| Asoka,
as a Kshatriya had an aversion for that stuff. He gave it up even
before the Kalinga war. But circumstances
forced him to eat an onion once in his life. He did so much against
his conscience for health reasons, when every alternative had shut
it doors against him tight. The circumstances being strange and the
story odd, they deserve a detailed narration now. The episode never
undermined his austerity, nor did it leave a stain on his spotless
ascetic life. On the other hand, it strengthened his convictions
admiringly well and made his conduct a worthy specimen for emulation
by all and at all times too.
Late
in life, Asoka suffered from a dangerous disease. It was a dreadful
malady, incurable in nature. The Royal physicians and experts in the
field, who attended on him expressed their inability to cure it.
Every known method, and all systems of medicines bent their heads
before it in token of their helplessness.
|
