Lessons in Ethical Leadership: Speaking Stones of Emperor Ashoka (268 BCE)

At a time of deepening division and growing questions about the exercise of power, conversations about ethical leadership feel especially urgent. More than 2,000 years ago, Emperor Ashoka grappled with questions that remain strikingly relevant: How should leaders wield power responsibly? How can diverse communities coexist? What do we owe one another in a pluralistic society?

Join Kalapriya for a timely conversation exploring what Ashoka’s legacy can teach us about leadership, responsibility, and living together across differences, and why these ancient questions matter now.

Presentation by Patrick Olivelle
Professor Emeritus, University of Texas in Austin

Author of Ashoka: Portrait of a Philosopher King

Introduced by Professor Whitney Cox
University of Chicago

Q & A led by Dr. Shiv Subramaniam
Assistant Professor, Emory University