Proverb) Praise the bridge that carried you over. (English Proverb) No one can be an expected to be an expert at something before they have got the chance to practice it.  (Finnish Proverb) In conclusion: Although proverbs were born from Old World thinking, they still reflect the human experience of our students in the 21st Century. Sharing these proverbs with students can be part of making them feel connected, beyond time and place, to others. The messages of proverbs can help students better understand the reasons for the instructional strategies in place that can motivate them towards success.

Dreams from my father By Barack Obama Term Paper

Dreams from my father By Barack Obama - Term Paper Example Actually, mixed heritage presents many challenges and unanswered complexities to the people and President Obama shrewdly explored many of those complexities, while taking care to present the facts to the common public after interpreting them in his own unique way. President Obama’s mother was a white American and his father was a black man who had come to America all the way from Kenya. That is why, mixed heritage raised interesting questions for him related to race, and as he grew up, his curiosity for finding an answer also strengthened. President Obama naturally gravitated towards the African half of his identity as he grew up, despite having the privilege of living with his white American mother and maternal grandparents. This shows that race impacts an individual in a phenomenal way and no person can remain uninfluenced from his/her racial background, because racial background is a stark reality which plays a major role in making the identity of a person. President Obama has offered the readers a broad range of thoughtful meditations on race and inheritance with special regards to his own racial background and racial experience while growing up in America. President Obama has also presented his views regarding whether a person who is half-black, like himself, should accept America’s designation of black people or not. ... The significance of father in the building up of that foundation can not be underestimated. Fathers serve as tutors and counselors. They are to be idealized. They are both successful themselves and also serve as a constant source of motivation for us to be successful. Obama says that if we conduct our self analysis as men, we shall come to realize why our society lacks too many fathers. In fact, the fathers are there, but they are behaving like boys rather than responsible men. The weakness of the foundations of family in the contemporary society can fundamentally be attributed to this fact. This, according to Obama, is specifically true for the African American community. It is a fact that a vast majority of the African American children are brought up by a single parent. Obama compares his own case to the people without fathers in the society in general in these words: I know what it means to have an absent father, although my circumstances weren't as tough as they are for many you ng people today. Even though my father left us when I was two years old †¦ I was luckier than most. †¦ I screwed up more often than I should've, but I got plenty of second chances. And even though we didn't have a lot of money, scholarships gave me the opportunity to go to some of the best schools in the country. A lot of kids don't get these chances today. There is no margin for error in their lives. So my own story is different in that way. (Obama cited in Shepherd). 3. What is the key role that mistakes play in his decision making? Obama has been committing a lot of mistakes in the childhood. He says that he used to be very mischievous and would be mostly found in the principal’s office. Teachers used to teach him to

Article review(Replanting the Brain's Forest. ) Essay

Article review(Replanting the Brain's Forest. ) - Essay Example The processes of replacing the cells otherwise believed before by scientists to have been gone forever breathe life into a new field of scientific research. The 1990s was a pivotal point in stem cell research when neuroscientists delved on a more sophisticated application of the procedure. By grafting fetal brain tissue directly to the diseased brain, the experiment hoped to substitute the dead neurons with the new artificial ones. The results, however, were disappointing. The article then goes on to elaborate the new take of scientists to improve on the process by growing neurons in the laboratory and then injecting them directly to the person’s brain. This, the author again underlines, may not be used as a conventional therapy within the next two decades as believed by many experts (Jabr para. 2). Stem cell therapy has a wide range that is not only limited to the brain. In order to delineate the scope of the article, its application to the treatment of neurodegenerative dise ases such as traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease were the main concentration of the article. Parkinson’s disease published the most significant results. ... The distance became the main problem in this research and to address this problem, subsequent researchers grafted directly to the striatum which yielded better results. The same experiment was conducted with monkeys and the same progress in motor functions was seen with normative dopamine levels than before. This is believed by to be attributable to inherent growth factors in the striatum (Jabr para 4-5). Research in Sweden in the 1990s propelled further research as adopted in the United States and funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). They implemented two focus groups on the trials, with one receiving transplant and another undergoing a sham surgery. Similar to the previous experiments, the results were disappointing as there was no significant development in both groups. Unsurprisingly, there are differences of opinion on the failure of the experiments. Andres Bjorklund argues that this is because the researchers set unreasonably high expectations at an inconsiderably short amount of time. In fact, in a follow up study it has been found that some patients who had received grafted cells had progressed two years and four years after the NIH conducted study (Jabr para 6-7). The future seems to be hopeful in stem cell therapy for neurodegenerative diseases. Lorenz Studer is providing new benchmark by developing a standardized way of transferring fetal tissue through closely monitoring the growth if neurons in the laboratory. Trial is expected to be conducted to humans within the next three to four years (Jabr para. 8). This is seen to be the future for Parkinson’s and if the results will prove to be considerably

