Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Menander I
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
{{Short description|2nd-century BCE Greco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek king}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}} {{Use Indian English|date=June 2024}} {{Infobox royalty | name = Menander I | title = [[Maharaja]] <br> [[Basileus]] | succession = [[Indo-Greek]] King | image = Menander I, portrait from coinage.jpg | image_size = 225 | caption = Portrait of Menander I Soter, from his coinage | reign = 165/155–130 BC | coronation = | full name = | predecessor = [[Antimachus II]] | successor = [[Strato I]] (Agathoclea as regent) | queen = [[Agathokleia|Agathoclea]] | spouse = | issue = [[Strato I]] | father = | mother = | birth_date = {{Circa|180 BC}} | birth_place = Kalisi (in present-day [[Bagram]], Afghanistan)<ref name=eb>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/374659/Menander |title=Menander |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]] |publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.]] |access-date=8 September 2012}}</ref><ref name="Hazel 2013"/> or [[Sagala]] (present-day [[Sialkot]], [[Pakistan]])<ref name="Magill 2003"/> | death_date = 130 BC (aged 50) | date of burial = | place of burial = [[Stupas]] across the [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]] | religion = | | Image width = }} '''Menander I Soter''' ({{langx|grc|Μένανδρος Σωτήρ|Ménandros Sōtḗr}}, {{Lit|Menander the [[Soter|Saviour]]}}; {{langx|pi|Milinda|italic=yes}}), sometimes called '''Menander the Great''',<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ḍār |first=Saifurraḥmān |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tXxNAQAAIAAJ&q=Menander+the+Great+shifted+his+capital+to+a+more+central+place+of+his+empire+than+Taxila.+His+new+capital,+named |title=Historical Routes Through Gandhara (Pakistan): 200 B.C-200 A.D |date=2006 |publisher=National College of Arts |isbn=9789690020352 |pages=88 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Dar |first1=Saifur Rahman |last2=Jan |first2=Zakirullah |date=2015 |title=Three Seasons of Excavations at Pir Manakrai, Haripur: Preliminary Report |url=http://ojs.uop.edu.pk/ancientpakistan/article/view/50 |journal=Ancient Pakistan |language=en |volume=26 |pages=1–44 |issn=2708-4590}}</ref> was an [[Indo-Greek]] king (reigned {{Circa|165}}/155<ref name=Bopearachchi>Bopearachchi (1998) and (1991), respectively. The first date is estimated by Osmund [[Bopearachchi]] and R. C. Senior, the other Boperachchi</ref> –130 BC) who administered a large territory in the northwestern regions of the [[Indian subcontinent]] and [[Central Asia]]. Menander is noted for having become a patron of [[Greco-Buddhism]] and is regarded as the greatest and most well-known of the Indo-Greek kings.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Menander {{!}} Indo-Greek king|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Menander-Indo-Greek-king|access-date=2021-09-06|website=[[Encyclopedia Britannica]]|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2025-01-29 |title=Biographie de MÉNANDRE, roi de Bactriane (env. 160-env. 140 av. J.-C.) |url=https://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/menandre-roi-de-bactriane/ |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=[[Encyclopædia Universalis]] |language=fr-FR}}</ref> Menander might have initially been a prince or [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom|king of Bactria]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Menandros |date=2025-02-22 |work=[[Store norske leksikon]] |url=https://snl.no/Menandros |access-date=2025-04-20 |language=no}}.</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Milinda |url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/milinda_(Enciclopedia-Italiana)/ |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=[[Treccani]] |language=it}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> After conquering the [[Punjab region|Punjab]],<ref name="Hazel 2013"/> as far as [[Taxila]] and [[Sagala]], he established an empire which stretched from the [[Kabul River]] in the west to the [[Ravi River]] in the east, and from the [[Swat River|Swat River valley]] in the north to [[Arachosia]] (the [[Helmand Province]]). The [[Greeks|Greek]] [[List of Graeco-Roman geographers|geographer]] [[Strabo]] wrote that he "conquered more tribes than [[Alexander the Great]]." Ancient Indian writers indicate that he possibly launched unsuccessful expeditions southward into [[Rajputana]] ([[Rajasthan]], [[Gujarat]] and [[Sindh]]) and [[central India]] (Gujarat and Malwa) and as far east down the [[Ganges River Valley]] as [[Pataliputra]] ([[Patna]]).<ref>{{cite book | last=Thapar | first=Romila | title=Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300 | publisher=University of California Press | year=2003 | page=215 | isbn=978-0-520-24225-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-5irrXX0apQC&pg=PA215}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> Large numbers of Menander’s [[coins]] have been unearthed, attesting to both the flourishing commerce and longevity of his realm. Menander was also a patron of [[Buddhism]], and his conversations with the Buddhist sage [[Nagasena]] are recorded in the important Buddhist work, the ''[[Milinda Panha]]'' ("The Questions of King Milinda"; ''panha'' meaning "question" in [[Pali]]). After his death in 130 BC, he was succeeded by his wife [[Agathoclea (Indo-Greek)|Agathocleia]], perhaps the daughter of [[Agathocles of Bactria|Agathocles]], who ruled as regent for his son [[Strato I]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Cambridge Ancient History |date=1970 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-23448-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgeancient02edwa/page/406 406] |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgeancient02edwa |url-access=registration |language=en}}</ref> Buddhist tradition relates that he handed over his kingdom to his son and retired from the world, but [[Plutarch]] says that he died in camp while on a military campaign, and that his remains were divided equally between the cities to be enshrined in monuments, probably [[stupas]], across his realm. ==Reign== [[File:Menander Alexandria-Kapisa.jpg|thumb|300px|Attic Tetradrachm of Menander I in [[Greco-Bactrian]] style ([[Alexandria of the Caucasus|Alexandria-Kapisa]] mint).<br /> ''Obv:'' Menander throwing a spear.<br /> ''Rev:'' [[Athena]] with thunderbolt. Greek legend: {{lang|grc|ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ}} (BASILEOS [[Soter|SOTEROS]] MENANDROU), "Of King Menander, the Saviour".]] Menander was born into a [[Greeks|Greek]] family<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Noble|first1=Thomas F. X.