Alexander the Great's Legendary Speech at Opis in Today's Words
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- Опубликовано: 8 июн 2024
- By popular demand, we present the legendary speech Alexander gave to prevent a rebellion at Opis, drawn from Arrian's monumental work, "Anabasis of Alexander." This modernized rendition allows us to peer into the mind of one of history's most captivating figures, preserving the essence of the original while engaging the contemporary audience.
Hear Alexander's passionate words as he addresses his troops at a pivotal moment, bridging the gap between past and present, history and today's relevance.
For those who find themselves inspired, intrigued, or simply connected to this unique historical moment, we invite you to explore further, to share this journey with others, and to be part of a community that values the echoes of the past in our modern world.
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0:00 Introduction
1:00 Setting the Scene: Arrian of Nicomedia's Account
2:30 The Speech: Alexander's Pivotal Address
6:07 Aftermath: Reactions and Consequences
08:16 Outtro
#AlexanderTheGreat #ArriansAnabasis #HistoricalSpeech #OpisAddress #ModernizedHistory #LegendaryLeaders #AncientWisdom #MilitaryGenius #GreatOrators #HistoryReimagined #HistoricalFigures #ClassicalLiterature #AlexanderAtOpis #LeadershipLessons #HistoricalAdaptation #TimelessSpeeches #MacedonianConqueror #EpicMomentsInHistory
I love this period of Greek history. Athenian arrogance curbed. A united Greece under Macedonian hegemony. The final war against Greece's enemy, the Persian tyrant, to liberate Greece's Ionian sons. Alexander's desire to press on towards Aristotle's famed end of the world where the land ended and the great outer sea began only to be dashed by his homesick and less adventurous men. Nicely done Sir. Thank you
Hardly united. Sparta played no part, Thebes had been razed and Athens was always debating rebelling.
Probably the greatest speech ever given. Alexander the Great is a true legend, imagine a king who is fighting on the front lines. Not many kings can actually make the argument they r fighting harder for glory than the soldiers r. One of the most influential and greatest humans to ever walk earth💪🙌
" There is a beautiful story: When Alexander the Great was coming to India, he met one strange man, Diogenes, on the way. Diogenes is one of the rare flowerings of human consciousness. Alexander was interested in the man; he had heard many stories about him. He was afraid to go to him. It was below him, it was against his ego. But when he was coming to India, on the way he heard that he was living just by the side of the river. Then he could not resist the temptation and he said, “Nobody will know back home that I had gone to see Diogenes. And I can always say that I was just passing and I met him by accident.” He went to see Diogenes. It was a winter morning, a cool breeze was blowing and Diogenes was lying on the river-bank, on the sand, taking a sunbath naked. He was a beautiful man. When there is a beautiful soul, a beauty arises which is not of this world - which is illogical. If Alexander looks beautiful, it is logical, remember, because he has all that you think one should have. He has power, money; he has all that one can think or imagine to have. His beauty is that of possessions. Now, here was a man lying naked, with nothing - he had nothing, not even a begging-bowl. Buddha at least had a begging-bowl. Diogenes didn’t have a begging-bowl, because one day when he was walking and going towards the river with his begging-bowl to get some water to drink, he saw a dog rushing to the river. Of course the dog reached first and the dog jumped in the river and drank. Diogenes laughed and he said, “This dog has taught me a lesson. If he can live without a begging-bowl, then why can’t I?” He threw the begging-bowl, he also jumped like the dog in the river and drank. Since then he had had nothing. And this dog must have felt something for Diogenes, because they became friends; they lived together. Alexander came. He could not believe the grace of the man. He had never seen such a graceful man, such utter beauty, something from the unknown, something illogical… because there is no reason! You cannot pin it down, where it is coming from. He was in awe and he said, “Sir…” He had not said “Sir” to anybody in his life. He said, “Sir, I am immensely impressed by your being and I would like to do something for you. Is there something that I can do for you?” Diogenes said, “Just stand to the side, because you are preventing the sun - that’s all. Nothing else do I need.” Alexander said, “If I have another chance to come to the earth, I will ask God, instead of making me Alexander again, to make me Diogenes.” Diogenes laughed and he said, “That you won’t ask for, because who is preventing you right now? You can become Diogenes. Where are you going? For months I have seen armies moving and moving - where are you going? and for what?” And Alexander said, “I am going to India to conquer the whole world.” “And then what are you going to do?” Diogenes asked. And Alexander said, “Then I will rest.” And Diogenes laughed again and he said, “You are mad - because I am resting now; and I have not conquered the world. I don’t see the necessity of it. If just in the end you want to rest and relax, why not now? How are they related? Who has told you that before resting, you have to conquer the world? And I tell you: if you don’t rest now, then never. You will never be able to conquer the world, because something or other will always remain to be conquered… and life is short and time is fleeting. You will die in the middle of your journey - everybody dies in the middle of the journey.” Alexander said, “I will keep it always in mind, but right now I cannot do it. But many many thanks for your advice.” And Alexander died in the middle. He never reached back home, he died on the way. When he was moving back from India, he died on the way. And that day he remembered Diogenes. Only Diogenes was in his mind - he could never rest in his life… and that man rested. And then a strange story has been known down the ages, that Diogenes also died on the same day. And they met on the way towards God, just crossing the border river. Alexander was ahead, a few feet ahead, when he heard somebody behind. He looked back and he was surprised - surprised and ashamed. It was Diogenes, the same beautiful man. Alexander tried to hide his shame. He said, “So again, again we are meeting, the emperor and the beggar.” And Diogenes said, “That is true. But you misunderstand one thing: you don’t know who is the beggar and who is the emperor. You are the beggar, I am the emperor, because I lived my life totally, I enjoyed it. “And I can go to God, I can face him. You will not be able to face him, because I can see: you cannot even face me! You are trembling, you are ashamed. You cannot look into my eyes - what will happen to you when you have to face God? Your whole life has been a wastage.”
