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Alexander the Great: Man of Myth

Spring 2006
Age of Alexander
3006 words

Alexander the Great: Man of Myth

  Throughout the reign of Alexander the Great, his religion and the religion of his people played a major role in his campaigns and his leadership. One of the most important aspects in this religious aspect of Alexander’s reign is his relationship to Zeus-Ammon. It was said that Alexander was actually the son of the god, and various incidents along his path seemed to "prove" this to be true. A religious man, Alexander had always had a strong relationship with the gods, beginning in his youth, which only strengthened and held greater and greater importance in his life as he aged.

  The notion of Alexander’s divine birth began early in his life. Even before her son was born, there were rumors circulating about Olympias and the nature of her pregnancy - that the night before their marriage, Olympias had a dream in which thunderbolts fell upon her body, starting a fire which was then extinguished, and that Philip also had a dream in which he sealed his wife up with a wax seal. Philip’s dream was interpreted in several ways – that Olympias must be watched lest she commit adultery or that Olympias was pregnant. There were also rumors that Philip had peeked through the bedroom door and seen his wife in bed with snakes, and, upon consulting the oracle of Delphi about this, was told to honor Zeus-Ammon as well as that he would someday lose his eye for peeping while his wife was with a god.

  Alexander was a very religious man from his childhood, mainly due to the behavior of his parents and his place as a Macedonian prince, as Lowell Edmunds argues in his article The Religiosity of Alexander:

  “Alexander’s religiosity is not, of course, a matter simply of the traditions of Macedonian kingship. His preoccupation with religious matters goes beyond any formal requirements of his office. In this connection the influence of Olympias, with her well-known enthusiasm for Dionysus, has often and no doubt correctly been mentioned, in the same way that Alexander’s claim to divinity is referred to Philip’s own similar though less extensive venture in having his statue carried in a procession along with those of the twelve gods.” (Edmunds 371)

  His mother Olympias was “an incredibly devout woman who honored the gods on a daily basis, a practice her son would emulate... Mother and son showed particular respect for Zeus, whose oracle was located in Olympias' home city of Dodona.” (Fildes 16) His father Philip, as the King of Macedonia, also filled the role of high priest: Lowell Edmunds tells us that “it was his duty, for example, to purify the army, should the occasion rise, by the sacrifice of a dog,” among other ritual sacrifices as well (Edmunds 370). It was also not uncommon for a Macedonian king to employ seers for the interpretation of omens and dreams. Alexander had one such seer, Aristander, with him during his campaigning. Most notably, Alexander was also famous for imitating and even trying to surpass certain heroes (in particular Herakles and Achilles) during his campaigns and even during his youth. Edmunds argues that “this imitation of heroes should be seen as religious in origin,” not as propaganda or as a question of his divinity. (Edmunds 326) Alexander had been raised to believe that he had semi-divine ancestry from both Achilles (on his mother’s side) and Herakles (on his father’s side). If one could be descended from a semi-divine hero, why couldn’t one be the offspring of a god (as those heroes themselves had been)? “Alexander’s emulation of heroes is the sign of his belief in the possibility of his own divinity. His heroism is the fulfillment and attainment of the divinity that was vouchsafed him at Siwah.” (Edmunds 378) Edmunds continues, making an interesting note:

  “The heroes of poetry are spoken of as half-divine; the heroes of cult are often closely connected in worship with deities; some cult figures were worshipped as either heroes or gods. If we set Alexander against the background of such beliefs, what is most striking is that he never sought heroic honors. Our sources contain many references to the emulation of heroes but nothing concerning heroization, since heroism implied divinity. Alexander’s feelings in these matters can be seen in the fact that he wished to heroize his friend Hephaestion. A hero cult would suffice a lesser man than Alexander. He himself sought something more.” (Edmunds 383)