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2TALAAAAQBAJ|title=Western Civilization: Beyond Boundaries|last2=Strauss|first2=Barry|last3=Osheim|first3=Duane|last4=Neuschel|first4=Kristen|last5=Accampo|first5=Elinor|date=2013|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1-285-50020-1|pages=97|language=en}}</ref> in a village called Kalasi adjacent to [[Alexandria of the Caucasus]] (present day [[Bagram]], Afghanistan).<ref name="Hazel 2013">{{cite book |title= Who's Who in the Greek World |last= Hazel|first= John |year= 2013 |publisher= Routledge |isbn= 9781134802241|quote= Menander king in India, known locally as Milinda, born at a village named Kalasi near Alasanda (Alexandria-in-the-Caucasus), and who was himself the son of a king. After conquering the Punjab, where he made Sagala his capital, he made an expedition across northern India and visited Patna, the capital of the Mauraya empire, though he did not succeed in conquering this land as he appears to have been overtaken by wars on the north-west frontier with Eucratides.|page=155 }}</ref><ref name="Magill 2003">{{cite book |title= Dictionary of World Biography, Volume 1|last= Magill |first= Frank Northen |year=2003 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=9781579580407 |quote= MENANDER Born: c. 210 B.C.; probably Kalasi, Afghanistan Died: c. 135 B.C.; probably in northwest India Areas of Achievement: Government and religion Contribution: Menander extended the Greco-Bactrian domains in India more than any other ruler. He became a legendary figure as a great patron of Buddhism in the Pali book the Milindapanha. Early Life – Menander (not to be confused with the more famous Greek dramatist of the same name) was born somewhere in the fertile area to the south of the Paropamisadae or the present Hindu Kush Mountains of Afghanistan. The only reference to this location is in the semi-legendary Milindapanha (first or second century A.D.), which says that he was born in a village called Kalasi near Alasanda, some two hundred yojanas (about eighteen miles) from the town of Sagala (probably Sialkot in Punjab). The Alasanda refers to the Alexandria in Afghanistan and not the one in Egypt. |page=717 }}</ref> Although another source says he was born near Sagala (modern [[Sialkot]] in the Punjab, [[Pakistan]]).<ref name="Magill 20032">{{cite book |last=Magill |first=Frank Northen |title=Dictionary of World Biography, Volume 1 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2003 |isbn=9781579580407 |page=717 |quote=MENANDER Born: c. 210 B.C.; probably Kalasi, Afghanistan Died: c. 135 B.C.; probably in northwest India Areas of Achievement: Government and religion Contribution: Menander extended the Greco-Bactrian domains in India more than any other ruler. He became a legendary figure as a great patron of Buddhism in the Pali book the Milindapanha. Early Life – Menander (not to be confused with the more famous Greek dramatist of the same name) was born somewhere in the fertile area to the south of the Paropamisadae or the present Hindu Kush Mountains of Afghanistan. The only reference to this location is in the semi-legendary Milindapanha (first or second century A.D.), which says that he was born in a village called Kalasi near Alasanda, some two hundred yojanas (about eighteen miles) from the town of Sagala (probably Sialkot in Punjab). The Alasanda refers to the Alexandria in Afghanistan and not the one in Egypt.}}</ref> His territories covered [[Bactria]] (modern-day [[Balkh Province]]) and extended to modern-day [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]] and [[Punjab]]. [[Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus]] and [[Justin (historian)|Justin]] call him a [[List of Indian monarchs|king of India]].<ref name=":1" /> According to [[Plutarch]] he was a [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom|king of Bactria]], and [[Strabo]] includes him among Bactrian Greek conquerers. He may have actually ruled over Bactria and may have helped [[Demetrius II Nicator]], the Seleucid king, during the [[Seleucid–Parthian Wars]].<ref name=":0" /> From the [[Hindu Kush]], he expanded his kingdom to [[Gandhara]] and perhaps [[Kashmir]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Menandros (Milinda) |url=https://www.ne.se/uppslagsverk/encyklopedi/lång/menandros-(milinda) |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=[[ne.se]]}}</ref> His capital is supposed to have been [[Sagala]], a prosperous city in northern [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]] (believed to be modern [[Sialkot]], [[Pakistan]]).<ref name="Hazel 2013" /> According to [[Apollodorus of Artemita]], as quoted by Strabo, the conquest of India by the Bactrian Greeks was effected mainly by Menander:<ref name=":1" /> {{quote|The Greeks who caused Bactria to revolt grew so powerful on account of the fertility of the country that they became masters, not only of [[Ariana]], but also of India, as [[Apollodorus of Artemita]] says: and more tribes were subdued by them than by Alexander—by Menander in particular (at least if he actually crossed the [[Beas River|Hypanis]] towards the east and advanced as far as the [[Sone River|Imaus]]), for some were subdued by him personally and others by [[Demetrius I of Bactria|Demetrius]], the son of [[Euthydemus I|Euthydemus]] the king of the Bactrians; and they took possession, not only of [[Patalene (region)|Patalena]], but also, on the rest of the coast, of what is called the kingdom of [[Saraostus]] and [[Sigerdis]]. In short, Apollodorus says that Bactriana is the ornament of Ariana as a whole; and, more than that, they extended their empire even as far as the [[Serica|Seres]] and the [[Phryni]].|Strabo|[[Geographica]]<ref>{{in lang|el}} {{cite book|title=Geographica|author=Strabo|chapter=11.11.1|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Strab.+11.11.1&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0197|language=el|year=1877|place=Leipzig|publisher=Teubner|editor-first=A.|editor-last=Meineke}}<br />{{cite book|chapter=11.11.1|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Strab.+11.11.1&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0198|year=1924|editor-first= H. L.|editor-last=Jones|title = Strabo, Geography, Book 11, chapter 11, section 1}} {{cite book|chapter=11.11.1|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0239%3Abook%3D11%3Achapter%3D11%3Asection%3D1|year=1903|editor-first= H. L.|editor-last=Jones|title = Strabo, Geography, BOOK XI., CHAPTER XI., section 1}} At the Perseus Project.</ref>}} [[File:MenanderCoin.jpg|thumb|300px|2. Silver [[drachm]] of Menander I (155-130 BC).