Dhul-Qarnayn and the Alexander Romance: Difference between revisions

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 What is overlooked by most apologists when discussing the identify of Dhul-Qarnayn<ref>For example, [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.understanding-islam.com%2Fq-and-a%2Fsources-of-islam%2Fwho-is-the-prophet-zulqarnain-5247&date=2013-11-25 Amar Ellahi Lone] completely ignores the Alexander Legends of the 4<sup>th</sup>-7<sup>th</sup> century and focuses on a historical account of Alexander. [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.iranchamber.com%2Fhistory%2Farticles%2Fzolqarnain_cyrus_quran.php&date=2013-11-25 Baha'eddin Khoramshahi] rejects Alexander based solely on his historical identity. And [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fanswering-islam.org%2FAuthors%2FNewton%2Falex.r.html&date=2013-11-25 Khalid Jan] gives background information on the historical Alexander and why he is not a fit to the Qur'anic story.  Expresses no knowledge of the Alexander legends.</ref> is that the story in the Qur'an is not based on an historically accurate account of Alexander III of Macedon (356–323 BC).  Instead, it is based entirely upon legendary stories of Alexander which bare little resemblance to the Alexander of history.  In particular, the Qur'an parallels a Syriac legend where Alexander is portrayed as a monotheistic king who awaits the second coming of the Messiah and the end of the world.<ref name="Budge">{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books/about/The_History_of_Alexander_the_Great_Being.html?id=_14LmFqhc8QC|title= The History of Alexander the Great, Being the Syriac Version of the Pseudo-Callisthenes, Volume 1|publisher= The University Press|author= Sir Ernest Alfred Wallis Budge|date= 1889|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>
-It has been well understood for many centuries that legendary accounts of Alexander's life began shortly after his death in 323 BC.  These were popular across most of [[Europe]], North [[Africa]], the [[Middle East]], [[Iran|Persia]] and even [[India]] and [[China]].  In the subsequent centuries after his death, the historical accounts of Alexander were largely forgotten and legendary accounts of his deeds and adventures replaced them in popular folklore.  It is these legendary depictions of Alexander that would have been known in the 7<sup>th</sup> century and not the historically accurate accounts of his life.  It was not until the Renaissance in the 16<sup>th</sup> century that the first historical accounts of Alexanders life were rediscovered and investigated.
+It has been well understood for many centuries that legendary accounts of Alexander's life began shortly after his death in 323 BC.  These were popular across most of Europe, North [[Africa]], the Middle East, Persia and even India and China.  In the subsequent centuries after his death, the historical accounts of Alexander were largely forgotten and legendary accounts of his deeds and adventures replaced them in popular folklore.  It is these legendary depictions of Alexander that would have been known in the 7<sup>th</sup> century and not the historically accurate accounts of his life.  It was not until the Renaissance in the 16<sup>th</sup> century that the first historical accounts of Alexanders life were rediscovered and investigated.
 ===Oral Tradition===
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 ==Parallels to the Syriac Legend==
-In 1889, the renowned scholar and philologist, Sir Ernest Alfred Wallis Budge, translated five Alexander stories from Syriac manuscripts into English. One of these stories was a legend that detailed the exploits of Alexander, the son of Philip the Macedonian, and how he traveled to the ends of the world, made a gate of iron, and shut behind it the Huns so they might not come forth to spoil the land.<ref name="Budge"/>  The parallels between this story and the story of Dhul-Qarnayn in the Qur'an are detailed below.
+In 1889, the renowned scholar and philologist, Sir Ernest Alfred Wallis Budge, translated five Alexander stories from Syriac manuscripts into English. One of these stories was a legend that detailed the exploits of Alexander, the son of Philip the Macedonian, and how he traveled to the ends of the world, made a gate of iron, and shut behind it the Huns so they might not come forth to spoil the land.<ref name="Budge" />  The parallels between this story and the story of Dhul-Qarnayn in the Qur'an are detailed below.