  One of the most important events to happen in regards to Alexander’s famous relationship with Zeus-Ammon occurred during the course of his early campaigns. This god was a Greco-Egyptian deity originating from the god Amun in Egypt, who, gaining popularity in the Greek world, was associated with their king of gods, Zeus, to become the combination deity of Zeus-Ammon. “The first Greeks to visit the shrine were people from Cyrenaica... his cult spread to the larger Greek world. The poet Pindar was apparently the first Greek to author an ode to the god; according to Pausanias the poet also dedicated a temple and a statue to him at Thebes.” (Wiki Classical Dictionary) It is to be noted that later Alexander, in his sack of Thebes, would spare Pindar’s house. There was even a temple to Ammon in Athens. Upon making his way to Egypt, where he was hailed as a liberator from the Persian regime and anointed as pharaoh, Alexander made his way to the oracle at the oasis of Siwah, near the Libyan border. Alexander had political motives for this journey: he “remembered Plato's words, ‘In Egypt it is not possible for a king to rule without the priests’ support.’ He upheld all the traditional practices expected of a pharaoh, from making the correct offerings to restoring and rebuilding Egypt's religious centers...” (Fildes 54) Doing these things put him in great favor in Egypt. Besides these political reasons, the journey itself was yet another case of hero-imitation, as Heracles was said to have traveled to the oasis as well.

  This would be one of the most important events in his life, and like much of anything concerning the man and his life, is shrouded in myth and comes in different versions depending on the source. Many amazing things were reported to have happened during the tiresome journey out to the oasis. For example, once, after running out of drinking water, Alexander and his men “were only saved by a sudden violent rainstorm, interpreted by... Callisthenes as divine intervention.” (Fildes 56) Various sources state that the party became lost in the desert, only to be lead to the oracle by ravens or snakes (as Ptolemy claims). “Callisthenes records that the ravens flew slowly so that the party could keep up, and even cawed loudly if their charges deviated from the correct path.” (Fildes 56) Even Arrian confesses, “I have no doubt whatever that he had divine assistance of some kind.” (Arrian 152) Of course, a more realistic explanation would be that the men followed a flock of migrating birds to the oasis. (Green 74) C. Dalrymple Belgrave, in his book Siwa: The Oasis of Jupiter Ammon, gives us a fantastic visual image of what Alexander probably saw and experienced upon his arrival:

  “The ritual of the temple was somewhat similar to several other oracular temples. The actual oracle was made in human figure, with a ram's head, richly ornamented with emeralds and other precious stones. The figure of the god appears to have been shown as though wrapped for burial... When a distinguished pilgrim arrived for a consultation the symbol of the god was brought up from the inmost sanctuary of the temple and carried on a golden barque, hung with votive cups of silver, followed by a procession of eighty priests and many singing girls, ‘who chanted uncouth songs after the manner of their country,’ in order to propitiate the deity and induce him to return a satisfactory answer. The god directed the priests who carried the barque which way they should proceed, and spoke by tremulous shocks, communicated to the bearer, and by movements of the head and body, which were interpreted by the priests.” (Belgrave 85)

  There is another story often told about Alexander’s arrival at the oracle. As Plutarch tells us, a priest, "desirous as a piece of courtesy to address him in Greek, “O Paidion” [Oh, my son] by a slip in pronunciation... said, “O Paidios” [Oh, son of god], which mistake Alexander was well pleased with...” (Plutarch 17) However, whether or not this was actually a slip is questionable – Alexander, now being a pharaoh of Egypt, was considered and probably would have been addressed as the son of god: “Son of Ammon, Good God, Lord of the Two Lands.” (Green 74) Alexander went in the temple alone to consult the oracle, so the questions he asked are unknown. However, there are many guesses and assumptions. Peter Green sums up the major contenders: firstly, most scholars (of Alexander’s time and of today) agree that he probably would have asked the oracle whether or not he was in truth the son of Zeus-Ammon. In addition to this, he may have also asked about the success of his campaign and the foundation of Alexandria. “Lastly - one question on which almost all our sources are agreed - he wanted to know whether all his father's murderers had been punished.” (Green 73) Plutarch tells us an anecdote about this particular question: “And being asked by [Alexander] whether any of his father's murderers had escaped punishment, [the priest] charged him to speak with more respect, since his was not a mortal father.” (Plutarch 45) Sadly, Alexander confided the actual events to no one, so the truth will never be known.