<br />''Obv:'' [[Greek alphabet|Greek]] legend, ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ (BASILEOS SOTEROS MENANDROU) lit. "Of Saviour King Menander".<br /> ''Rev:'' [[Kharosthi]] legend: MAHARAJASA TRATARASA MENAMDRASA "Saviour King Menander". [[Athena]] advancing right, with thunderbolt and shield. [[Taxila]] mint mark.]] [[File:Menander I Drachm, Sear7604.jpg|alt=silver drachm of Menander|thumb|299x299px|Another silver drachm of Menander I, dated circa 160-145 BC. Obverse: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ ('of King Menander the Saviour'), heroic bust of Menander, viewed from behind, head turned to the left; Reverse: Athena standing right, brandishing thunderbolt and holding aegis, Karosthi legend around, monogram in field to left. Reference: Sear 7604.]] [[File:MenandrosCoin.jpg|thumb|upright=1|<small>Silver coin of Menander<br />[[Greek language|Greek]] legend: {{lang|grc|ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ}}<br />(BASILEOS SOTEROS MENANDROU)<br />lit. "Of Saviour King Menander". [[British Museum]].</small>]] Accounts describe Indo-Greek campaigns to [[Sagala|Sakala]], [[Mathura]], [[Panchala]], [[Saketa]] ([[Ayodhya]]), and potentially [[Pataliputra]]. The sage [[Patanjali]], in his ''[[Mahabhashya]]'' around 150 BC, describes a failed campaign of Menander as far as Mathura, this is also later reported in [[Kalidasa]]'s drama, ''[[Mālavikāgnimitram]]''. The [[Hathigumpha inscription]] inscribed by [[Kharavela]] the King of [[Kalinga (historical region)|Kalinga]] also places the Yavanas, or Indo-Greeks, in Mathura. Kharavela states to have forced the demoralized Yavana army to retreat back to Mathura: {{quote|"Then in the eighth year, (Kharavela) with a large army having sacked Goradhagiri causes pressure on Rajagaha ([[Rajagriha]]). On account of the loud report of this act of valour, the Yavana (Greek) King [ta] retreated to Mathura having extricated his demoralized army."|Hathigumpha inscription, lines 7-8, probably in the 1st century BCE-1st century CE. The original text is in Brahmi script.}} Menander may have campaigned as far as the [[Shunga Empire|Shunga]] capital [[Pataliputra]] resulting in a conflict. The religious scripture [[Yuga Purana]], which describes events in the form of a prophecy, states: {{quote|After having conquered Saketa, the country of the Panchala and the [[Mathura, Uttar Pradesh|Mathuras]], the [[Yavana]]s (Greeks), wicked and valiant, will reach Kusumadhvaja. The thick mud-fortifications at [[Pataliputra]] being reached, all the provinces will be in disorder, without a doubt. Ultimately, a great battle will follow, with tree-like engines (siege engines).|Gargi-Samhita, ''Yuga Purana'', ch. 5}} Strabo also suggests that Indo-Greek conquests went up to the [[Shunga Empire|Shunga]] capital [[Pataliputra]] in northeastern India (today [[Patna, India|Patna]]): {{quote|Those who came after Alexander went to the [[Ganges]] and [[Pataliputra]]|[[Strabo]], 15.698}} The events and results of these campaigns are unknown. Surviving epigraphical inscriptions during this time such as the Hathigumpha inscription states that Kharavela sacked Pataliputra. Furthermore, numismatics from the [[Mitra dynasty (Mathura)|Mitra dynasty]] are concurrently placed in [[Mathura]] during the time of Menander. Their relationship is unclear, but the Mithra may potentially be vassals. In the West, Menander seems to have repelled the invasion of the dynasty of [[Greco-Bactrian]] usurper [[Eucratides]], and pushed them back as far as the [[Paropamisadae]], thereby consolidating the rule of the Indo-Greek kings in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent. The ''[[Milinda Panha]]'' gives some glimpses of his military methods:{{cn|date=March 2023}} {{quote|<poem> – Has it ever happened to you, O king, that rival kings rose up against you as enemies and opponents? – Yes, certainly. – Then you set to work, I suppose, to have moats dug, and ramparts thrown up, and watch towers erected, and strongholds built, and stores of food collected? – Not at all. All that had been prepared beforehand. – Or you had yourself trained in the management of war elephants, and in horsemanship, and in the use of the war chariot, and in archery and fencing? – Not at all. I had learnt all that before. – But why? – With the object of warding off future danger. </poem>|''Milinda Panha'', Book III, ch. 7}} Generous findings of coins testify to the prosperity and extent of his empire: (with finds as far as Britain){{citation needed|date=January 2021}} the finds of his coins are the most numerous and the most widespread of all the Indo-Greek kings.{{cn|date=March 2023}} Precise dates of his reign, as well as his origin, remain elusive, however. Guesses among historians have been that Menander was either a nephew or a former general of the [[Greco-Bactrian]] king [[Demetrius I of Bactria|Demetrius I]], but the two kings are now thought to be separated by at least thirty years. Menander's predecessor in Punjab seems to have been the king [[Apollodotus I]]. Menander's empire survived him in a fragmented manner until the last Greek king [[Strato II]] disappeared around 10 AD. The 1st-2nd century AD ''[[Periplus of the Erythraean Sea]]'' further testifies to the reign of Menander and the influence of the Indo-Greeks in India: {{quote|To the present day ancient drachmae are current in [[Barygaza]], coming from this country, bearing inscriptions in Greek letters, and the devices of those who reigned after Alexander, [[Apollodotus I|Apollodorus]] {{sic}} and Menander.|Periplus, ch. 47.<ref name="sourcebook">[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/periplus.html Full text, Schoff's 1912 translation]</ref>}} According to [[Numismatist]] [[Joe Cribb]], the accounts of Menander’s kingdom stretching as far as [[Sialkot]], is hard to believe, as there is no numismatic evidence of him east of Taxila,<ref name=":4" /> even more hard is to believe is stretching even further east as thought earlier by historians based upon Indian references, which most likely are referring to [[Kushan Empire|Kushans]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Cribb |first=Joe| chapter=Greekness after the end of the Bactrian and Indo-Greek kingdoms| editor-last=Mairs |editor-first=Rachel |title=The Graeco bactrians and Indo Greeks world |date=2020 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=9781351610278 |pages=654}}</ref> However, numerous silver and copper coins (and [[Hellenistic pottery]] shards) of Menander have been found, including the [[Siranwali]] [[hoard]] found near Sialkot,<ref name="Holt">{{cite book |last=Holt |first=Frank L. |title=Lost World of the Golden King: In Search of Ancient Afghanistan |year=2012 |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley and Los Angeles |page=144 |isbn=978-0-520-95374-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=80XBOxZY2kkC&pg=PA144}}</ref> and in the [[Sonipat]] hoard from present-day [[Haryana]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cunningham |first=Alexander |title=Coins of Alexander's Successors |journal=The Numismatic Chronicle and Journal of the Royal Numismatic Society, Volumes 11-12 |year=1871 |page=161 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I9wEAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA3-PA161}}</ref> Additional corroboration for mentions of Indo-Greek expeditions into the Gangetic plains may be furnished by the [[Yavanarajya inscription]] discovered in [[Mathura]], and discoveries of Menander's coins in western [[Uttar Pradesh]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Sircar |first=D.C.