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Dandamis

Introduction

Dandamis was a famous recluse in India in the fourth century B.C. Thiswas at the time of the Macedonian conqueror known to Europeans andtheir descendants as “Alexander the Great&rdquo but to everyone elsesimply as Alexander. Alexander invaded southwestern Asia and thenIndia, where his army mutinied, and he went back to Persia. However,while he was in India, he developed an interest in that country’sculture. Here he had sought after and encountered Dandamis, as

recorded by Greek historians and excerpted below.

Dandamis rebukes Alexander

The following is an excerpt from J.W. McCrindle’s translation of Greek historians who accompanied Alexander to India. McCrindle uses theword “Bragman” to mean Brahmin.

They (the Bragmanes) subsist upon such fruits as they can find, and onwild herbs, which the earch spontaneously produces, and drink only

water. They wander about in the woods, and sheep at night on palletsof the leaves of trees.

“We have … amongst us a sage called Dandamis, whose home is thewoods, were he lies on a pallet of leaves, and where he has nigh athand the foundtain of peace, whereof he drinks, sucking, as it were, thepure breast of a mother.”

King Alexander, accordingly, when he heard of all this, was desirous of learning the doctrines of the sect, and so he sent for this Dandamis, as

being their teacher and president.

Onesikratês was therefore despatched to fetch him, and when he foundthe great sage he said, “Hail to thee, thou teacher of the Bragmanes.The son of the mighty god Zeus, king Alexander, who is the sovereignlord of all men, asks you to go to to him, and if you comply, he willreward you with great and splendid gifts, but if you refuse will cut off your head.”

Dandamis, with a complacent smile, heard him to the end, but did notso much as lift up his head from his couch of leaves, and while still

retaining his recumbent attidue returned this scornful answer:—

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“God, the supreme king, is never the author of insolent wrong, but isthe creator of light, of peace, of life, of water, of the body of man, andof souls, and these he receives when death sets them free, being in noway subject to evil desire. He alone is the god of my homage, who

abhors slaughter and instigates no wars.

“But Alexander is not God, since he must taste of death, and how cansuch as he be the world’s master, who has not yet reached the furthershore of the river Tiberoboas, and has not yet seated himself on athrone of universal dominion? Moreover, Alexander has neither as yetentered living into Hades, nor does he know the course of the sunthrough the central regions of the earth, while the nations on itsboundaries have not so much as heard his name.

“If his present dominions are not capacious enough for his desire, lethim cross the Ganges river, and he will find a region able to sustainmen if the country on our side be too narrow to hold him.

“Know this, however, that what Alexander offers me, and the gifts hepromises, are all things to me utterly useless; but the things which Iprize, and find of real use and worth, are these leaves which are myhouse, these blooming plants which supply me with dainty food, andthe water which is my drink, while all other possessions and things,which are amassed with anxious care, are wont to prove ruinous tothose who amass them, and cause only sorrow and vexation, with

which every poor mortal is fully fraught. But as for me, I lie upon theforest leaves, and, having nothing which requires guarding, close myeyes in tranquil slumber; whereas had I gold to guard, that wouldbanish sleep. The earth supplies me with everything, even as a motherher child with milk. I go wherever I please, and there are no cares withwhich I am forced to cumber myself, against my will.

“Should Alexander cut off my head, he cannot also destroy my soul. Myhead alone, now silent, will remain, but the soul will go away to itsMaster, leaving the body like a torn garment upon the earth, whencealso it was taken. I then, becoming spirit, shall ascend to my God, who

enclosed us in flesh, and left us upon the earth to prove whether whenhere below we shall prove obedient to his ordinances, and who also willrequire of us, when we depart hence to his presence, an account of ourlife, since he is judge of all proud wrong-doing; for the groans of theoppressed become the punishments of the oppressors.

“Let Alexander, then terrify with these threats those who wish for goldand for wealth, and who dread death, for against us these weapons areboth alike powerless, since the Bragmanes neither love gold nor feardeath. Go, then, and tell Alexander this: ‘Dandamis has no need of 

aught that is yours, and therefore will not go to you, but if you want

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anything from Dandamis come you to him.’ ”

Alexander, on receiving from Onesikratês a report of the interview, felta stronger desire than ever to see Dandamis, who, though old and

naked, was the only antagonist in whom he, the conqueror of manynations, had found more than his match.

—J.W. McCrindle, Ancient India as described by Megasthenes and Arrian,   Calcutta,   Bombay,   and   London,   1877,   online   at hdl.loc.gov/loc.gdc/scd0001.20040416001in.1 as of 7 August 2004, p.123–126.

Natural desires

In this passage, Dandamis speaks to Alexander.