International Corporate Reporting Issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

International Corporate Reporting Issues - Essay Example There are different range of users of financial statements that include both internal and external users, but as far as financial statements of Britvic are considered it include different KPIs that convey different messages about the company, like take a look at performance highlight about the company where Britvic key management personnel discloses different facts about the company’s performance that has value of information about the company for users specially investors. Accounting estimates that are uses by preparers of financial statements while preparing these financial statements are subjective decisions, which is one of the big limitation of the financial statement as due to this factor the users of financial statements may be misled. Professional judgment uses by preparer of financial statement is also one of the reason which undermine the uses of financial statements, as it involve judgment in preparation of financial statements that may be wrong and can ultimately hit financial decision taken by users of financial statements on the basis of these financial statements. Verifiability of these financial statements through audit is not an absolute verifiable factor so one cannot take decisions like take over just on the basis of these financial statements while assuming that these are audited accounts, Historical costing is also one of the reason that may cause users of financial statements to be misled as in historical costing asset are carried in the books as cost of asset less accumulated depreciation that may not be the market value hence it may miss lead the users. Measurability is also one of the reason that undermine the uses of financial statements because it involve only those areas that can financially be measured and areas that cannot be valued or out of financial statements hence like good will and employees performance cannot be seen while reviewing financial

How has psychological well being been measured

How has psychological well being been measured Psychological well-being is an important concern for individuals, communities, and health services throughout the world, not only because of the costs associated with psychological ill-health, but also the loss of quality of life for those affected by and their relatives (Nilsson K W, Leppert J, Simonsson Bo, Starrin B., 2008). Kellam et al., (1975) believe that mental health is broadly perceived to consist of two conceptually independent dimensions. One dimension is the principal component of the traditional psychiatric view of mental health, which is known as psychological well-being, and the other is called social adaptational status (SAS). This dimension provides a societal view of the capability of the role functioning of the individual (Petersen A.C, and Kellam S.G., 1977). Psychological well-being focuses on the individuals feelings and other features of psychological functioning. Self-reports are a primary means of measuring this dimension for individuals who are able to evaluate their own psychological well-being. Many scholars have utilized the term psychological well-being for various aspects of mental health or psychological functioning. A number of researchers have also measured concepts related to our conception of psychological well-being, but have named them differently. Especially recently, scholars have frequently used psychological well-being to describe subjective self-reports about the quality of life (Bradburn and Caplovitz, 1965; Campbell et al., 1976 cited in Petersen et al., 1977). Petersen A.C, and et al., (1977) defined it as an internal, individual view of mental health. In the same line, Peteson et al., (1977) declared that psychological well-being is a multidimensional concept which consists of various aspects of psychopathology, self-esteem and other positive aspects of self. Although it may not be possible to define what Mental Health precisely is (Public Health Institute of Scotland 2003), but it seems necessary to realize the main factors which form a persons mental health or mental well-being. Mental health is generally described as, the ability to develop