| chapter=The Yavanas |title=The Age of Imperial Unity |editor-last=Majumdar |editor-first=R.C. |publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan |location=Bombay |year=1951 |page=114}}</ref> including the Pachkhura hoard of coins unearthed near the [[Yamuna River]] in [[Hamirpur district, Uttar Pradesh]],<ref>{{cite journal |last=Smith |first=Vincent Arthur |title=The Most Southern Hoard of Bactrian Coins in India |journal=The Indian Antiquary, A Journal of Oriental Research |volume=33 |date=September 1904 |pages=217–218 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mxhCAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA225-IA19}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Bivar |first=A.D.H. |title=Beyond the Tigris |journal=Ancient West & East |volume=1 |number=1 |publisher=Koninklijke Brill |date=2002 |pages=63–64 |isbn=978-90-04-49644-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fpJOEAAAQBAJ&dq=hamirpur+menander&pg=PA63}}</ref> and the unearthing of a clay pot filled with coins of preceding kings ([[Diodotus I]], [[Diodotus II]], and [[Euthydemus I]]) in [[Vaishali district]], [[Bihar]].<ref name="Holt" /> [[Bajaur District|Bajaur]] is the only place where inscriptions of Menander have been found.<ref name=":0" /> However, large numbers of Menander’s coins have been unearthed, mostly of silver and bronze, attesting to both the duration of his reign and the flourishing commerce of his realm. According to Buddhist tradition he handed over his kingdom to his son and retired from the world, but Plutarch relates that he died in camp while on a military campaign. ==Menander and Buddhism== ===The ''Milinda Panha''=== {{main article|Milinda Panha}} [[File:King Milinda ask questions.jpg|thumb|King Milinda asks questions.]] [[File:Menander Soter wheel coin.jpg|thumb|Indian-standard coinage of Menander I. '''Obv''' ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ "Of Saviour King Menander". '''Rev''' Palm of victory, [[Kharoshthi]] legend ''Māhārajasa trātadasa Menandrāsa'', [[British Museum]].<ref>The coins of the Greek and Scythic kings of Bactria and India in the British Museum, p.50 and Pl. XII-7 [https://archive.org/details/cu31924022932382]</ref>]] According to tradition, Menander embraced the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] faith, as described in the ''[[Milinda Panha]]'', a classical [[Pāli|Pali]] [[Buddhist texts|Buddhist text]] on the discussions between Milinda and the Buddhist sage [[Nagasena|Nāgasena]], the ''Milinda Panha''<nowiki/>'s style may have been influenced by [[Plato's Dialogues|Plato's ''Dialogues'']].<ref name=":0" /> He is described as constantly accompanied by an elite guard of 500 Greek ("[[Yona|Yavana]]") soldiers, and two of his counsellors are named Demetrius and Antiochus. In the ''Milinda Panha'', Menander is introduced as: {{quote|King of the city of [[Sagala|Euthymedia]] in India, Milinda by name, learned, eloquent, wise, and able; and a faithful observer, and that at the right time, of all the various acts of devotion and ceremony enjoined by his own sacred hymns concerning things past, present, and to come. Many were the arts and sciences he knew--[[holy]] [[tradition]] and [[secular]] [[law]]; the [[Samkhya|Sânkhya]], [[Yoga]], [[Nyaya|Nyâya]], and [[Vaisheshika]] systems of [[philosophy]]; [[arithmetic]]; [[music]]; [[medicine]]; the four [[Vedas]], the [[Purana|Purânas]], and the [[Itihasa|Itihâsas]]; [[astronomy]], [[magic (paranormal)|magic]], [[Causality|causation]], and [[spell (paranormal)|magic spells]]; the [[Military strategy|art of war]]; [[poetry]]; [[conveyancing]] in a word, the whole nineteen. As a disputant he was hard to equal, harder still to overcome; the acknowledged superior of all the founders of the various schools of thought. And as in wisdom so in strength of body, swiftness, and valour there was found none equal to Milinda in all India. He was rich too, mighty in wealth and prosperity, and the number of his armed hosts knew no end.|[[Milinda Panha|The Questions of King Milinda]], Translation by [[Thomas William Rhys Davids|T. W. Rhys Davids]], 1890}} Buddhist tradition relates that, following his discussions with Nāgasena, Menander adopted the Buddhist faith: {{quote|May the venerable Nâgasena accept me as a supporter of the faith, as a true convert from to-day<!--sic--> onwards as long as life shall last!|[[Milinda Panha|The Questions of King Milinda]], Translation by T. W. Rhys Davids, 1890}} He then handed over his kingdom to his son and retired from the world: {{quote|And afterwards, taking delight in the wisdom of the Elder, he handed over his kingdom to his son, and abandoning the household life for the houseless state, grew great in insight, and himself attained to [[Arhat|Arahatship]]!|[[Milinda Panha|The Questions of King Milinda]], Translation by T. W. Rhys Davids, 1890}} [[File:Shinkot relic casket.jpg|thumb|The [[Shinkot casket]] containing Buddhist relics was dedicated "in the reign of the Great King Menander".<ref name="SB">{{cite book |last1=Baums |first1=Stefan |title=A framework for Gandharan chronology based on relic inscriptions, in "Problems of Chronology in Gandharan Art"|date=2017 |publisher=Archaeopress |url=http://www.archaeopress.com/ArchaeopressShop/Public/download.asp?id={51184689-60EE-4F62-A6D5-8A95D4D53181} }}</ref>]] There is however little besides this testament to indicate that Menander in fact abdicated his throne in favour of his son. Based on numismatic evidence, William Tarn believed that he in fact died, leaving his wife Agathocleia to rule as a regent, until his son Strato could rule properly in his stead.{{sfn|Tarn|1951|p=226}} Despite the success of his reign, it is clear that after his death, his "loosely hung" empire splintered into a variety of Indo-Greek successor kingdoms, of various sizes and stability. His legacy as a Buddhist arhat reached the Greco-Roman world and [[Plutarch]] writes: {{quote|But when one Menander, who had reigned graciously over the Bactrians, died afterwards in the camp, the cities indeed by common consent celebrated his funerals; but coming to a contest about his relics, they were difficultly at last brought to this agreement, that his ashes being distributed, everyone should carry away an equal share, and they should all erect monuments to him."