THE IMPACT OF HELLENISM ON INDIAN CULTURE

The modern country called Greece in the continent of Europe is generally referred to as ‘ Hellas’.
This reference is found in all ancient literatures and inscriptions. So Greek culture is otherwise known as Hellenic culture to the rest of the world.

Background

Though India had maintained its trade and commercial contacts with other parts of the world, a new dimension was added by the invasion of the great Greek hero Alexander in the last quarter of 4th century BCE.

Alexander did not prefer to remain confined within the state of Greece. He dreamt of ruling over a large empire. So he came in direct conflict with the Persian emperor. In 330 BCE, Alexander brought an end to the powerful Persian rule in the battle at Arbela. After the Persian defeat, the traffic between India and the West slowed down.

After Persia, Alexander’s next move was to march towards India, and he marched to its north-western frontiers. He fought the Battle of Hydaspes with the Indian King Porus in 326 BCE. Alexander did not march into the interior of Indian sub-continent due to the exhaustion of his army. But even after his short stay in India, he left behind a rich legacy of Greek culture. This legacy not only influenced India but also brought new manifestations in different spheres.

During the time of Alexander, Greece had reached the pinnacle of glory in the realms of art, literature, philosophy and science.

The Hellenic influence was considerably felt first in the realm of political life. When Alexander returned from India, he left the charge of the conquered Indian territories among his generals, who ultimately paved the way for the rise of Maurya dynasty in Indian history. The young and ambitious Indian hero Chandragupta Maurya liberated the north-western frontier of India from  the Greek rule and founded the Maurya dynasty.

The first three Maurya kings Chandragupta, Bindusara and Ashoka maintained close relationships with the Greeks. Indeed, Chandragupta had married the Greek Princess Helena, daughter of Seleucus Nikator, a Greek king of Syria and a former General of Alexander’s army. This friendship was cemented by the arrival of Meghasthenes and Daimachus as ambassadors of Seleucus. Meghasthenes’s account of India in his book Indica refers to a great extent the cultural interactions between the two countries.

This relationship was strengthened further during the reign of Chandragupta Maurya’s son Bindusara who had asked the Greek King Antiochus to send Greek wine and raisins that were in great demand in India. The diplomatic relationship between India and the West are recorded in the Rock Edict XIII of Ashoka where Ashoka had referred to the names of five Greek rulers in whose kingdoms Buddhist missionary activities were undertaken.

Due to the increase of commercial as well as political intercourse, the number of visitors between India and the West also increased. Such contacts are recorded in great detail in works like Strabo’s Geography, Arrian’s Indica, Pliny’s Natural History, The Periplus of Erythrean Sea and Ptolemy’s Geography. Moreover, the Greeks were quite positive towards other religions such as Buddhism.The conversion of the Greek King Menander to Buddhism is a glaring example. Some Greeks also offered donations in the Buddhist caves at Karle.
The Garuda Pillar at Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh was the work of Heliodorous, son of Dion, a Greek envoy. Thus, India had come to occupy an important position in the Greek world. The other side of the story is equally fascinating. The Greeks also asserted tremendous influence on the cultural life of India in the fields of art and architecture, coinage, drama and science.

Art and Architecture

The Hellenic impact on Indian artistic tradition was tremendous. It manifested itself in the form of an entirely new movement known as Gandhara School of Art. As the name suggests, this school of art developed from the particular region of Gandhara in the north-west, now in Afghanistan. Later it spread over to Taxila, Mathura and Sarnath. This style of art chiefly concentrated on images and relics of Buddha. They were made of either stone or stucco. Most of the ruins of this form of art found at Bimaran, Dehri, Sakra and Hastanagar are now preserved in the museum of Peshawar in Pakistan.

It is otherwise called as Greco- Buddhist School of Art. Gandhara art is generally considered as an eastern expansion of Hellenic civilisation mixed with Indian elements or a western expansion of Indian culture. Prof. R.C. Majumdar has rightly remarked, “The Gandhara artists had the hands of a Greek and the hearts of an Indian.” This form of art actually originated in Bactria and Parthia under the Greek rulers. In course of time, the local artists began to construct Buddhist images applying Greek techniques but with Indian spirit and style.

2. The images had more resemblance with the Greek God Apollo with heavy ornamentation, drapery and headdress which were alien to Indian concept.

3. Refinement and polish of the images were of high order.

4. The images were seated in the typical Indian Yogic posture. It was an actual observation of Indian ascetics rather than on any western prototype.

Thus, with Hellenic influence, Gandhara school of art established itself firmly on Indian soil. At the same time to counterbalance and supplement the trends of this school, an indigenous school of art also developed known as the Mathura School of Art.

Coinage

The Greeks introduced o the art of coin making in India.The idea of striking both the obverse and reverse sides of the coins was learnt from the Greeks. One side contained the picture and symbol of the ruler while the other side had a picture of some other devices. Further, the technique of die cutting with refined polish was also learnt from the Greeks.

By introducing such new Hellenic techniques to the previously crude Indian coinage system, the Indians were able to produce coins of finer variety. Over time, the Sakas and the Parthians adopted this Greek technique which got further impetus under the Imperial Guptas.

Science

Indian science came under tremendous influence of Hellenism, especially in the field of astronomy. The Greeks were the inheritors of a glorious cultural heritage. Their advanced way of thinking with high pedigree influenced the Indians to a large extent.

Though the Greeks were treated as Yavanas or outsiders by the Hindus, their outstanding astronomical knowledge compelled the Indians to follow their methods. Gargi Samhita openly appreciates their intellectual superiority in astronomy. The signs of the zodiac, the 7-day week and the hour concepts were brought by the Greeks. 

The existence of planets, change of lunar appearances in relation to the stars was made known to the Indians through this Hellenic channel.

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