  After this life-changing event at Siwah, Alexander’s supposed confirmation of his divine origin (for, as stated previously, almost all historical sources assume that he did indeed ask about his relation to Zeus-Ammon) did not too much change Alexander’s attitude during his campaigns. Edmunds does mention that “before the battle of Gaugamela, in a prayer uttered before the Greek contingents, Alexander alluded to himself as the son of Zeus,” and also mentions “a letter quoted by Plutarch, in which Alexander refers to his ‘so-called father’ Philip.” (Edmunds 380)

  Alexander’s newly confirmed place as a demigod changed the way that his subjects, peers, and even he thought of himself. For his Egyptian subjects, a divine pharaoh was an important part of their culture, and so Alexander’s claim was accepted readily. Alexander’s Greek subjects, however, reacted differently. The topic of Alexander’s divinity and his 324 BC request for divine honors was a popular one for debate among the Greeks. According to Green, most saw it as an unharmful and simply amusing matter. “Only a few elderly conservatives, like Antipater, were genuinely shocked.” (Green 463) “In Athens the pro-Macedonian Demades made the proposal [of divine honors] for Alexander and was fined for his efforts.” (Edmunds 381) However, many of his subjects, Greek and non-Greek alike, took this as an opportunity to flatter Alexander:

  “Once the Greeks learnt what had taken place at Memphis and Siwah, they very quickly saw how Alexander's position could be exploited for their own benefit. Among many embassies awaiting him on his return was one from Miletus, with remarkable news concerning Apollo's oracle at nearby Didyma. No prophecies had issued from this shrine since its destruction during the Persian Wars. Even the sacred spring dried up. But with the coming of Alexander - or so the envoys said - miracle of miracles, the spring began to flow again, and the god to prophesy... the king probably took all this with a fairly large grain of salt. Nevertheless, it made undeniably useful political propaganda.” (Green 76)

  Some of Alexander’s peers (or rather, since as the king he had no real peers, those who followed him on his campaigns) were less than pleased. In Cleitus the Black’s famous last argument with Alexander, he mentioned Alexander’s claim: “‘It is by the blood of the Macedonians, and those wounds of ours, that you have risen so high - disowning Philip, claiming Ammon as your father...’” (Green 362) On his return from India, Alexander made an announcement at Opis that he would discharge all the old and infirm soldiers. However, despite the fact that they had been asking for this all along, now they saw it as an insult, assuming that they would be replaced by Persians. Upon hearing Alexander’s proclamation, “unable to restrain themselves, [they] called for the discharge of every man in the army, adding, in bitter jest, that on his next campaign he could take his father with him – meaning, presumably, the god Ammon.” (Arrian 360) Alexander especially irritated his followers when he experimented with proskynesis, a sort of prostration to the king common among Persians. Alexander toyed with the idea of making this a mandatory action for all of his subjects. Arrian suspects that “this was due partly to the notion that his father was not Philip but Ammon, and partly to his growing admiration... of Median and Persian extravagance.” (Arrian 217) Alexander's Persian subjects were fine with prostration, but when he asked the Greeks to do it as well, they resisted, for they believed that this sort of prostration was only to be done for the gods and not for a mere mortal, whether he believed himself to be son of a god or not. The resistance against proskynesis was lead by Alexander's own court historian Callisthenes. Alexander eventually dropped this notion.

  Whether or not Alexander believed that he was really son of the god is an interesting matter. Due to his extremely religious upbringing and his supposed descent from heroes (who, two the Greeks, were proof that it was possible for human and god to produce children), he probably honestly did believe it.

