"Gymnosophist"
Gymnosophists ("naked philosophers" or "naked sophists") is the name given by the Greeks to ancient Indian philosophers who regarded food and clothing as detrimental to purity of thought (sadhus or yogis). At least some of the authors of the Upanishads lived at this time - the Upanishads being some of the most beautiful and profound (and yet simple and direct) writings in world literature. The influence of Indian (including Buddhist) thought on the development of Greek philosophy (and so on our, western thought) is a fascinating subject. At this distance in time it's hard to unravel what was borrowed from Indian contacts and what was original to the Greeks. We do know that some Indian gymnosophists travelled all the way to Greece. I would love to know what was said in their conversations with their fascinated Greek listeners! Perhaps there was even a contemporary equivalent of MMY. Maybe he taught some of them TM! Here are some mentions from the original Greek classics . . . Alexander the Great (fourth century BC) met ten gymnosophists near the banks of the Indus. One noted gymnosophist was Calanus. He later self-immolated whilst chanting Vedic mantras in a Hindu rite. Before immolation, he is said to have prophesied the death of Alexander at Babylon. Pyrrho, the founder of Scepticism, came under the influence of the gymnosophists while travelling to India with Alexander. On his return, he imitated their habits of life. Strabo (first century AD) says that gymnosophists were religious people among the Indians. Philo (Hellenized Jew, first century BC) mentions the gymnosophists twice in the course of listing foreign ascetics and philosophers who are, in his estimation, "prudent, and just, and virtuous" and therefore truly free: "And among the Indians there is the class of the gymnosophists, who, in addition to natural philosophy, take great pains in the study of moral science likewise, and thus make their whole existence a sort of lesson in virtue." Plotinus (third century AD), the founder of Neoplatonism, decided to investigate the philosophical teachings of the Indian philosophers. He joined the army of Emperor Gordian III as it marched on Persia. However, the campaign was a failure, and on Gordian's eventual death, Plotinus found himself abandoned in a hostile land, and only with difficulty found his way back to safety. When Cleopatra was facing imminent defeat by the Romans she gathered a fleet on the Red Sea which she planned to load with the treasures of Egypt and sail to India to set up a kingdom on the west Indian coast. Even given her desperate situation it's inconceivable she would have considered that option unless she knew a fair bit about Indian politics and traded regularly with Indian merchants. So she and her advisers must have been familiar with basic Indian religious practices. Her plan came to naught as the Romans paid some Arab mercenaries to burn the fleet she'd assembled. Imagining what would have happened in world history if she'd succeeded in setting up a mini-state on the Indian subcontinent makes my head spin! On a side note: the Greeks were the first to use opium as both a medicine and as a recreational drug (Cleopatra was a keen user!). Alexander the Great introduced the drug to Afghanistan which is now the world's main source of the intoxicant. (NOTE: I'm the last person on the planet still using "BC/AD". The use of "BCE/CE" grates on my ear!)