Page:Asoka - the Buddhist Emperor of India.djvu/24

22 aspersion (abhisheka), equivalent to the coronation of European monarchs. Like his fathers before him, Asoka assumed the title of Devânaṁ piya, which literally means 'dear to the gods,' but is better treated as a formal title, suitably rendered by the phrase current in Stuart times, 'His Sacred Majesty.' He also liked to describe himself as piyadasi, literally 'of gracious mien,' another formal royal title, which may be rendered as 'His Grace' or 'His Gracious Majesty.' Asoka's grandfather, Chandragupta, assumed the closely ielated style of piyadasana, 'dear to the sight,' which one of the Ceylonese chronicles applies to Asoka. Thus, when the above two titles were combined with the word rājā, or 'king,' Asoka's full royal style was 'His Sacred and Gracious Majesty the King.' The complete formula is often used in the inscriptions, but in many cases it is abbreviated.

Nothing authentic is on record concerning the early