I wanted to find some mixing links. Like there was one point of time when Greeks and Indians were very close to each other. For example there were many kings of Indo-Greek origin from asia minor to India. In India there are some references about some of these Indo-Greek kings. This was in BC at that point of time two most famous cultures of the world were in close contact but now if you look there is a vast of communication gap.
I am not a buddhist but I wanted to know the whethere there was actually a point of time when buddhist culture was a bridge between these two civilization.
There are some references stating about the greek kings in some of the ancient ethics and incription I wanted to testify whether even the greeks know about these Indian kings or whether they were aware of them atleast.
Brother can you do one more favour
ΓΚΑΟΥΤΑΜ ΒΟΥΔΔΑ is what actual name by which greek refer Gautam buddha (the founder of buddhism) or it is just the word that sounds(just pronounciation) like Gautam Buddha. is there any greek equivalent name of him. I have heard that arabs called him bodhisaf and in latin he has been incorporated to as saint Isophat.
Thinking capacity of those people at that time was very high like how Alexander The great united many cultures and dreamt about unity among all human beings, no difference in race, creed, caste and gender. Just universal brotherhood. They did not had advanced technology like we have now but still they were more advanced than our generation.
One more thing Gautam buddha was the founder of buddhism but Mahavira Vardhman a Gymnosophist(naked philosopher) was actually a follower of Jains another religion but has close resemblence with buddhism. Mahavira Vardhman came before Gautam Buddha. Buddha at one point of time was a disciple of Mahavira Vardhman. As in latin it is said that Saint Barlaam was the tutor of Gautam Buddha, so I wanted to find out whether Saint Barlaam is actually Mahavira Vardhman because Barlaam and Vardhman sounds similar as per Indian pronounciation atleast the later part laam and hman.
The western world was know that Jains and Buddhist as buddhist but actually they are follower of two different faith. Slightly similar philosophy. So I wanted to know whether greek knew about Jains(Gymnosophist) just like how they knew about buddhists(never practized Gymnosophist). In recent times even one sect of Jains have stopped practizing Gymnosophist culture but I wanted to know whether the greek knew about Jains at that time in BC or in the early AD.
Do you know about Demetrius I Bactaria. Do you know with about how many India kings he had battled do you have any references of those Indian king. There is one place called Calingae the king of this pace was called Kharavela as per Indian language I wanted to know what exactly he was called in greek at that time. Is there any reference about him in the story of Demetrius I(Indo-Greek king)of bactria.
Thank you for your help. Do you know any latin website like this one?
I think that maybe you are entangled in details secondary to the whole picture. In Hellenistic era (the era of Alexander) hellenism was mixed with all sorts of far eastern cults. This was a confusion, and it is pointless and unfair to try to figure a form in the confusion as such. It was just a confusion, and it remained just that, until the christening of hellenism.
In Byzantium the general aspect was that, even if different in faith, all people are children of God, to be treated with love and respect. It is characteristic on this a speech by the Byzantine emperor Manuel Palaeologus. Apart from a general contact and appreciation, we can’t speak of any participation of the induist culture in Christianity, but only in the modern era, where (starting from the West) Christianity is being completely dissolved.
To your other question about how we pronounce buddha, we call him “Voudas” (pronouncing v as in ‘vase’, d as in ‘then’), and we respect especially Zen buddhism. I don’t have historical information to answer more of your questions, maybe some other will do; but I wanted just to make a suggestion for you, not to neglect the general picture being drowned in minute details. In just one sentence: after the christening of hellenism, the two millennia of Christian hellenism by themselves prove the inner relationship between ancient Greece and Christianity, so that to have a real unity with hellenism first of all means to be a Christian, all other similarities or differences being secondary and insubstantial.
Induist words transliterated in Greek
Posted - 21 Sep 2006 : 13:23:03