 ===Two Horns===
-Alexander in the Syriac legend is described as having horns on his head. An Ethiopic variation of the story refers to Alexander as "the two horns".<ref name="Budge"/> Coins depicting Alexander with ram horns on his head were first minted shortly after his death. By the 1<sup>st</sup> century BC, silver coins depicting Alexander with ram horns were used as the primary currency in Arabia. Imitation coins were issued by an Arab ruler named Abi'el who ruled in the south-eastern region of the Arabian Peninsula and other minting of these coins occurred throughout Arabia for another thousand years.<ref> "The impact of Alexander the Great’s coinage in E Arabia" at [http://web.archive.org/web/20040603181636/www.culture.gr/nm/presveis/Pages/museum/13/p1302.html culrute.gr].</ref> This connection of Alexander with two-horns was widely known across the region at the time.
+Alexander in the Syriac legend is described as having horns on his head. An Ethiopic variation of the story refers to Alexander as "the two horns".<ref name="Budge" /> Coins depicting Alexander with ram horns on his head were first minted shortly after his death. By the 1<sup>st</sup> century BC, silver coins depicting Alexander with ram horns were used as the primary currency in Arabia. Imitation coins were issued by an Arab ruler named Abi'el who ruled in the south-eastern region of the Arabian Peninsula and other minting of these coins occurred throughout Arabia for another thousand years.<ref> "The impact of Alexander the Great’s coinage in E Arabia" at [http://web.archive.org/web/20040603181636/www.culture.gr/nm/presveis/Pages/museum/13/p1302.html culrute.gr].</ref> This connection of Alexander with two-horns was widely known across the region at the time.
 {{Quote|The History of Alexander the Great, Being the Syriac Version, p. 146|
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 ===Dating the Qur'anic Verses===
-According to Muslim scholars, Al-Kahf (The Cave) was generally revealed in Mecca, except verse 28 and verses 83-101 which were revealed in Medina.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://tanzil.net/pub/ebooks/History-of-Quran.pdf|title= The History of the Quran|publisher= Al-Tawheed|author= Allamah Abu Abd Allah al-Zanjani, Mahliqa Qara'i (trans.)|page=34|date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Based on this information, we can date the story of Dhul-Qarnayn, contained in verses 83-101, sometime after the Hijra in June 622 CE and before Muhammed's death in June 632 CE; a more specific date is difficult to ascertain with any certainty. Since the community of Muslims in Mecca were far from well known outside of Arabia, the possibility of their story influencing Christians in Syria is extremely remote. The Syriac work also contains no references to the Arabic phrases used in the Qur'anic account, which would be expected if the Syrian story was using that as its source.<ref name="VanBladel"/> While the timelines are tight, it is clear that the composition of the Syriac legend fits into the timeline of the Qur'anic revelation and likely pre-dates it.
+According to Muslim scholars, Al-Kahf (The Cave) was generally revealed in Mecca, except verse 28 and verses 83-101 which were revealed in Medina.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://tanzil.net/pub/ebooks/History-of-Quran.pdf|title= The History of the Quran|publisher= Al-Tawheed|author= Allamah Abu Abd Allah al-Zanjani, Mahliqa Qara'i (trans.)|page=34|date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Based on this information, we can date the story of Dhul-Qarnayn, contained in verses 83-101, sometime after the Hijra in June 622 CE and before Muhammed's death in June 632 CE; a more specific date is difficult to ascertain with any certainty. Since the community of Muslims in Mecca were far from well known outside of Arabia, the possibility of their story influencing Christians in Syria is extremely remote. The Syriac work also contains no references to the Arabic phrases used in the Qur'anic account, which would be expected if the Syrian story was using that as its source.<ref name="VanBladel" /> While the timelines are tight, it is clear that the composition of the Syriac legend fits into the timeline of the Qur'anic revelation and likely pre-dates it.