|''Moralia'' 28.6}} The above seems to corroborate the claim: {{quote|It is unlikely that Menander’s support of Buddhism was a pious reconstruction of a Buddhist legend, for his deification by later traditions resonates with Macedonian religious trends that granted divine honours to monarchs and members of their family and worshipped them, like Alexander, as gods. It is no coincidence that similar motifs highlight the Buddha’s deification and his funereal rituals are commensurate with those of Macedonian kings and universal monarchs. The evidence is in favour of the conversion of King Menander to Buddhism, which is neither an isolated historical incident nor an invention of later traditions."<ref>[https://www.academia.edu/5974580/When_the_Greeks_Converted_the_Buddha_Asymmetrical_Transfers_of_Knowledge_in_Indo-Greek_Cultures Halkias (2014: 94)]</ref>}}Though modern scholarship doubts his conversion to Buddhism. Though he certainly took an interest and patronised it perhaps for political purposes, which was then the religion of many of his subjects.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Menandro di battriana |url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/menandro-di-battriana/ |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=[[Treccani]] |language=it}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=МИЛИНДА, МЕНАНДР |url=https://www.krugosvet.ru/enc/istoriya/MILINDA_MENANDR.html |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=[[Krugosvet]] |language=ru}}</ref> ===Other Indian accounts=== [[File:Bharhut_Yavana.jpg|thumb|upright|The [[Bharhut Yavana]]. Indian relief of a figure with the flowing head band of a Greek king, northern tunic with Hellenistic [[pleat]]s, and Buddhist [[triratana]] symbol on his sword. [[Bharhut]], 2nd century BC. [[Indian Museum]], [[Calcutta]].]] * A 2nd century BC relief from a Buddhist [[stupa]] in [[Bharhut]], in eastern [[Madhya Pradesh]] (today at the [[Indian Museum]] in [[Calcutta]]), the [[Bharhut Yavana]], represents a foreign soldier with the curly hair of a Greek and the royal headband with flowing ends of a Greek king, and maybe a depiction of Menander. In his right hand, he holds a branch of [[ivy]], a symbol of [[Dionysos]]. Also, parts of his dress, with rows of geometrical folds, are characteristically Hellenistic in style. On his sword appears the Buddhist symbol of the three jewels, or [[Triratana]]. * A Buddhist reliquary found in Bajaur, the [[Shinkot casket]], bears a dedicatory inscription referring to "the 14th day of the month of Kārttika" of a certain year in the reign of "Mahārāja Minadra" ("Great King Menander"): {{Verse translation|Minadrasa maharajasa Katiassa divasa 4 4 4 11 pra[na]-[sa]me[da]... (prati)[thavi]ta pranasame[da]... Sakamunisa | On the 14th day of Kārttika, in the reign of Mahārāja Minadra, (in the year ...), (the corporeal relic) of [[Sakyamuni]], which is endowed with life... has been established<ref>{{harvnb|Bopearachchi|1991|page=19}}, quoting the analysis of N.G. Majumdar, D.C. Sicar, S.Konow</ref>}} * According to an ancient Sri Lankan source, the [[Mahavamsa]], Greek monks seem to have been active proselytizers of Buddhism during the time of Menander: the [[Yona]] (Greek) [[Mahadharmaraksita|Mahadhammarakkhita]] ({{langx|sa|Mahadharmaraksita}}) is said to have come from "Alasandra" (thought to be [[Alexandria of the Caucasus]], the city founded by [[Alexander the Great]], near today’s [[Kabul]]) with 30,000 monks for the foundation ceremony of the Maha Thupa ("Great [[stupa]]") at [[Anuradhapura]] in [[Sri Lanka]], during the 2nd century BC: {{quote|From Alasanda the city of the [[Yona]]s came the Thera ("Elder") Yona Mahadhammarakkhita with thirty thousand [[bhikkhu]]s.|[[Mahavamsa]], 29<ref>Chapter 29 of the [[Mahavamsa]]: [http://lakdiva.org/mahavamsa/chap029.html Text]</ref>}} ===Buddhist constructions=== [[File:Butkara stupa 2nd century BCE.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Butkara stupa]] as expanded during the reign of Menander I.]] A coin of Menander I was found in the second oldest stratum (GSt 2) of the [[Butkara stupa]] suggesting a period of additional constructions during the reign of Menander.<ref name="HB">[https://books.google.com/books?id=C9_vbgkzUSkC&pg=PA49 Handbuch der Orientalistik, Kurt A. Behrendt, BRILL, 2004, p.49 sig]</ref> It is thought that Menander was the builder of the second oldest layer of the Butkara stupa, following its initial construction during the [[Maurya empire]].<ref>"King Menander, who built the penultimate layer of the Butkara stupa in the first century BCE, was an Indo-Greek."in ''Empires of the Indus: The Story of a River'', [[Alice Albinia]], 2012</ref> These elements tend to indicate the importance of Buddhism within Greek communities in northwestern India, and the prominent role Greek Buddhist monks played in them, probably under the sponsorship of Menander. ==Coinage== [[File:MenanderAndReverse.JPG|thumb|4. Silver coin of Menander, with Athena on reverse. [[British Museum]].]] Menander has left behind an immense corpus of silver and bronze coins, more so than any other Indo-Greek king, indicating the length of his long reign and a flourishing trade during it, and are the main source of his history.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> During his reign, the fusion between Indian and [[Ancient Greek coinage|Greek coin]] standards reached its apogee. The wheel engraved on some of Menander’s coins may be the Buddhist [[Dharmachakra]].<ref name=":0" /> The coins feature the legend ({{langx|grc|ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ|BASILEOS SOTEROS MENANDROU}} / [[Kharoshthi]]: MAHARAJA TRATARASA MENADRASA). * According to [[Bopearachchi]], his silver coinage begins with a rare series of drachma depicting on the obverse [[Athena]] and on the reverse her attribute the owl. The weight and monograms of this series match those of earlier king [[Antimachus II]], indicating that Menander succeeded Antimachus II. * On the next series, Menander introduces his own portrait, a hitherto unknown custom among Indian rulers. The reverse features his dynastical trademark: the so-called [[Athena Alkidemos]] throwing a thunderbolt, an emblem used by many of Menander's successors and also the emblem of the [[Antigonid dynasty|Antigonid]] kings of Macedonia. * In a further development, Menander changed the legends from circular orientation to the arrangement seen on coin 4 to the right.