The Ashoka Chakra (Transl: Ashoka's wheel) is an Indian symbol which is a depiction of the Dharmachakra. It is called so because it appears on a number of edicts of Ashoka, most prominent among which is the Lion Capital of Ashoka.
Symbolic history
When
Gautama Buddha achieved enlightenment at
Bodh Gaya, he came to
Sarnath. There, he found his five disciples,
Assaji, Mahānāman,
Kaundinya, Bhaddiya and Vappa, who had earlier abandoned him. He introduced his first teachings to them, thereby establishing the
Dharmachakra. This is the motif taken up by Ashoka and portrayed on top of his pillars.
The 24 spokes represent the 24 Jain Tirthankara of the present cosmic cycle. Alternatively, the 24 spokes represent the twelve causal links taught by the Buddha and paṭiccasamuppāda (Dependent Origination, Conditional Arising) in forward and then reverse order.[Maha Nayaka Thera, http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110710/Plus/plus_10.html , The correct use of the 'Dharmachakra'] The first 12 spokes represent 12 stages of suffering. The next 12 spokes represent no cause no effect. So, due to awareness of the mind, the formation of mental conditioning stops. This process stops the process of birth and death, i.e., Nirvana. It also depicts the “wheel of time”. The twelve causal links, paired with their corresponding symbols, are:
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Avidyā ignorance
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Saṅkhāra conditioning of mind unknowingly
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Vijñāna not being conscious
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Namarupa name and form (constituent elements of mental and physical existence)
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Sadayatana six senses (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind)
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Sparśa contact
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Vedanā sensation
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Taṇhā thirst
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Upādāna grasping
[See, for example, Rhys Davids & Stede (1921–25), p. 149; and, Gombrich (2005).]
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Bhava coming to be
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Jāti birth
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Jarāmaraṇa old age
[See Rhys Davids & Stede (1921–25), p. 279, entry for "Jarā", retrieved 19 November 2008 from "U. Chicago" at [1] . More than simply "old age", the PED provides the additional meanings of "decay, decrepitude"; and these additional translations are reflected in the Buddha's reputed words in the Jarā Sutta (below). However, for the sake of semantic conciseness, the compound term jarā-maraṇa is here represented as "old age and death."] and death[See Rhys Davids & Stede (1921–25), p. 524, entry for "Maraṇa", retrieved 19 November 2008 from "U. Chicago" at [2] . The PED further contextualizes maraṇa with "death, as ending this (visible) existence, physical death...." That is, in Buddhism, maraṇa does not refer to death of the conscious process or the end of the associated suffering.] – corpse being carried.
These 12 in forward and reverse represent a total 24 spokes representing the
dharma.
The Ashoka Chakra depicts the 24 principles that should be present in a human.
Inclusion in the national flag of India
Ashoka Chakra was included in the middle of the national flag of India. The chakra intends to show that there is life in movement and death in stagnation.
Originally, the Indian flag was based on the
Swaraj flag, a flag of the Indian National Congress adopted by
Mahatma Gandhi after making significant modifications to the design proposed by
Pingali Venkayya.
This flag included
Spinning wheel which was replaced with
Ashoka Chakra in 1947 by
Jawaharlal Nehru.
Construction Sheet
See also
Notes
