Contact between the Greek Selucid world and the INdian Mauryan one was deepened by the man who wrote the Indica.
Alexander the Great’s conquests in Asia led to the creation of various Greek city states that came to be ruled by his successors. Alexander’s main failing as a conqueror was to fail to provide for his succession adequately and so, after his untimely death, various of his commanders and members of his dynasty launched a series of wars aiming to consolidate control over some or all of the territory that he had originally seized.
At the eastern reaches of the newly-constituted Greek world, the Seleucid (Successor) states that were created rubbed up against the emerging Maurya Empire of northern India. The Mauryan was the first empire to control most of modern day India, together with substantial portions of what is now known as Afghanistan. It was created by the heroic figure of Candra Gupta (Chandragupta), at approximately 321-5 BCE, when he defeated the previous power of Nanda in Magadha and then extending control across northern India. Candra signed a treaty with Seleucus I Nicator, whose Successor state was based in Persia, modern-day Iran. The treaty, about which details are a little vague, may have included a marriage alliance, together with 500 elephants from Candra to Seleucus and the ceding of the trans-Indus provinces in the opposite direction.
With friendly relations now established, there was considerable interaction between the two states, both of which were characterised by intellectual openness and curiosity. One implication of this was the dispatching of a Greek envoy, one Megasthenes, into the Indian world for further exchanges. While journeying, Megasthenes wrote down his impressions in a multi-volume set known as the Indica. The original of this work has unfortunately been lost, which has had a rather negative effect on the author’s reputation since he tends to be judged on the basis of the recreations of later authors. These later authors were, principally, Strabo, Diodorus and Arrian. The Indica, as it is now understood, contains some apparent mistakes. For example, Megasthenes seems to have confused some details of the caste and slavery systems, failing to observe the later in action. However, he appears to have been on surer ground when he observes that much of the land was so fertile that it yielded two crops per year and that tax evasion, a common crime then as now, was thought of as such a threat to the state that it was punished severely.
Different cultures always have a lot to learn from each other and the peaceful exchange of scholars and travellers enhances knowledge and tolerance, which are often in short supply.
