The Indian Buddhist Monk Who Reached Ancient Greece 2,000 Years Ago

Zarmanochegas, an Indian Buddhist monk, is buried successful an past tomb astatine the Kerameikos archaeological tract successful Athens, Greece. Credit: George E. Koronaios/Wikimedia Commons/ CC0 1.0

In the archaeological tract of Kerameikos successful Athens, Greece, determination is an past tomb of an Indian Buddhist monk named Zarmanochegas.

Kerameikos is the astir important cemetery of Ancient Athens which came into beingness successful the 12th Century B.C. It derives its sanction from the precise aged assemblage of the metropolis 4th Kerameis who had settled connected the banks of the stream Eridanos. When the Eridanos River flowed done here, it produced an orange-red clay perfect for pottery (Keramos successful Greek).

The assemblage of pottery artisans was named Kerameikos and their benignant of elaborately painted earthenware was called Kerameikos (Greek for ceramic). Mythology credits Keramos (Ceramus) for lending his name. He was the lord of the Keramaikos pottery territory and the mortal lad of Dionysus, the deity of vino who went connected a run to India. 

The 11-acre archaeological tract is filled with tombstones and statues of astonishing plan and quality. One of these tombs is that of an Indian Buddhist monk. On his tomb was placed this inscription: “Here lies Zarmanochegas, of Barygaza, who according to the ancestral customized of the Indians gave himself immortality.”

Tamil oregon Punjabi Mission?

Scholars person been debating whether the ngo Zarmanochegas was a portion of to the tribunal of Romans via Athens, was sent by a Tamil King oregon a Punjabi King of India.

Pakistani writer Majid Sheikh mentions successful his nonfiction successful Dawn paper “in my pupil days portion hitch-hiking done Europe, I stumbled crossed a mysterious tomb of Porus’ (King of Punjab country present divided betwixt India and Pakistan) ambassador…”History tells america that ‘Zarmanochegas’ was a Rajput Khokhar from Lahore and reached Athens on with his 85 slaves. He was honored with a tomb successful Athens.

A statue depicting Buddha performing the vitarka mudra. Credit: Purshi / Wikimedia commons CC BY 3.0

As per R. N. Dandekar successful his probe insubstantial SOME ASPECTS OF THE INDO-MEDITERRANEAN CONTACTS published by Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, a Pandya embassy, nether the enactment of Zarmanochegas (Sramanacarya), had near Bhrukaccha (Barygaza) successful 25 B. C. and waited upon Augustus astatine Sumos successful 21 B. C. with presents for the Emperor which are said to person consisted, among different things, of a gigantic python, immense tortoises, and an armless lad who could sprout arrows with his feet.

Pandyas were a Tamil dynasty of Dravidian origin, hence, if what Dandekar mentions is right, past Zarmanochegas was portion of a Tamil ngo to Roman tribunal via Athens.

Indian Buddhist Monk Zarmanochegas Self-Immolated successful Athens

As per Kim Han-Sang HK Research Professor astatine Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, South Korea, self-immolation refers to ascetic Buddhist practices that see the voluntary termination of one’s beingness oregon the offering of parts of one’s assemblage usually by mounting oneself ablaze. In some the Northern (Mahayana) and Southern (Theravada) Buddhist traditions, self-immolation has been considered a heroic bodhisattva enactment to extremity one’s beingness with a spiritual information and beardown consciousness of determination.

Alexander the Great Statue. Credit Alexander Gale / Greek Reporter

Zarmanochegas was not the archetypal Indian monk to aforesaid immolate himself successful beforehand of past Greeks; agelong earlier him, Alexander the Great’s person Kalanos oregon Swami Kalyan besides did it.

When the Macedonian service reached North Western India, Alexander met gymnosophist Dandamis. Alexander wanted him to travel with him backmost to Greece but helium refused, but 1 of the Gymnosophistai there, a antheral named Kalanos (Indian Kalyana), followed the conqueror to the west, wherever helium died. The communicative of the interrogation and the communicative of the decease of Kalanos are described successful respective sources, specified arsenic the Anabasis by the Greek writer Arrian of Nicomedia.

Mosaic Depicting the Battle of Issus betwixt Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia. Credit: Wkimedia Commons / Dave  and Margie Hill CC BY SA 2.0

It was successful Persia that Kalanos mounted the pyre and with owed ceremonial laid himself down. All the troops were watching. Alexander could not but consciousness that determination was a benignant of indelicacy successful witnessing specified a spectacle – the man, aft all, had been his friend; everyone else, however, felt thing but astonishment to spot Kalanos springiness not the smallest motion of shrinking from the flames.

A representation of Alexander the Great’s empire astatine its largest grade c.323 BCE including details of cardinal roads, location, and battles. Credit: Generic Mapping Tools / Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0

 We work successful Nearchus’s relationship of this incidental that astatine the infinitesimal the occurrence was kindled determination was, by Alexander’s orders, an awesome salute: the bugles sounded, the troops with 1 accord roared retired their battle-cry, and the elephants joined successful with their shrill warfare trumpetings. 

Details of Mission of Zarmanochegas

As per Strabo, during the regularisation of Emperor Augustus, a Pandya embassy, nether the enactment of Zarmanochegas (Sramanacarya), had near Bhrgukaccha successful 25 B. C. and waited upon Augustus astatine Samos successful 21 B. C. with presents for the Emperor, which are said to person consisted, among different things, of a gigantic python, immense tortoises, and an armless lad who could sprout arrows with his feet.

Indeed, astatine slightest 9 embassies from India are known to person visited Roman emperors up to the times of Constantine. The intent of these embassies indispensable person been some diplomatic and commercial. Indian doctrine seems to person made a tremendous content upon the thinkers of the Graeco-Roman world. 

As per Roman History by Cassius Dio Book LIV “…the radical of India, who had already made overtures, present made a pact of friendship, sending among different gifts tigers, which were past for the archetypal clip seen by the Romans, arsenic also, I deliberation by the Greeks. They besides gave him a lad who had nary shoulders oregon arms, similar our statues of Hermes and yet, defective arsenic helium was, helium could usage his feet for everything, arsenic if they were hands: with them helium would agelong a bow, sprout missiles, and enactment a trumpet to his lips.

How helium did this I do not know; I merely authorities what is recorded. One of the Indians, Zarmarus, for immoderate crushed wished to die, — either because, being of the caste of sages, helium was connected this relationship moved by ambition, or, successful accordance with the accepted customized of the Indians, due to the fact that of aged age, oregon due to the fact that helium wished to marque a show for the payment of Augustus and the Athenians (for Augustus had reached Athens);— helium was truthful initiated into the mysteries of the 2 goddesses, which were held retired of play connected account, they say, of Augustus, who besides was an initiate, and helium past threw himself live into the fire.”

The ngo of Zarmanochegas was an effort to make a stronger narration betwixt India and Rome, but his self-immolation successful Athens astonished the Greeks, similar that of Kalanos respective years earlier him had astonished the Macedonian soldiers of Alexander the Great.