<P> Beloved - of - the - Gods, King Priyadarsi, conquered the Kalingas eight years after his coronation . One hundred and fifty thousand were deported, one hundred thousand were killed and many more died (from other causes). After the Kalingas had been conquered, Beloved - of - the - Gods came to feel a strong inclination towards the Dharma, a love for the Dharma and for instruction in Dharma . Now Beloved - of - the - Gods feels deep remorse for having conquered the Kalingas . </P> <P> Ashoka's response to the Kalinga War is recorded in the Edicts of Ashoka . The Kalinga War prompted Ashoka, already a non-engaged Buddhist, to devote the rest of his life to ahimsa (non-violence) and to dharma - vijaya (victory through dharma). Following the conquest of Kalinga, Ashoka ended the military expansion of the empire and began an era of more than 40 years of relative peace, harmony, and prosperity . Oral histories of the region have attributed his devotion to Buddhism after the war to a woman who approached him and said, "Your actions have taken from me my father, husband, and son . Now what will I have left to live for?" </P>

Discuss the causes and results of kalinga war