 ===Spread of the Syriac Legend to Arabia===
-The popularity of the Syriac legend of Alexander is evidenced by its inclusion in other works soon after its composition. The "Song of Alexander", composed a few years later but before the Arab conquest of Syria sometime between 630 CE and 636 CE. The Syriac apocalypse, "De Fine Munid" composed between 640 CE and 683 CE and the "Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius" composed around 692 CE.<ref name="VanBladel"/> Since the work was composed as a piece of propaganda, its intentional dissemination makes sense of its rapid adoption and popularity in the region. This would have included Christian Arabs of the Ghassanid.  It is even possible that early Muslim followers heard the story of the Syrian legend during their raids on Mu'ta on the borders of Syria around September 629 CE.<ref name="VanBladel"/>
+The popularity of the Syriac legend of Alexander is evidenced by its inclusion in other works soon after its composition. The "Song of Alexander", composed a few years later but before the Arab conquest of Syria sometime between 630 CE and 636 CE. The Syriac apocalypse, "De Fine Munid" composed between 640 CE and 683 CE and the "Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius" composed around 692 CE.<ref name="VanBladel" /> Since the work was composed as a piece of propaganda, its intentional dissemination makes sense of its rapid adoption and popularity in the region. This would have included Christian Arabs of the Ghassanid.  It is even possible that early Muslim followers heard the story of the Syrian legend during their raids on Mu'ta on the borders of Syria around September 629 CE.<ref name="VanBladel" />
 ===Summary===
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 ===Son of Zeus-Ammon===
 [[File:Zeus Ammon.png|right|thumb|200px|A terracotta cast of Zeus Ammon with ram horns. 1st century CE.  Alexander is depicted with similar ram horns in coins as a reference to his deity.]]
-Alexander appears to have believed himself a deity, or at least sought to deify himself.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.amazon.com/Alexander-Great-Hellenistic-Peter-Green/dp/0753824132/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385374702&sr=8-1|title= Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age|publisher= London: Phoenix|author=  Peter Green|date= August 7, 2008|isbn=978-0-7538-2413-9|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Olympias, his mother, always insisted to him that he was the son of Zeus,<ref name="Plutarch"/> a theory apparently confirmed to him by the oracle of Amun at Siwa in [[Libya]].<ref name="Plutarch"/> Shortly after his visit to the oracle, Alexander began to identify himself as the son of Zeus-Ammon and often referred to Zeus-Ammon as his true father.  This god, an amalgamation of both the Greek god Zeus and the Egyptian god Ammon was often depicted with ram horns on his head. Subsequent currency depicted Alexander adorned with similar rams horn as a symbol of his divinity.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.amazon.com/Legend-Alexander-Great-Greek-Roman/dp/0415394511/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385374897&sr=8-1|title= The Legend of Alexander the Great on Greek and Roman Coins|publisher= Routledge|author= Karsten Dahmen|date=  February 23, 2007|isbn=0-415-39451-1|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>
+Alexander appears to have believed himself a deity, or at least sought to deify himself.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.amazon.com/Alexander-Great-Hellenistic-Peter-Green/dp/0753824132/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385374702&sr=8-1|title= Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age|publisher= London: Phoenix|author=  Peter Green|date= August 7, 2008|isbn=978-0-7538-2413-9|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Olympias, his mother, always insisted to him that he was the son of Zeus,<ref name="Plutarch" /> a theory apparently confirmed to him by the oracle of Amun at Siwa in [[Libya]].<ref name="Plutarch" /> Shortly after his visit to the oracle, Alexander began to identify himself as the son of Zeus-Ammon and often referred to Zeus-Ammon as his true father.  This god, an amalgamation of both the Greek god Zeus and the Egyptian god Ammon was often depicted with ram horns on his head. Subsequent currency depicted Alexander adorned with similar rams horn as a symbol of his divinity.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.amazon.com/Legend-Alexander-Great-Greek-Roman/dp/0415394511/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385374897&sr=8-1|title= The Legend of Alexander the Great on Greek and Roman Coins|publisher= Routledge|author= Karsten Dahmen|date=  February 23, 2007|isbn=0-415-39451-1|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>
 ===Personal Relationships and Sex Life===