psychologically, socially, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually as well as the ability to, initiate, develop and sustain mutually satisfying relationships, use and enjoy solitude, become aware of others and empathise with them, play and learn, develop a sense of right and wrong and to face and resolve problems and setbacks satisfactorily and learn from them (Edwards 2003). Moreover, the measurement of health outcomes is essential to the development of health services (Hopton J L, Hunt S M, Shiels Ch, and Smith C. (1995). The Scales of Psychological Well-Being measure (SPWB) (Ryff, 1989) includes 84 items rated from 1 strongly disagree to 6 strongly agree. The SPWB consists of six subscales with 14 items in each. These are: (a) self-acceptance, (b) positive relations with others, (c) autonomy, (d) environmental mastery, (e) purpose in life, and (f) personal growth. Ryff has demonstrated the SPWB as a reliable and valid measure of well-being (1989b; Ryff Keyes, 1995). Cronbachs alpha for the 20-item scale ranged from .86 to .93 and there was excellent test-retest reliability over a six-week period (R: range from .81 to .88). The generic 22-item Psychological General Well-being Index (PGWB) has shown to be the most commonly employed questionnaire to assess psychological well-being in adult with a problem such as growth hormone deficiency (GHD) (Dupuy HJ, 1984). This questionnaire consists of six subscales (Anxiety, Depression, General Health, Positive Well-being, Self-control and Vitality), and a Total score. Yet, General Well-being Index (GWBI) is another generally used scale which is employed in problematic situation. This scale is known to be very similar to the PGWB with only some minor differences in vocabulary, for instance blue becomes sad on the British version, five response categories rather than the six, and also question order. In two samples of British patients with depression validation of the GWBI showed construct validity and high internal consistency reliability for the whole scale (in the range 0.92 0.96) (Hunt SM, McKenna SP., 1992). The GWBI contains 22 questions, each with five response options (scoring from 1 to 5). The options have been worded in a different way for each question, to define the intended meaning (e.g. During the past two weeks, have you been waking up feeling fresh and rested? Every day Most days Less than half the time Not often Not at all). As it is clear, half of the items are positively worded and the other half negatively. There are no reco mmended subscales. The GWBI Total score is the sum of all 22 items (after reversing the negatively-worded items), and ranges 22-110. Higher scores designate worse well-being (McMillan C V et al., 2006). McMillan C V et al., (2006) examined reliability, structure and other aspects of validity of GWBI in a cross-sectional study of 157 adolescents with treated or untreated growth hormone deficiency (GHD), and sensitivity to change in a randomised placebo-controlled study of three months growth hormone (GH) withdrawal from 12 of 21 GH-treated adults. The findings demonstrated that respondents found both questionnaires acceptable. Factor analyses did not show the existence of useful GWBI subscales, but confirmed the validity of measuring a GWBI Total score. The W-BQ12 is recommended more than the GWBI to assess well-being in adult GHD; it is to a great extent shorter, has three useful subscales, and has greater sensitivity to change. Another generic measure of psychological well-being is the Well-being Questionnaire (W-BQ). The 12-item version, the W-BQ12, is derived from the longer W-BQ22. W-BQ12 This has been employed in several studies to assess the effects of new treatments and interventions in diabetes (Bradley C, 1994), a condition for which it has good internal consistency and validity (Plowright R, Witthaus E, Bradley C., 1999). The W-BQ12, nevertheless, has less respondent burden than the W-BQ22, and redresses an imbalance between numbers of positively worded and negatively worded items in the longer questionnaire (Riazi A, Ishii H, Barendse S et al., 1999). Hopton J L, Hunt S M, Shiels Ch, and Smith C. (1995) also investigated the validity of a 22 item measure of psychological well-being and the adapted common well-being index (AGWBI) in 