![]() Sources of Kalinga War From ancient times, Kalinga maintained her identity as an influential state. The Military power of Kalinga was also dreadful. The real influence of Kalinga was established from the truth that, though Chandragupta Maurya occupied almost the whole of India but he did not attack Kalinga which was so near to Magadha. The first two Maurya Emperors were very much aware of the military strength of Kalinga. Ashoka, the 3rd Maurya Emperor, had also to wait and set up for long 8 years after his coronation to carry out the attack to Kalinga. ![]() Ashoka did not follow this customary rule. The people of Kalinga took up the challenge of the invading forces in full strength of mind to defend against Emperor Ashoka who succeeded the Battle of Kalinga. The results of terrible Kalinga war saw a turning point in the history of human development. Consequences of Kalinga War Kalinga battle was very brutal and it is stated that around 150,000 warriors of Kalinga and 100,000 Mauryan warriors died. It is being alleged that the battle was so ferocious that in result of the battle, Daya River, flowing next to the battlefield turned completely red because of the bloodshed. Several thousands of men and women of Kalinga were deported. After the war of Kalinga, Emperor Ashoka ended his military invasions and completely stopped the territorial development policy of Mauryan Empire. After the battle, Ashoka hold the notion of ‘Dhammavijaya’ or triumph through ‘Dhamma’. Ashoka ruled his empire for more than 40 years with peace, harmony and affluence. The current day Odisha and Ganjam were the prehistoric Kalinga. Thousands had died, innumerable people suffered as a result of the violence, dismissal and other eventualities of war. There were blood and tears all over the place. |