Ashokan Edicts

Gujarat & Diu


Just outside town on the road to Girnar Hill, a white building on the right encloses a large boulder on which Buddhist emperor Ashoka had 14 edicts inscribed in Brahmi script in the Pali language about 250 BC. The spidery lettering instructs people to be kind to women and animals and to give to beggars, among other things. This is one of several inscriptions that Ashoka placed around his realm expounding his moral philosophy and achievements.

Most people only spend a minute or two here, so if money is tight you can safely give it a miss.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Gujarat & Diu attractions

1. Navghan Kuvo

0.41 MILES

This 52m-deep well, designed to help withstand sieges, is almost 1000 years old. Its magnificent staircase spirals around the well shaft. Look for the…

2. Adi Kadi Vav

0.45 MILES

One of two step-wells at Uparkot Fort cut from solid rock, circular, 41m-deep Adi Kadi Vav is named after two slave girls who used to fetch water from it…

3. Uparkot Fort

0.49 MILES

This ancient fort is believed to have been built in 319 BC by the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta, though it has been extended many times. In places the…

4. Jama Masjid

0.5 MILES

The Jama Masjid, the disused mosque inside Uparkot Fort, was converted from a palace in the 15th century by Gujarat sultan Mahmud Begada and has a rare…

5. Buddhist Caves

0.55 MILES

Inside Uparkot Fort and close to the Jama Masjid, these are not actually caves but rather monastic quarters carved out of rock around the 2nd century AD…

6. Damodar Kund

0.84 MILES

Just down the road from the base of Girnar Hill is Damodar Kund, a sacred lake lined by ghats (landings) where people scatter the ashes and bones of…

7. Tombs of the Babi Kings

1.09 MILES

Unknown even to many locals, this abandoned and half-overgrown cemetery at the edge of the old town contains the tombs of the Babi nawabs of Junagadh and…

8. Vazir’s Mausoleum

1.17 MILES

With almost as much flourish as the neighbouring Mahabat Maqbara mausoleum, the 1896 mausoleum of Vazir Sahib Baka-ud-din Bhar sports four storybook…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "india/gujarat/junagadh/attractions/ashokan-edicts/a/poi-sig/1154170/356254",
      "destination": "Gujarat-&-Diu",
      "continent": "Asia",
      "country": "India",
      "region": "Gujarat-&-Diu",
      "position": "superzone"
    }