{{clarify|date=April 2021}} This modification ensured that the coins could be read without being rotated, and was used without exception by all later Indo-Greek kings. These alterations were possibly an adaption on Menander's part to the Indian coins of the Bactrian [[Eucratides I]], who had conquered the westernmost parts of the Indo-Greek kingdom, and are interpreted by Bopearachchi as an indication that Menander recaptured these western territories after the death of Eucratides. * Menander also struck very rare Attic standard coinage with monolingual inscriptions (coin 5),{{clarify|date=April 2021}} which were probably intended for use in Bactria (where they have been found), perhaps thought to demonstrate his victories against the Bactrian kings, as well as Menander's own claim to the kingdom. * There exist bronze coins of Menander featuring a manifold variation of Olympic, Indian, and other symbols. It seems as though Menander introduced a new weight standard for bronzes. Menander was the first Indo-Greek ruler to introduce the representation of [[Athena Alkidemos]] ("Athena, saviour of the people") on his coins, probably in reference to a similar statue of Athena Alkidemos in [[Pella]], capital of [[Macedon]]. This type was subsequently used by most of the later Indo-Greek kings. ==Menander the Just== [[File:Menander II with nimbate Nike.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.5|Coin of [[Menander II]]. Greek legend: {{lang|grc|ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΙΚΑΙΟΥ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ}}, "Of King Menander, the Just".]] [[File:Menander I and Menander II.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Comparison of the portraits of Menander I (left) and [[Menander II]] (right).]] A king named Menander with the epithet ''Dikaios'', "the Just", ruled in Punjab after 100 BC. Earlier scholars, such as [[Alexander Cunningham|A. Cunningham]] and [[William Woodthorpe Tarn|W. W. Tarn]], believed there was only one Menander, and assumed that the king had changed his epithet and/or was expelled from his western dominions. A number of coincidences led them to this assumption: * The portraits are relatively similar, and Menander II usually looks older than Menander I.<ref name=":1" /> * The coins of Menander II feature several Buddhist symbols, which were interpreted as proof of the conversion mentioned in the ''Milinda Panha''. * The epithet ''Dikaios'' of Menander II was translated into Kharosthi as ''Dharmikasa'' or ''Dharmamitra'' on the reverse of his coins, which means "follower of the [[Dharma (Buddhism)|Dharma]]" and was interpreted likewise (taken as Menander's conversion to Buddhism).<ref name=":1" /> However, modern numismatists such as Bopearachchi and R.C. Senior have shown, by differences in coin findings, style, and monograms, that there were two distinct rulers. The second Menander could have been a descendant of the first, and his Buddhist symbols may have been a means of alluding to his ancestor's conversion. However, Menander I struck a rare bronze series with a Buddhist wheel (coin 3).{{cn|date=March 2023}} ==Menander's death== Buddhist tradition holds that he was succeeded his son and retired.<ref name=":0" /> Though[[Plutarch]] reports that Menander died in camp while on campaign, thereby differing with the version of the ''Milinda Panha''. Plutarch gives Menander as an example of benevolent rule, contrasting him with disliked tyrants such as [[Dionysius I of Syracuse|Dionysius]], and goes on to explain that his subject towns fought over the honour of his burial, ultimately sharing his ashes among them and placing them in "monuments" (possibly [[stupa]]s), in a manner reminiscent of the funerals of the Buddha. This has been taken as an evidence of his conversion to Buddhism, though modern scholars doubt Plutarch’s account and he may have actually confused Menander’s death with the account of the Buddha.<ref>A passage in the "Mahā-parinibbâna sutta" of the "[[Dighanikaya]]" relates the dispute of Indian kings over the ashes of the Buddha, which they finally shared between themselves and enshrined in a series of stupas.</ref> {{quote|But when one Menander, who had reigned graciously over the Bactrians, died afterwards in the camp, the cities indeed by common consent celebrated his funerals; but coming to a contest about his relics, they were difficultly at last brought to this agreement, that his ashes being distributed, everyone should carry away an equal share, and they should all erect monuments to him.|Plutarch|[[Moralia]]: Praecepta gerendae reipublicae<ref>{{in lang|el}} {{cite book|title=Moralia: Praecepta gerendae reipublicae|chapter=821d|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0332%3Astephpage%3D821d|language=el|editor-first=Gregorius N.|editor-last=Bernardakis|place=[[Leipzig]]|publisher=[[Teubner]]|year=1893}}<br />{{cite book|chapter=28, 6|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0333%3Asection%3D28|editor-first=Harold North|editor-last=Fowler|year=1936|title = Plutarch, Praecepta gerendae reipublicae, section 28}} {{cite book|chapter=28, 6|chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0334%3Asection%3D28|editor-first=William W.|editor-last=Goodwin|year=1874|title = Plutarch, Praecepta gerendae reipublicae, section 28}} At the [[Perseus Project]].</ref>}} Despite his many successes, Menander's last years may have been fraught with another civil war, this time against [[Zoilos I]] who reigned in Gandhara. This is indicated by the fact that Menander probably overstruck a coin of Zoilos. The Milinda Panha might give some support to the idea that Menander's position was precarious, since it describes him as being somewhat cornered by numerous enemies into a circumscribed territory: [[File:Coin of Agathokleia & Strato.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Coin of Strato I and Agathokleia.<br />'''Obv:''' Conjugate busts of Strato and Agathokleia. Greek legend: BASILEOS SOTEROS STRATONOS KAI AGATOKLEIAS "Of King Strato the Saviour and Agathokleia".<br />'''Rev:''' [[Athena]] throwing thunderbolt. [[Kharoshthi]] legend: MAHARAJASA TRATASARA DHARMIKASA STRATASA "King Strato, Saviour and Just (="of the Dharma")".]] {{quote|After their long discussion Nagasaka asked himself "though king Milinda is pleased, he gives no signs of being pleased". Menander says in reply: "As a lion, the king of beasts, when put in a cage, though it were of gold, is still facing outside, even so, do I live as the master in the house but remain facing outside. But if I were to go forth from home into homelessness I would not live long, so many are my enemies".