  “Whatever his divinity meant to anyone else, it is plain that Alexander himself took it very seriously indeed. All his life, in a sense, he has been moving towards this final apotheosis. Divine blood ran in his veins; heroes and demigods were numbered among his ancestors; his mother's dark hints concerning his begetting had been given fresh dimensions by the Pharaonic coronation ceremony in Memphis, and Ammon's revelations during his pilgrimage to the Siwah Oasis. If super-human achievements conferred godhead then Alexander had unquestionably earned himself a place in any pantheon: his deeds by now far outshone those of Achilles or Heracles. Aristotle had taught him that the true king was a god among men. The dying Isocrates had argued that nothing would remain for the conqueror of Asia but deification.” (Green 452)

  The fact that Alexander’s divine ancestry was excellent political propaganda has made many think that he was just using the rumors to his advantage. And use them he did. “Apollo [as god of prophecy] ratified Alexander's descent from Zeus, predicted great future victories for him (not to mention the death of Darius), and saw no future in King Agis’ threatened Spartan revolt.” (Green 77) The belief that the gods were on their side must have encouraged his men enormously, just as watching their king emulate and even, in some cases, surpass the supposed deeds of famous mythic heroes must have. Alexander’s surpassing of these heroic deeds must have had effect on his own beliefs and self-confidence as well.

  During his reign and continuing after his death, Alexander was often depicted in art and sculpture in a manner connecting him to the gods. On coins he was shown with the curling horns of the ram, the sacred animal of Amun. “The characteristic horns were adopted by certain pharaohs as part of their royal regalia. At the temple of Luxor, where Amenhotep III is depicted with the ram's horns, Alexander is also represented in the company of Amun. Thereafter, Alexander was frequently portrayed with the horns of Amun curling through his hair,” and in Iran he became known as “the two-horned one.” (Fildes 58) In Greek statues made by the sculptor Lysippus, Alexander is always shown with his eyes gazing up at the heavens.

  It is interesting to note that it is suggested by several sources that it was Alexander’s wish to be buried at Siwa. If this is true, than it is obvious that this place held extreme significance for Alexander years after his critical consultation with the oracle (indeed, Alexander had kept the habit of posing questions to the oracle when he felt the need – as was the case with the heroization of Hephaestion after his death). However, when he did die in 323 B.C., his body was taken to Alexandria, not Siwa. This was probably due to the influence of Ptolemy, who would from then on rule from that city. However, Belgrave gives an interesting fact: “One of the hills in the desert near Siwa is still called “Gebel Sekunder,” and tradition has it that from this hill Alexander saw the ravens which led him to the temple.” (Belgrave 85)

  In conclusion, we can safely say that Alexander was indeed a religious man. Whether he actually believed in his own divine nature is unknown, but it is probable, and this belief probably did increase as he aged. So much of Alexander’s true history is shrouded in myth due to the fact that we have no contemporary sources, many of which were probably filled with flattery and exaggeration. Over the course of time, Alexander became a mythic figure in his own right in the Greco-Roman and Middle Eastern worlds. Alexander’s supposedly divine nature truly makes him the epitome of a mythic historical figure, and looking back on his achievements, he does seem to be more god than man. Edmunds sums it up wonderfully: “In the life of Alexander myth becomes history only to become myth again, not only because his contemporary historians inevitably see him in terms of myth, but also because he saw himself in, and wanted to be seen in, those terms” (Edmunds 390). Whatever he was, he was truly a hero of the Iron Age.

Works Cited

“Ammon.” Wiki Classical Dictionary. 29 Mar. 2006. .

Arrian. The Campaigns of Alexander. London: Penguin Books, 1971.

Belgrave, C. Dalrymple. Siwa: The Oasis of Jupiter Ammon. Plymouth: The Mayflower Press, 1923.

Fildes, Alan and Fletcher, Joann. Alexander the Great: Son of the Gods. Los Angeles: The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2001.

Green, Peter. Alexander of Macedon, 356 - 323 B.C.: a Historical Biography. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991.

Plutarch. Alexander.