A beautiful story indeed.
certified yapper im not reading allat
He really gave them a dressing down, and rightly so by the sounds of it. I am not surprised he was able to deliver a speach of that magnitude, not only did he receive the monicker of "Great" and the respect of legions of men who followed and fought for him across the known world, but i think his father Phillip was an amazing man too. Thank you for bringing history to light. Not just history but values and virtues and heroism that seems long forgotten in modern times. I love your format it really makes my heart happy to hear their words thousands of years after they were spoken. Truly something else, thankyou. ❤
My favorite one so far! Cannot get enough Alexander content🏛❤️
Completely agree!
I've read and listened to the audiobook "The Anabasis of Alexander" easily 20+ times. It was written around 130AD by Arrian. It's the oldest surviving accoung of Alexanders Campaign. While it's not contemporaneous Arrian did use many contemporaneous accounts for his Anabasis. He basically picked and chose what he liked best from probably a dozen different accounts of Alexander. All of which are now lost to history. Some parts have been proven impossible and wrong so it can't be all accepted as fact however much of it is likely true. It's a lovely read and probably my favorite ancient histories. I recommend it to anyone that's interested in Alexander.
Well said. Reading about Alexander of Macedon is essentially reading a novel; a highly-fictionalized version of real events and people. The so-called Romance of Alexander was well-established in Roman times and that is where much of the information comes from. They put together pieces (copies of copies of copies) and created their own narrative. One can learn about him, but it's like the "based on a true story' movies in Hollywood.
I love this style of videos you've been doing! Including Socrates'Trial, of course
Thank you friend!
There's nothing like a healthy rebuke followed by forgiveness. 💚
This is phenomenal. Thank you so much.
Hail to the Divine Alexander the Great!
So glad I found this channel
Thankyou soooooo much!!!!!
Fortune favors the Bold! Alexander the Great
It’s really incredible what you can accomplish when you actually truly believe to be a demigod.
Just found this channel. How excellent!
Very interesting, thought provoking and entertaining. Many thanks.
Awesome job as always. I look forward to more on your yt career/hobby
A modern translation:
"When we found you, you were naked, in the rain. Crying! Poking a can with a stick."
Bro after this speech even I feel like a piece of crap for not giving it my all for Alexander 😂
The Netflix series brought me here. His belief in himself bolstered by oracles made him feeling invincible. His belief made him conquer fear. The same attitude can help you to be greater than your past yourself. The future is for you to conquer
Fantastic
Great work! Nice narrative!
Thank you kindly!
I love history,thank you
I appreciate the extra context around the speech, but EpicTV's oration of the same (The Greatest Speech in History; Alexander the Great - The Opis Mutiny) is much more powerful, delivery-wise.
I love this Channel
OMG I cant believe you actually did, you’re awesome
Thank you brother! That makes two of us.
I love this modernized take you do, it does give it a fresh approach. Ionia and Phrygia reminded me of major scale modes.
