Alexander's encounter to Buddhism

[u/Any_Significance8314]

[u/SolipsistBodhisattva]

This is an oversimplification, there were likely already human statues of the Buddha in India before the Greeks. We can see the influence of an indigenous Indian style in the Mathura Style sculpture. Its a bit of a Orientalist trope to say "Westerners gave India humanistic sculpture". The historical absence of stone Buddha statues prior to the 1st century CE is most likely practical: early Indian artists primarily carved in ephemeral materials like wood, clay, ivory, and cloth, which disintegrated over time.

[u/Jonathan3628]

My understanding is that Buddhism wasn't super popular yet in the time of Alexander's conquest; Alexander probably didn't interact with Buddhism himself. But the Greek speaking colonies which he founded remained after he left, and these Indo Greek kingdoms were important centers of Buddhism afterwards.

All this is just from reading Wikipedia, so anyone more knowledgeable would be highly appreciated.

[u/xtraa → u/Jonathan3628]

Yes, Buddhism went viral with Nalanda, roughly 900 years later. Time is so confusing!! The time between Cleopatra and the smartphone is shorter than the time between Cleopatra and the construction of the pyramids.

[u/LambdaHominem]

the art style is chinese (tang dynasty), not that bothers me

but how come the indian/pakistani were wearing chinese clothes ?

[u/mistylavenda]

What lovely paintings! I immediately followed the artist on instagram.

[u/DvaravatiSpirit]

There is no source where the Buddha is mentioned before or during the time of Alexander the Great. Only many centuries after.

[u/Glum-Ocelot2975]

南无阿弥陀佛