|Quoted in Bopearachchi|[[Milinda Panha]], Book III, Chapter 7{{sfn|Bopearachchi|1991|page=33}}}} ===Theories of Menander's successors=== Menander was the last Indo-Greek king mentioned by ancient historians, and developments after his death are therefore difficult to trace. '''a)''' The traditional view, supported by W.W. Tarn and Bopearachchi, is that Menander was succeeded by his queen Agathoclea, who acted as regent to their infant son [[Strato I]] until he became an adult and took over the crown. Strato I used the same reverse as Menander I, Athena hurling a thunderbolt, and also the title Soter. According to this scenario, Agathoclea and Strato I only managed to maintain themselves in the eastern parts of the kingdom, Punjab, and at times [[Gandhara]]. [[Paropamisadae]] and [[Pushkalavati]] were taken over by [[Zoilos I]], perhaps because some of Agathokleia's subjects may have been reluctant to accept an infant king with a queen regent. '''b)''' On the other hand, R.C. Senior and other numismatics such as David Bivar have suggested that Strato I ruled several decades after Menander: they point out that Strato's and Agathoclea's monograms are usually different from Menander's, and overstrikes and hoard findings also associate them with later kings. In this scenario, Menander was briefly succeeded by his son [[Thrason]], of whom a single coin is known. After Thrason was murdered, competing kings such as [[Zoilos I]] or [[King Lysias|Lysias]] may have taken over Menander's kingdom. Menander's dynasty was thus dethroned and did not return to power until later, though his relative [[King Niciuas|Nicias]] may have ruled a small principality in the Kabul valley. For the family tree that illustrates these relationships, see Family tree of the Indo-Greek kings (see the Menanderid dynasty). ==Legacy== ===Buddhism=== {{main article|Greco-Buddhism}} [[File:IGMudras.jpg|thumb|150px|''[[Mudra|Vitarka Mudra]]'' [[gesture]]s on Indo-Greek coinage. Top: Divinities [[Tyche]] and [[Zeus]]. Bottom: Depiction of Indo-Greek kings [[Nicias (Indo-Greek king)|Nicias]] and [[Menander II]].]] After the reign of Menander I, [[Strato I]] and several subsequent Indo-Greek rulers, such as [[Amyntas Nikator|Amyntas]], Nicias, [[Peucolaus]], [[King Hermaeus|Hermaeus]], and [[Hippostratus]], depicted themselves or their Greek deities forming with the right hand a symbolic [[gesture]] identical to the Buddhist vitarka [[mudra]] (thumb and index joined together, with other fingers extended), which in Buddhism signifies the transmission of the Buddha's teaching. At the same time, right after the death of Menander, several Indo-Greek rulers also started to adopt on their coins the [[Pāli|Pali]] title of "Dharmikasa", meaning "follower of the [[Dharma]]" (the title of the great Indian Buddhist king [[Ashoka]] was ''Dharmaraja'' "King of the Dharma"). This usage was adopted by Strato I, Zoilos I, [[Heliocles II]], [[Theophilos (king)|Theophilus]], Peucolaus and [[Archebius]]. [[File:Menander with elephant.jpg|thumb|left|Menander coin with elephant.]] Altogether, the conversion of Menander to Buddhism suggested by the [[Milinda Panha]] seems to have triggered the use of Buddhist symbolism in one form or another on the coinage of close to half of the kings who succeeded him. Especially, all the kings after Menander who are recorded to have ruled in [[Gandhara]] (apart from the little-known [[Demetrius III Aniketos|Demetrius III]]) display Buddhist symbolism in one form or another. Menander may have contributed to the expansion of Buddhism in Central Asia. Although the spread of Buddhism to Central Asia and Northern Asia is usually associated with the [[Kushan Empire|Kushan]]s, a century or two later, there is a possibility that it may have been introduced in those areas from [[Gandhara]] "even earlier, during the time of [[Demetrius I of Bactria|Demetrius]] and [[Menander]]" (Puri, "Buddhism in Central Asia"). [[File:Foreigners at Sanchi Stupa I North Gateway.jpg|thumb|Foreigners on the Northern Gateway of Stupa I, [[Sanchi]]. [[Satavahana]] period, 2nd or 1st century BC.]] A frieze in [[Sanchi]] executed during or soon after the reign of Menander depicts Buddhist devotees in Greek attire. The men are depicted with short curly hair, often held together with a [[headband]] of the type commonly seen on Greek coins. The clothing too is Greek, complete with [[tunic]]s, capes and sandals. The musical instruments are also quite characteristic, such as the double flute called [[aulos]]. Also visible are [[Carnyx]]-like [[Cornu (horn)|horn]]s. They are all celebrating at the entrance of the stupa. These men would probably be nearby [[Indo-Greeks]] from northwest India visiting the Stupa.<ref>"A guide to Sanchi" John Marshall. These "Greek-looking foreigners" are also described in Susan Huntington, "The art of ancient India", p. 100</ref> ===Representation of the Buddha=== {{main article|Greco-Buddhist art}} [[File:Gandhara Buddha (tnm).jpeg|thumb|left|120px|One of the first known representations of the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]], [[Gandhara]].]] [[File:Ptolemy Asia detail.jpg|thumb|150px|Detail of Asia in the [[Ptolemy world map]]. The "Menander Mons" are in the center of the map, at the east of the [[Indian subcontinent]], right above the [[Malaysian Peninsula]].]] The anthropomorphic representation of the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]] is absent from Indo-Greek coinage, suggesting that the Indo-Greek kings may have respected the Indian an-iconic rule for depictions of the Buddha, limiting themselves to symbolic representation only. Consistently with this perspective, the actual depiction of the Buddha would be a later phenomenon, usually dated to the 1st century, emerging from the sponsorship of the syncretic [[Kushan Empire]] and executed by Greek, and, later, Indian and possibly Roman artists. Datation of [[Greco-Buddhist]] statues is generally uncertain, but they are at least firmly established from the 1st century. Another possibility is that just as the Indo-Greeks routinely represented philosophers in statues (but certainly not on coins) in Antiquity, the Indo-Greek may have initiated anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha in statuary only, possibly as soon as the 2nd-1st century BC, as advocated by [[Alfred A. Foucher|Foucher]] and suggested by Chinese murals depicting [[Emperor Wu of Han]] worshipping Buddha statues brought from Central Asia in 120 BC (''[[:Image:HanWudiBuddhas.jpg|See picture]]''). An Indo-Chinese tradition also explains that [[Nagasena]], also known as Menander's Buddhist teacher, created in 43 BC in the city of [[Pataliputra]] a statue of the Buddha, the [[Emerald Buddha]], which was later brought to [[Thailand]]. Stylistically, Indo-Greek coins generally display a very high level of [[Hellenistic]] artistic