The national emblem of India is Sarnath Lion Capital of Ashoka. This has the four lions of Sarnath and is the symbol of power and courage and confidence. The symbol has three visible lions and one lion at the back which is not visible. They are placed on the circular Abacus which has four more animals, the lion, the bull, the horse and the elephant. It has the Chakra in the middle below the lions on the abacus. This chakra has 24 spokes and it is placed at the center of Indian national flag. The four animals indicate four directions, the lion is considered as the guardian of the North, the bull is considered as the guardian of the west, the horse is considered as the guardian of the south and the elephant is considered as the guardian of the east. The symbol is placed on the fully bloomed lotus and this is an indication of life in full bloom. Below that is inscripted the motto Satyameva Jeyate meaning Truth alone Triumphs in the Devanagiri script.

The whole structure mentioned above is seen in the Lion of Sarnath that is situated near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. This was built by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka in the 3^rd century BC. Buddha started to preach his religion from this place and Ashoka after his war with Kalinga turned his face towards Buddhism and built this monument as a gospel of peace with four lions pointing to four quarters of the universe.

In the national emblem of India, there are four chakras on the abacus, one in between each animal. However the lotus in bloom beneath this is not included in the national emblem of India. The verse Satyameva Jeyate is a quote from the Hindu Vedas called Mudaka Upanishad. The lion capital of Saranath became the national emblem of India on its republic day on 26^th January 1950. Since then it is appearing on all the currencies of the nation as well as on the official letterhead of the Government of India and the national and diplomatic passport of India. The second stamp printed and issued in the Republic of India has this national emblem of India together with the inverted bell shaped lotus.

The original lion capital is preserved in the Saranath Museum. It is carved out of single piece of polished sandstone. The chakra is called as the wheel of law or dharma chakra. It emphasizes the importance of justice in all proceedings. It is a symbol of truthfulness, honesty and justice.

If you take a look at the national emblem of India, you can see the three lions joined together at the middle and the fourth one is hidden at the back. The two forelimbs of the lion in the front and one of the right legs of the lion at the right side and one of the left legs of the lion at the left is visible to the eyes. Though there are four dharma chakras, only the one in between the bull and the horse is visible clearly. The other two small animals, elephant and lion are not visible as they are supposed to be at the back. However you can see them all in the sculpture at Saranath.

The lion capital of Ashoka is originally located over the Ashoka pillar in Saranath in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Though the column remains in the exact same place the lion capital is relocated to the Sarnath Museum to preserve it. The similar type of lion capital is found at the pillar at Sanchi also.

Article Posted By : Sumazla  On December 07, 2011lView All Articles

Suhaina Mazhar is a freelance content writer and blogger with five years experience in content writing. http://sumazla.blogspot.com is her blog.

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Keywords :
NATIONAL EMBLEM OF INDIA , indian national emblem , state emblem of india