The text also tells of Ashoka's son Kunala, who became a blind beggar due to a plot hatched by Ashoka's young queen Tisyaraksita.
Due to the premature death of his birth mother, Rani Padmavati within a few months of his birth, he was raised by Ashoka's first wife and Empress consort Asandhimitra (also known as Devi) who loved him like her own son.
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Therefore, Ashoka was succeeded by another, older grandson, Dasaratha.
Kunala |
Historians Vincent Smith and Romila Thapar advanced the popular theory of a division of the Mauryan Empire amongst Kunala and Dasaratha after the death of Ashoka.
However, Kunala immediately understood the hidden meaning, but due to his love towards his father and his loyalty towards Magadha, he felt forced to blow off his own eyes.