That's cuz they were derived from those cultures! :D
You left out the oath of alexander:
“Now that the wars are coming to an end, I wish you to prosper in peace. May all mortals from now on live like one people in concord and for mutual advancement. Consider the world as your country, with laws common to all and where the best will govern irrespective of tribe. I do not distinguish among men, as the narrow-minded do, both among Greeks and Barbarians. I am not interested in the descendance of the citizens or their origins. I classify them using one criterion: their virtue. For me every virtuous foreigner is a Greek and every evil Greek worse than a Barbarian. If differences ever develop between you never have recourse to arms, but solve them peacefully. If necessary, I should be your arbitrator. You must not consider your God like an autocratic despot, but as a common Father of all; so your behavior may resemble the life siblings have in a family. On my part I should consider all equals, and wish you all to be not only subjects of the Commonwealth, but participants and partners. As much as this depends on me, I should try to bring about what I promised. The oath we made over tonight’s libations hold onto as a Contract of kinship."
(Attested by Arrian, Eratosthenes(?) and Plutarch)
We were debating whether to include the oath but decided against it as it's not quoted in The Anabasis - only that he prayed for harmony. I looked around but couldn't find the original source, either, and I'm not entirely sure if he ever said it. Admittedly, I haven't done a ton of research into the oath, so I might be wrong here.
@@TheLegendaryLore Xenophon is a good writer, but honestly having read his works on Socrates, I'm not so sure one should put his eggs in one basket concerning his historiography
I can tell you're working on speaking more slowly, and I want to commend you on that -- this sounds much better to me than your trial of socrates video. I'm no expert at public speaking, but I know the best speakers are comfortable with and even leverage pauses, silence, and slow speech. I'd encourage you to listen to the other Opis speech on RUclips (you may have already). I think it's a cool opportunity to be able to listen to that and then yours to experience the difference in pacing, diction, and tone. What a time to be alive haha
Keep going, I really like what you're doing :)
Thank you for noticing and for the feedback, brother!
From Arrian's "Anabasis of Alexander" here is the transcript:
“It is not to put an end to your passion for home, Macedonians, that I shall deliver this speech, for you may depart wherever you wish for all I care, but to make you understand your own character and our and the way you have behaved to us, at the timey you leave. First of all, I shall begin my speech with Philip, my father, as is only fair. Philip took you over when you were helpless vagabonds, mostly clothed in skins, feeding few animals on the mountains and engaged in their defence in unsuccessful fighting with the Illyrians, Triballians and the neighbouring Thracians. He gave you cloaks to wear instead skins; he brought you down from the mountains to the plains; he made you a match in battle for the barbarians on your borders, so that you no longer trusted for your safety to the strength of your positions so much as to your natural courage. He made you city dwellers and stablished the other that comes from good laws and customs. It was due him that you became masters and not slaves and subjects of those very barbarians who used previously plunder your possessions and carry off your persons. He annexed the greater part of Thrace to Macedonia and, by capturing the best placed positions by the sea, he opened up the country to trade; he enabled you to work the mines in safety; he made you rulers of the Thessalians, who in the old days made you dead with terror; he humbled the Phocian people and give you access in to Greece that was broad and easy instead of being narrow and hard. The Athenians and Thebans were always lying in wait to attack Macedonia; Philip reduced them so low, at that time when we were actually sharing in his exertions, that instead of our paying tribute to the Athenians and taking orders from the Thebans it was we in our turn who gave them security. He entered the Peloponnese and there too settled affairs, and his recognition as leader with full powers over the hole of the rest of Greece in the expedition against the Persians did not perhaps confer more glory on himself than on the commonwealth of the Macedonians.
These services which my father rendered you, great as they are when considered by themselves alone, are actually small in comparison with our own. Inheriting from my father only a few gold and silver cups and not so much as sixty Talents in the treasury with debts Philip had contracted of about five hundred Talents, I myself borrowed another eight hundred in addition and, setting out from the land from which you did not get a fair subsistence yourselves. I at once opened up for you the Hellespontine straits, although at that time the Persians controlled the sea, and after my cavalry victory over the satraps of Darius I added Ionia to your empire and all Aeolis, both Phrygias and Lydia; I captured Miletus by siege, and gave you the enjoyment of all the other countries that voluntary surrendered to my power.
All the benefits from Egypt and Cyrene, which I own without a blow, go to you: “hollow” Syria, Palestine, Mesopotamia, are your possessions; Babylon, Bactria, Susa are yours, and yours are the wealth of the Lydians, the treasures of the Persians, the bounty of India and the outer sea. It is you who are satraps, generals and taxiarchs. If you consider me, what is there still in my possession after these exertions but this purple and diadem? I have acquired nothing for myself; no one can point to treasures of mine, but only to your possessions or what is kept in trust for you, for I have nothing to gain by keeping them for my own use; I eat the same food you do, I sleep as you do, except that my food is not I think, as luxurious as some of you consume, and that on your behalf I am wakeful, so that you may be able to slumber soundly.