-Alexander had two wives : Roxana, daughter of a Greek nobleman, and Stateira II, a Persian princess and daughter of Darius III of Persia. He fathered at least two sons, Alexander IV of Macedon with Roxana and Heracles of Macedon from his mistress Barsine.<ref name="Plutarch"/> Alexander's sexuality has been the subject of speculation and controversy. Alexander may have been bisexual, and while no ancient sources state that Alexander had homosexual relationships, many historians have speculated that Alexander's relationship with Hephaestion, his life long friend and companion, was of a romantic nature.<ref>Ogden, Daniel (2009). "Alexander's Sex Life". In Heckel, Alice; Heckel, Waldemar; Tritle, Lawrence A. [http://www.amazon.com/Alexander-Great-A-New-History/dp/1405130822 "Alexander the Great: A New History"]. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 1-4051-3082-2.</ref>
+Alexander had two wives : Roxana, daughter of a Greek nobleman, and Stateira II, a Persian princess and daughter of Darius III of Persia. He fathered at least two sons, Alexander IV of Macedon with Roxana and Heracles of Macedon from his mistress Barsine.<ref name="Plutarch" /> Alexander's sexuality has been the subject of speculation and controversy. Alexander may have been bisexual, and while no ancient sources state that Alexander had homosexual relationships, many historians have speculated that Alexander's relationship with Hephaestion, his life long friend and companion, was of a romantic nature.<ref>Ogden, Daniel (2009). "Alexander's Sex Life". In Heckel, Alice; Heckel, Waldemar; Tritle, Lawrence A. [http://www.amazon.com/Alexander-Great-A-New-History/dp/1405130822 "Alexander the Great: A New History"]. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 1-4051-3082-2.</ref>
 ==Cyrus the Great==
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 ===Rejection of Alexander===
-Since most early Muslim scholars and commentators believed that Dhul-Qarnayn was Alexander, any defense of the Cyrus theory is first obligated to state why Alexander should be rejected from consideration.<ref name="Azad"/> Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, one of the first to advance the theory of Cyrus, gives a typical justification for his rejection of Alexander by appealing to the historical man as an unrighteous polytheist:
+Since most early Muslim scholars and commentators believed that Dhul-Qarnayn was Alexander, any defense of the Cyrus theory is first obligated to state why Alexander should be rejected from consideration.<ref name="Azad" /> Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, one of the first to advance the theory of Cyrus, gives a typical justification for his rejection of Alexander by appealing to the historical man as an unrighteous polytheist:
 {{Quote|Modern Muslim Koran Interpretation: (1880 - 1960), p. 32|When treating the Dhul-Qarnayn story, Azad beings by setting forth that it follows from verse 82/83 that the hero's epithet was familiar to the Jews, being an expression used by the questioners.  Then, he must have been a righteous (see verse 86/87) and godly (see verses 87/88, 94/95 and 97/98) sovereign.  In other words, he cannot represent Alexander the Great: "That man was neither godly, nor righteous, nor generous towards subjected nations; moreover, he did not build a wall"<ref name="Azad"/>}}
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 We must also consider that Cyrus is mentioned explicitly by name 23 times<ref> Chron 36:22-33, Ezra 1:1-8, Ezra 3:7, Ezra 4:3-5, Ezra 5:13-17, Ezra 6:3,14, Isaiah 44:28, Isaiah 45:1,13, Daniel 1:21, Daniel 6:28, Daniel 10:1</ref> in the Bible including other parts of the Book of Daniel; yet he is never given the epitaph of "Two Horns". If the Jews knew Cyrus by this epitaph then we should expect to see it mentioned in at least one of these verses. When we consider that Alexander is said to have two horns in the Alexander legend, this lack of direct reference to Cyrus further weakens this theory.
-The horn on the goat is considered by many to be a reference to Alexander the Great. The horn is called "the king of Greece" that comes form the west and charges to the east destroying everything in its path; a basic summary of Alexander's conquest of the Persians. Later in the chapter, we are told that the horn is broken (a reference to Alexander's death) and four horns appear in its place (a reference to the four rulers that divided up Alexander's kingdom).<ref name="Guzik"/> This again provides further evidence that the ram is not Cyrus, as Alexander lived three centuries after Cyrus and the two never fought each other on the battle field.
+The horn on the goat is considered by many to be a reference to Alexander the Great. The horn is called "the king of Greece" that comes form the west and charges to the east destroying everything in its path; a basic summary of Alexander's conquest of the Persians. Later in the chapter, we are told that the horn is broken (a reference to Alexander's death) and four horns appear in its place (a reference to the four rulers that divided up Alexander's kingdom).<ref name="Guzik" /> This again provides further evidence that the ram is not Cyrus, as Alexander lived three centuries after Cyrus and the two never fought each other on the battle field.
