More than 20 centuries ago, young prince Ashoka had married a Vidisha merchant’s daughter when his royal carven on its way to an other town had camped here. Princes and merchant princes in those days had a great need to live in harmony. Eight years after Ashoka ascended the throne, he went to war with and conquered the state of Kalinga. It was a terrible war in which one hundred and fifty thousand persons.

were carried away captive, one hundred thousand were slain and many times that the number perished. It was at this point of history that the peace began to win over mind and heart of the warriors. Walking across the bloodied field, Ashoka’s ears were assailed with the bellows of wounded horses, the moans of dying men and orphans searching hopelessly in the carnage.

The miracle had happened then is inscribed in rock Edit X111 " Thus arose his sacred majesty’s remorse for having conquered the Kalingas. Of all the people who were then slain, done to death or carried away captive in Kalinga ,if the hundredth of the thousandth part were to suffer the same fate, it would now be a matter of regret to his Majesty" Emperor Ashoka, in a historical dramatic change of heart, renounced war, turned his back on conquest and embraced that most gentle of religions: Buddhism. From digvijaya, a conqueror of territories, he became a dhamma-vijaya, a conqueror of men’s hearts. And in his quest to proclaim his new faith for the entire world to see, he returned to Vidisha, the town of his loved wife. There, on a wooded knoll, at a short riding distance from the metropolis, he established a spiritual center that was to last for 1300 years. Never before and never since, has peace scored such a great victory over war as in the triumph we know as Sanchi.

(Sanchi Stupa)

At a distance of twelve kilometers from Sanchi is the ancient city of Vidisha. Vidisha was also refereed to as Besnagar since it was located on the confluence of the Betwa and the Bes rivers. It is noteworthy that the wife of Ashoka was from Vidisha.

In Videsha you must visit the Heliodoros Pillar of the 5 A. D. is dedicated to Lord Vishnu that marks the conversion of the Greek ambassador of Taxila into Hinduism. Till date the local fishermen worship the pillar as Khamb Baba.

Then there are the Hindu and the Jain caves that run in succession at Udaigiri. The rock cut cave sanctuaries of Udaigiri are world- renowned. Both the places are of much historical interest. The Buddhist monks inhabited these caves cut into the sand stone hills in 2 B.C. The caves carry captivating carvings of Lord Vishnu. You may even visit the remains of the 6th century Gupta temple on the top of the hill. The Gupta temple is amongst the pioneer temples that followed the temple architecture in India. 

The railway station of Vidisha caters to the tourists who travel by trains. The railhead of Vidisha is at a distance of 10 kilometers from Sanchi.