But you may say, the exertions and hardships were yours and all these acquisitions were mine, while I direct you without any personal exertion or hardship! Yet which of you is conscious that he exerted himself more in my behalf than I in his? Come then, let any of you strip and display his own wounds, and I will display mine in turn; in my case there is no part of the body, or none in the front, that has been left unwounded, and there is no weapon of close combat, no missile whose scars I do not bear on my person, but I have been wounded by the sword hand to hand, shot by arrows and struck by a catapult, and I am often struck by stones and clubs for your interest, your glory and your riches, while I lead you as conquerors though every land and sea, river, mountain and plain. I have made the same marriages as you, and many of your children will be kin of mine. Furthermore, if you contracted debts, I did not make it my business to discover why, despite the enormous sums you gained by pay and plunder, wherever a besieged place was plundered, but I discharged them all.
Most of you have gold crowns as memorials of your own courage, but also of the honour that I have accorded you, and that will last all the time. Indeed, when a man died, glory came to him by his death, splendour in his funeral, and brazen images have been erected for most of them at home, while his parents enjoy the honour of being freed from every public duty and tax; of course not a man died in flight under my command.
And now it was my intention to send away only men unfit for war, to be envy of those at home but, as you all desire to go, let all of you begone, return to your homes and report that your king Alexander, defeated the Persians, Medes, Bactrians, Sacae, subdued Uxians, Arachotians, Drangians, conquered Phartyaeans, Chorasimians, Hyrcanians as far the Caspian sea, went over the Caucasus beyond the Caspian gates, crossed the river Oxus and the Tanais, and even the river Indus which no one but Dionysus had crossed before, and the Hydaspes and Acesines and Hydraontes, and would have crossed the Hyphasis as well but for your apprehensions, and that he burst out on the great sea by both mouths of the Indus, and came through the Gadrosian desert, where no one had ever gone without army and acquired Carminia and the land of the Orintans as he passed through, while the fleet had already sailed along the coast from India to Persia, and that when you returned to Susa you deserted him and went off, handing him over to the protection of the barbarians he had conquered. This is a report that will perhaps win you a fine reputation with men and will doubtless be holy in the sight of heaven. Begone!!!
Bro if alexander delivered this speech with the same enthusiasm as you id have left for sure
Keep to his true words.
By this point in his career, there is more than a touch of the megalomaniac crossed with a petulant child with Alexander. His men who had followed him to the ends of the earth, were pissed off with him. And I don’t blame them.
Brilliant video! Really interesting and helpful. I would ask, however, that you reconsider how you’re using modern, very colloquial language like you guys, heck, etc. It doesn’t sound suitable to the situation, whether ancient or modern. That being said, I love the videos you’ve done so far.
MAXIMUM RESPECT FROM ATHENS 🇬🇷
Excellent 👍 Work 💯,...now were the Madenonians HELLENIC or the ☝️ MAKEDONIAN,...
AND WHAT LANGUISH,...WAS spoken be the GREATEST ALEΞANDER,....!!!
AM A BIT CONFUSED WITHIN 😅,.....LOVE TO LEARN ❤??
SO ANY OF YOU CAN YOU DELIVER..
Well, Athenian Greeks lost the hegemony of Greece to the Macedonian Greeks, so therein lies your answer
Today this would've been called gaslighting.
Minor correction, he gathered all kinds of greeks not just Macedonians. This is inaccurate
I enjoy history but I'm not a history buff, what exactly does kiss mean in this context
I don't know for sure, but I'm assuming it was a gesture of trust and kinship, kind of like how cheek-kissing is a friendly gesture in some Southern European countries today.
2:30
8 days ago that’s some weird timing lol
If Dinoneges of Athens was there , he be like shut up you crying boy, how much you want to fill your GREED BOY, And walked off drinking wine, laughing
Haha, very true 😄
His tomb is in greece, and Not in Alexandria.
no isn't
Ptolemy Soter captured Alexander's body where it was entombed and became the cult center of the worship of the Divine Alexander the Great (and later the Ptolemies as well)
I wonder if this is AI picture?
The epic history one is better
They had guns back then ? Nice learn something new everyday
Is this a robot READING the speech? It's so insipid! Where is the oratory and fire one would expect from the Great A? Please, somebody with stage and screen background give a proper rendition, something in the style of Charlton Heston's eulogy at the funeral of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.
4.02 Palestine ! WTF 😂
The region has been referred to by that name since at least 1000 years before Alexander 🙂
Nice!
Thank you!