 ===Building a Wall===
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 Derbent, a city on the other side of the Caspian Sea from the Great Wall of Gorgon is located just north of the Azerbaijani border. Historically, it occupied one of the few passages through the Caucus mountains and it has often been identified with the word 'gate'. Fortresses and walls have been built at this location probably dating back thousands of years. The historical Caspian Gates were not built until the reign of Khosrau I in the 6<sup>th</sup> century, long after Alexander, but they likely were attributed to him in the following centuries. The immense wall had a height of up to twenty meters and a thickness of about 3 meters when it was in use.
-This wall cannot be the same as the one in the Qur'an because it is not built between two mountains. The walls near Derbent were built with the Caspian sea as one border. In his comments on Derbent, Yusuf Ali mentions, that "there is no iron gate there now, but there was one in the seventh century, when the Chinese traveler Hiouen Tsiang saw it on his journey to India. He saw two folding gates cased with iron hung with bells".<ref name="YusufAli"/> Again, if this gate is the same as the one in the Qur'anic story then the apologist must admit that the revelation of the gate holding back Gog and Magog must have failed since they did not rampage over the nations nor bring about judgement day. Additionally, the solitary claim of a single eye witness from the 7<sup>th</sup> century is spurious at best. We should expect a massive structure would have left copious amounts of archaeological evidence, instead all we have are rumors and folktales.
+This wall cannot be the same as the one in the Qur'an because it is not built between two mountains. The walls near Derbent were built with the Caspian sea as one border. In his comments on Derbent, Yusuf Ali mentions, that "there is no iron gate there now, but there was one in the seventh century, when the Chinese traveler Hiouen Tsiang saw it on his journey to India. He saw two folding gates cased with iron hung with bells".<ref name="YusufAli" /> Again, if this gate is the same as the one in the Qur'anic story then the apologist must admit that the revelation of the gate holding back Gog and Magog must have failed since they did not rampage over the nations nor bring about judgement day. Additionally, the solitary claim of a single eye witness from the 7<sup>th</sup> century is spurious at best. We should expect a massive structure would have left copious amounts of archaeological evidence, instead all we have are rumors and folktales.
 ==Conclusion==
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 In summary, the overwhelming preponderance of the evidence supports that:
-* The story in the Qur'an parallels a medieval Syriac legend of Alexander; it portrays him as a believing king who traveled the world and built a barrier of iron which holds back the tribes of Gog and Magog until Judgement Day.
+*The story in the Qur'an parallels a medieval Syriac legend of Alexander; it portrays him as a believing king who traveled the world and built a barrier of iron which holds back the tribes of Gog and Magog until Judgement Day.
-* Almost every major element of the Qur'anic story can be found in Christian and Jewish folklore that dates hundreds of years prior to the time of Prophet Muhammad.
+*Almost every major element of the Qur'anic story can be found in Christian and Jewish folklore that dates hundreds of years prior to the time of Prophet Muhammad.
-* Most early Muslim commentators and scholars identified Dhul-Qarnayn as Alexander the Great, and some modern ones do too.
+*Most early Muslim commentators and scholars identified Dhul-Qarnayn as Alexander the Great, and some modern ones do too.
-* Historical and Archaeological evidence has revealed that the real Alexander was a polytheistic pagan who believed he was the literal son of Greek and Egyptian gods.
+*Historical and Archaeological evidence has revealed that the real Alexander was a polytheistic pagan who believed he was the literal son of Greek and Egyptian gods.
-* The theory that Dhul-Qarnayn is Cyrus the Great has little evidence in its favor compared to the overwhelming evidence that the story is actually based on a legendary version of Alexander.
+*The theory that Dhul-Qarnayn is Cyrus the Great has little evidence in its favor compared to the overwhelming evidence that the story is actually based on a legendary version of Alexander.
-* Today, there is no giant wall of iron and brass between two mountains that is holding back a tribe of people; it likely never existed.
+*Today, there is no giant wall of iron and brass between two mountains that is holding back a tribe of people; it likely never existed.
 From all of this it can be concluded that the story of Dhul-Qarnayn is a myth about Alexander the Great and has no basis in history.
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 {{Hub4|Dhul-Qarnayn|Dhul-Qarnayn}}
 {{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

Dhul-Qarnayn and the Alexander Romance: Difference between revisions

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