realism, which declined drastically around 50 BC with the invasions of the [[Indo-Scythian]]s, [[Yuezhi]] and [[Indo-Parthian]]s. The first known statues of the Buddha are also very realistic and Hellenistic in style and are more consistent with the pre-50 BC artistic level seen on coins. This would tend to suggest that the first statues were created between 130 BC (death of Menander) and 50 BC, precisely at the time when Buddhist symbolism appeared on Indo-Greek coinage. From that time, Menander and his successors may have been the key propagators of Buddhist ideas and representations: "the spread of Gandhari Buddhism may have been stimulated by Menander's royal patronage, as may have the development and spread of Gandharan sculpture, which seems to have accompanied it" (Mcevilley, "The Shape of Ancient Thought", p. 378). ===Education=== The [[Milind College]] in the city of [[Aurangabad, Maharashtra|Aurangabad]], [[India]], is named after King Menander I using the [[Pali]] translation of his name, ''Milind''. The college was founded in part by [[B. R. Ambedkar|Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar]], an Indian leader of the [[Dalit Buddhist movement]] and writer to the constitution of the [[Republic of India]]. ===Geography=== In Classical Antiquity, from at least the 1st century, the "Menander Mons", or "Mountains of Menander", came to designate the mountain chain at the extreme east of the Indian subcontinent, today's [[Naga Hills]] and [[Rakhine State|Arakan]], as indicated in the [[Ptolemy world map]] of the 1st century geographer [[Ptolemy]].<ref>Boot, Hooves and Wheels: And the Social Dynamics behind South Asian Warfare, Saikat K Bose, Vij Books India Pvt Ltd, 2015 [https://books.google.com/books?id=ywfsCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT222 p.222]</ref> {{clear}} ==See also== * [[Kanishka]] * [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]] * [[Greco-Buddhism]] * [[Indo-Scythians]] ==Notes== {{Reflist|2}} ==References== *{{cite book |last1=Boardman |first1=John |title=The diffusion of classical art in antiquity |date=1994 |publisher=Princeton University Press |location=Princeton, N.J. |isbn=0-691-03680-2}} *{{cite book |last1=Bopearachchi|first1=Osmund|author1-link=Osmund Bopearachchi|title=Monnaies gréco-bactriennes et indo-grecques : catalogue raisonné |date=1991 |publisher=Bibliothèque nationale |location=Paris |isbn=2-7177-1825-7}} *{{cite book |last1=Bopearachchi |first1=Osmund |title=Indo-Greek, Indo-Scythian and Indo-Parthian Coins in the Smithsonian Institution |date=1993 |publisher=National Numismatic Collection, Smithsonian Institution |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=00lmAAAAMAAJ |language=en}} *{{cite book |last1=Bopearachchi|first1=Osmund|last2=Sachs|first2=Christian |title=De l'Indus à l'Oxus : archéologie de l'Asie centrale : catalogue de l'exposition. |date=2003 |publisher=Association imago-musée de Lattes |location=Lattes |isbn=2-9516679-2-2}} *{{cite book |last1=Errington |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Cribb |first2=Joe |last3=Claringbull |first3=Maggie |title=The Crossroads of Asia : transformation in image and symbol in the art of ancient Afghanistan and Pakistan |date=1992 |location=Cambridge |isbn=0-9518399-1-8}} *{{cite book |last1=Keown |first1=Damien |title=A dictionary of Buddhism |date=2003 |location=Oxford |isbn=0-19-860560-9}} *{{cite book |last1=Kubica |first1=Olga |title=Greco-Buddhist relations in the Hellenistic Far East : sources and contexts |date=2023 |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |isbn=9781003258575}} *{{cite book |last1=McEvilley |first1=Thomas |title=The shape of ancient thought : comparative studies in Greek and Indian philosophies |date=2002 |publisher=Allworth Press |location=New York |isbn=1-58115-203-5}} *{{cite book |last1=Puri |first1=Baij Nath |title=Buddhism in Central Asia |date=1987 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-0372-8 |edition=1st}} *{{cite book |last1=Tarn |first1=W. W. |title=The Greeks in Bactria and India |date=1951 |publisher=Cambridge University Press}} ==External links== {{EB1911 Poster|Menander (Milinda)|Menander I}} * [http://www.coinarchives.com/a/results.php?results=100&search=Menander+I&Thumb=1 Coins of King Menander] * [http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/greece/baktria/kings/menander/t.html More coins of Menander] * [http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=42937&AucID=46&Lot=537 Kapisa coinage of Menander] * [http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/milinda.pdf The Debate of King Milinda] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070815103245/http://www.as.miami.edu/phi/bio/Buddha/Milinda.htm The Questions of King Milinda] * [http://coinindia.com/galleries-menander.html Catalogue of the coins of Menander] {{s-start}} {{s-bef|rows=2|before=[[Demetrius II of India]]}} {{s-ttl|rows=2|title=[[Indo-Greek|Indo-Greek ruler]] <br /> (in [[Paropamisadae]], [[Arachosia]], [[Gandhara]], [[Punjab (Pakistan)|Punjab]])|years= 155/150 – 130 BC}} {{s-aft|after=[[Zoilos I]]<br />(in [[Paropamisadae]], [[Arachosia]])}} {{s-aft|after=[[Agathokleia]]<br/>(in [[Gandhara]], [[Punjab (Pakistan)|Punjab]])}} {{s-end}} {{Indo-Greek kings}} {{Hellenistic rulers}} {{Buddhism topics}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Menander 01}} [[Category:Menander I| ]] [[Category:2nd-century BC Buddhists]] [[Category:2nd-century BC Greek people]] [[Category:Greek Buddhist monarchs]] [[Category:Indian Buddhist monarchs]] [[Category:Buddhism in Pakistan]] [[Category:Converts to Buddhism]] [[Category:Converts from paganism]] [[Category:Indo-Greek kings]] [[Category:2nd-century BC Indian monarchs]] [[Category:Former pagans]] [[Category:Euthydemid dynasty]]
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)
Pages transcluded onto the current version of this page
(
help
)
:
Template:Authority control
(
edit
)
Template:Buddhism topics
(
edit
)
Template:Circa
(
edit
)
Template:Citation
(
edit
)
Template:Citation needed
(
edit
)
Template:Cite book
(
edit
)
Template:Cite journal
(
edit
)
Template:Cite web
(
edit
)
Template:Clarify
(
edit
)
Template:Clear
(
edit
)
Template:Cn
(
edit
)
Template:EB1911 Poster
(
edit
)
Template:Hellenistic rulers
(
edit
)
Template:Indo-Greek kings
(
edit
)
Template:Infobox royalty
(
edit
)
Template:Lang
(
edit
)
Template:Langx
(
edit
)
Template:Lit
(
edit
)
Template:Main article
(
edit
)
Template:Quote
(
edit
)
Template:Reflist
(
edit
)
Template:S-aft
(
edit
)
Template:S-bef
(
edit
)
Template:S-end
(
edit
)
Template:S-start
(
edit
)
Template:S-ttl
(
edit
)
Template:Sfn
(
edit
)
Template:Short description
(
edit
)
Template:Use Indian English
(
edit
)
Template:Use dmy dates
(
edit
)
Template:Verse translation
(
edit
)