266 patients, who ranged about 16 or over years old, drawn from the computerized list of one general practice in UK. The findings are largely supportive of the validity of the AGWBI and propose that it may be suitable in the evaluation of several developing areas of primary care. In Barlow J. H, Cullen L. A, and Rowe. L. F study on 82 rheumatoid arthritis patients, the psychological well-being was evaluated employing the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) (Zigmond A.S, and Sniaith R. P., 1983). The HADS contains 14 items (7 for anxiety and 7 for depression), which is quick and easy to complete, and posses established reliability and validity (35). The HADS was designed to identify the presence and severity of relatively mild degree of mood disorder in non- psychiatric, hospital out-patients. S cores range from 0 to 21, with the higher scores signifying greater anxiety and greater depression (Moorey Greer S, and Watsa M, et al., 1991). In a number of studies, scholars have utilized General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) for evaluating well-being over a whole lifetime (Nilsson K W, Leppert J, Simonsson Bo, Starrin B., 2008). Goldberg D.P et al. (1970) designed the GHQ to detect psychiatric disorder. This questionnaire evaluates the individual present functioning from his or her usual state. GHQ has several types such as 60, 32, 28, and 12 items but the most popular type of the GHQ is 28 items which has four subscales as follow: A. Somatic Symptoms (items 1-7) B. Anxiety/Insomnia (items 8-14) C. Social dysfunction (items 15-21) D. Severe depression (items 22-28) These individual subscales are merely used for diagnosis of information and identification purposes, while the total subscales score is used. Ryff (1989) developed a multidimensional model designed to capture the broad elements of eudemonia. And six dimensions of well-being are identified which include: self-acceptance, positive relations with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth. The Scales of Psychological Well-Being (PWB; Ryff, 1989) indicates the ways in which people react to a range of specific experiences, such as community relocation (Ryff Essex, 1992). Ryffs measure of PWB is relevant to analysis of experience of either advantage or adversity over the lifetime (Ryff Singer, 1996 cited in Grossbaum M F, and Bates G W. (2002). The Scales of Psychological Well-Being measure (SPWB; Ryff, 1989b) contains 84 items rated from 1 strongly disagree to 6 strongly agree. This scale also consists of six subscales with 14 items in each. These are: (a) self-acceptance, (b) positive relations with others, (c) autonomy, (d) environmental mastery, (e) purpose in life, and (f) personal growth. Ryff (1989b; Ryff Keyes, 1995) established the SPWB to be a reliable and valid measure of well-being. Cronbachs alpha for the 20-item scale ranged from .86 to .93 and over a six-week period the reports showed excellent test-retest reliability (rs range from .81 to .88). Allardt (1981) suggested a model for evaluating well-being in academic setting. Allardts model of well-being is categorized in to four variables of (1) school condition (having), (2) social relationship (loving), (3) means for self-fulfilment (being) and (4) heath status. The School well-being model origins from Allardts sociological theory of welfare and is constructed to measure well-being in educational settling (Konu Rimpela, 2002). In this model, well-being is associated with teaching, education, learning activities and outcomes. Allardts model Means for self fulfilment contains situation for each student to act according to his/her own resources and capabilities. Health status is assessed based on students symptoms, diseases and illnesses. The main preference of this model is due to its diverse sub categories of well-being in students life in educational centre as well as considering the impact of pupils homes and neighbourhood. Allardth further in 1989 developed his model cross tabulating having, loving and being with the dichotomy of objective and subjective indication and obtained six cells of different types of indicators. According to the literature, Allardth model is employed in this relationship study to measure international students well-being.

