Miscellanies 6.4.38
Summary: The Indian gymnosophists also had a philosophy, shown in their shrewd answers to Alexander's ten questions.
Greek text · Stählin 2:450–451
Καὶ τὰ μὲν Αἰγυπτίων ὡς ἐν βραχεῖ φάναι τοιαῦτα· Ἰνδῶν δὲ ἡ φιλοσοφία καὶ αὐτῶν διαβεβόηται. Ἀλέξανδρος γοῦν ὁ Μακεδὼν δέκα λαβὼν Ἰνδῶν γυμνοσοφιστὰς τοὺς δοκοῦντας ἀρίστους εἶναι καὶ βραχυλογωτάτους προβλήματα αὐτοῖς προὔθηκε, τὸν μὴ ἀποκρινόμενον εὐστόχως ἀνελεῖν ἀπειλήσας, ἕνα δὲ τὸν πρεσβύτατον αὐτῶν ἐπικρίνειν κελεύσας. ὁ μὲν οὖν πρῶτος ἐξετασθείς, πότερον οἴεται τοὺς ζῶντας εἶναι πλείονας ἢ τοὺς τεθνεῶτας, τοὺς ζῶντας ἔφη· οὐ γὰρ εἶναι τοὺς τεθνεῶτας. ὁ δεύτερος δέ, πότερον τὴν γῆν ἢ τὴν θάλασσαν μείζονα θηρία τρέφειν, τὴν γῆν ἔφη· ταύτης γὰρ μέρος εἶναι τὴν θάλασσαν. ὁ δὲ τρίτος, ποῖόν ἐστι τῶν ζῴων πανουργότατον, ὃ μέχρι νῦν οὐκ ἐγνώσθη, εἶπεν, ἄνθρωπος. ὁ δὲ τέταρτος ἀνακρινόμενος, τίνι λογισμῷ τὸν Σάββαν ἀπέστησαν ἄρχοντα αὐτῶν ὄντα, ἀπεκρίθη· καλῶς ζῆν βουλόμενοι αὐτὸν ἢ καλῶς ἀποθανεῖν. ὁ δὲ πέμπτος ἐρωτηθείς, πότερον οἴεται τὴν ἡμέραν πρότερον ἢ τὴν νύκτα γεγονέναι, εἶπεν· ἡ νὺξ ἡμέρᾳ μιᾷ· τῶν γὰρ ἀπόρων ἐρωτήσεων ἀνάγκη καὶ τὰς ἀποκρίσεις ἀπόρους εἶναι. ὁ δὲ ἕκτος ἐρωτηθείς, πῶς ἄν τις φιληθείη μάλιστα, ἂν κράτιστος ὤν, ἔφη, μὴ φοβερὸς ᾖ. ὁ δὲ ἕβδομος ἐρωτηθείς, πῶς ἄν τις ἐξ ἀνθρώπων γένοιτο θεός, εἰ πράξειεν, εἶπεν, ἃ πρᾶξαι ἄνθρωπον μὴ δυνατόν ἐστιν. ὁ δὲ ὄγδοος ἐρωτηθείς, τί ἰσχυρότερον, ζωὴ ἢ θάνατος, ζωή, ἔφη, τοσαῦτα κακὰ φέρουσα. ὁ δὲ ἔνατος ἐξετασθείς, μέχρι τίνος ἀνθρώπῳ καλῶς ἔχει ζῆν, μέχρι οὗ, ἔφη, μὴ νομίζῃ τὸ τεθνάναι τοῦ ζῆν ἄμεινον. κελεύσαντος δὲ τοῦ Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ τὸν δέκατον εἰπεῖν τι (δικαστὴς γὰρ ἦν), ἕτερος, ἔφη, ἑτέρου χεῖρον εἶπεν. τοῦ δὲ Ἀλεξάνδρου φήσαντος· οὐκοῦν καὶ σὺ πρῶτος ἀποθανῇ τοιαῦτα κρίνων; καὶ πῶς ἄν, εἶπεν, βασιλεῦ, ἀληθὴς εἴης, φήσας πρῶτον ἀποκτεῖναι τὸν πρῶτον ἀποκρινάμενον κάκιστα;
English · Claude translation
Such, briefly, are the things of the Egyptians. The philosophy of the Indians too has been noised abroad. Alexander of Macedon, for instance, took ten Indian gymnosophists, those thought to be the best and most concise in speech, and set problems before them, threatening to put to death the one who did not answer aptly, and ordering one of them, the eldest, to judge. The first, asked whether he thought the living or the dead were more numerous, said the living, for the dead do not exist. The second, asked whether the earth or the sea nourishes larger beasts, said the earth, for the sea is part of it. The third, asked which of the animals is the most cunning, said: “The one that has not been found out until now: man.” The fourth, questioned on what reasoning they had made Sabbas, who was their ruler, revolt, answered: “Wishing him either to live well or to die well.” The fifth, asked whether he thought day or night came first, said: “Night, by one day”; for to hard questions the answers too must be hard. The sixth, asked how one might be loved most, said: “If, being most powerful, he is not feared.” The seventh, asked how one might become a god from a man, said: “If he does what it is impossible for a man to do.” The eighth, asked which is stronger, life or death, said: “Life, since it bears so many evils.” The ninth, questioned how long it is good for a man to live, said: “Until he does not think death better than life.” When Alexander told the tenth too to say something (for he was the judge), he said: “Each spoke worse than the other.” When Alexander said, “Then you will die first yourself, for judging so,” he said: “And how, O king, would you be truthful, having said you would first kill the one who answered worst?”
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The story is also told by Plutarch, Alexander 64.
Cite this passage
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 6.4.38 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/6/4/38/).
Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 6.4.38 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/6/4/38/).
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