“But, thirst being a natural desire, if you drink the water you thirst for,your desire for it ceases. Similarly, if feeling hungry, you receive thefood you seek, your hunger comes to an end. If, then, man’s appetitefor gold were on the same natural level, no doubt his cupidity wouldcease as soon as he obtained what he wished for. But this is not thecase. On the contrary, it always comes back, a passion never satiated,and so man’s craving goes on without end, because it does not proceedfrom an inclination implanted by nature.”

—Dandamis, from S. V. Yankowski, The Brahman Episode, p. 21–23,quoted   by   Sarvepalli   Radhakrishnan, theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/brother/br-radh.htm as of 7 August 2004.

Possessions

In this passage, Dandamis speaks to Alexander.

“I have just as much of the earth as you and every other person; evenif you gain all rivers, you cannot drink more than I. Therefore I have nofears, acquire no wounds and destroy no cities. I have just as muchearth and water as you; altogether I possess everything. Learn thiswisdom from me: wish for nothing, and everything is yours.”

—Dandamis, from Jean W. Sedlar, India and the Greek World; Astudy in the transmission of culture, New Jersey, 1980, Section III,“Classical Notes on India”, adolphus.nl/xcrpts/xcsedlar.html as of 7August 2004.

The unseen

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The following is from an editorial in the Indian Express.

Apparently, when Alexander the Great came to conquer India, he met asanyasi,  who  was  actually  a  great  sage.  The  sage’s  name  wa‘Dandamis’; at least, that is how Greek historians seem to havepronounced it. Alexander questioned the sage: “Do you believe inGod?” The sage remained silent. Alexander said, “I cannot see, so howcan I believe? How do you believe without seeing him?” The nakedsage laughed. He took Alexander by his hand towards the marketplace.Alexander followed—maybe he was taking him somewhere where hecould show him God.

A small boy was flying a kite, and the kite had gone so far away that itwas impossible to see it. The sage smiled secretly and stopped there,

and the king of the Macedons waited impatiently. The sage asked thelittle boy, “Where is your kite? Because we cannot see it, and withoutseeing, how can we believe it is actually in existence? So where is thatkite of yours? How do you still believe the kite exists?” The boy laughedmerrily and looked pityingly at the sage for asking such an absurdquestion. He said, “I can feel the pull of it.” And the sage said toAlexander, “I can also feel the pull of it.”

—Swami   Chaitanya   Keerti,   “Taking   God   on   Trust”,   at indianexpress.com/ie20010830/ed3.html as of 7 August 2004.

Brahmins answer Alexander’s questions

In the follwing passage from the historian Plutarch, Alexander hascaptured ten Brahmins who were associates of Dandamis and asksthem questions.

He [Alexander] captured ten of the Gymnosophists [Brahmins] who haddone most to get Sabbas [a king] to revolt, and had made the mosttrouble for the Macedonians.

These philosophers were reputed to be clever and concise in answeringquestions, and Alexander therefore put difficult questions to them,declaring that he would put to death him who first made an incorrectanswer, and then the rest, in an order determined in like manner; andhe commanded one of them, the oldest, to be the judge in the contest.

The first one, accordingly, being asked which, in his opinion, were morenumerous, the living or the dead, said that the living were, since thedead no longer existed.

The second, being asked whether the earth or the sea produced larger

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animals, said the earth did, since the sea was but a part of the earth.

The third, being asked what animal was the most cunning, said: “Thatwhich up to this time man has not discovered.”

The fourth, when asked why he had induced Sabbas to revolt, replied:“Because I wished him either to live nobly or to die nobly.”

The fifth, being asked which, in his opinion, was older, day or night,replied: “Day, by one day”; and he added, upon the king expressingamazement, that hard questions must have hard answers.

Passing on, then, to the sixth, Alexander asked how a man could bemost loved; “If,” said the philosopher, “he is most powerful, and yetdoes not inspire fear.”

Of the three remaining, he who was asked how one might become agod instead of man, replied: “By doing something which a man cannotdo”; the one who was asked which was the stronger, life or death,answered: “Life, since it supports so many ills.”

And the last, asked how long it were well for a man to live, answered:“Until he does not regard death as better than life.”

So, then, turning to the judge, Alexander bade him give his opinion.

The judge declared that they had answered one worse than another.“Well, then,” said Alexander, “thou shalt die first for giving such averdict.”

“That cannot be, O King,” said the judge, “unless thou falsely saidstthat thou wouldst put to death first him who answered worst.”

[Alexander did not kill any of the Brahmins but instead sent them awaywith gifts.]

—Plutarch, The Parallel Lives, Loeb Classical Library, 1919, online at 

ukans.edu/history/index/europe/ancient_rome/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/ Lives/Alexander*/9.html as of 7 August 2004.