Ashoka Indian Ruler :: essays papers

Ashoka Indian Ruler One of the greatest rulers of India's history is Ashoka (Asoka). Ruling for thirty-eight years (274 B.C.-232 B.C.), he was generally mentioned in his inscriptions as Devanampiya Piyadasi ("Beloved of the gods"). As the third emperor of the Mauryan dynasty, he was born in the year 304 B.C. His greatest achievements were spreading Buddhism throughout his empire and beyond. He set up an ideal government for his people and conquered many lands, expanding his kingdom. The knowledge of Ashoka's early reign is limited because little information was found. His edicts and inscriptions allowed us to understand his reign and empire, and have an insight into the events that took place during this remarkable period of history. Eight years after he took his throne, Ashoka's powerful armies attacked and conquered Kalinga (present day Orissa). Although he had conquered many other places, this violent war was the last war he ever fought and a turning point of his career. He was disgusted by the extreme deaths of numerous civilians, especially the Brahmans. All these misfortunes brought Ashoka to turn into a religious ruler compared to a military ruler. As he turned to Buddhism, he emphasized dharma (law of piety) and ahimsa (nonviolence). He realized he could not spread Buddhism all by himself and therefore appointed officers to help promote the teachings. These officers were called Dhamma Mahamattas or "Officers of Righteousness"" They were in charge of providing welfare and happiness among the servants and masters. Preventing wrongful doings and ensuring special consideration was also their duty. Emphasizing his role as king, he paid close attention to welfare, the building of roads and rest houses, planting medicinal trees, and setting up healing centers. In order to pursue ahimsa, Ashoka gave up his favorite hobby of hunting and forbade the killing of animals, spreading vegetarianism throughout India. Furthermore, his soldiers were taught the golden rule- to behave to others the way you want them to behave to you, which is the basic law of life. In the nineteenth century, a large number of edicts written in Brahmi script carved on rocks and stone pillars were discovered in India, proving the existence of Ashoka. These edicts, found scattered in more than 30 places throughout India, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan, are mainly concerned with moral principles Ashoka recommended, his conversion to Buddhism, his personality and his success as a king. The Minor Edicts is a summary of Ashoka's instruction of dharma, which talks about the purity of thoughts, kindness, thruthfulness, reverence, and other good morals of life. The Fourteen Rock Edicts were the major edicts, and Ashoka Indian Ruler :: essays papers Ashoka Indian Ruler One of the greatest rulers of India's history is Ashoka (Asoka). Ruling for thirty-eight years (274 B.C.-232 B.C.), he was generally mentioned in his inscriptions as Devanampiya Piyadasi ("Beloved of the gods"). As the third emperor of the Mauryan dynasty, he was born in the year 304 B.C. His greatest achievements were spreading Buddhism throughout his empire and beyond. He set up an ideal government for his people and conquered many lands, expanding his kingdom. The knowledge of Ashoka's early reign is limited because little information was found. His edicts and inscriptions allowed us to understand his reign and empire, and have an insight into the events that took place during this remarkable period of history. Eight years after he took his throne, Ashoka's powerful armies attacked and conquered Kalinga (present day Orissa). Although he had conquered many other places, this violent war was the last war he ever fought and a turning point of his career. He was disgusted by the extreme deaths of numerous civilians, especially the Brahmans. All these misfortunes brought Ashoka to turn into a religious ruler compared to a military ruler. As he turned to Buddhism, he emphasized dharma (law of piety) and ahimsa (nonviolence). He realized he could not spread Buddhism all by himself and therefore appointed officers to help promote the teachings. These officers were called Dhamma Mahamattas or "Officers of Righteousness"" They were in charge of providing welfare and happiness among the servants and masters. Preventing wrongful doings and ensuring special consideration was also their duty. Emphasizing his role as king, he paid close attention to welfare, the building of roads and rest houses, planting medicinal trees, and setting up healing centers. In order to pursue ahimsa, Ashoka gave up his favorite hobby of hunting and forbade the killing of animals, spreading vegetarianism throughout India. Furthermore, his soldiers were taught the golden rule- to behave to others the way you want them to behave to you, which is the basic law of life. In the nineteenth century, a large number of edicts written in Brahmi script carved on rocks and stone pillars were discovered in India, proving the existence of Ashoka. These edicts, found scattered in more than 30 places throughout India, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan, are mainly concerned with moral principles Ashoka recommended, his conversion to Buddhism, his personality and his success as a king. The Minor Edicts is a summary of Ashoka's instruction of dharma, which talks about the purity of thoughts, kindness, thruthfulness, reverence, and other good morals of life. The Fourteen Rock Edicts were the major edicts, and