Eight books on the life of the miracle-working sage Apollonius of Tyana, who travelled the world from Spain to India teaching philosophy. Part biography, part novel, part philosophical romance.
Start ReadingApollonius of Tyana is born amid portents and raised as a Pythagorean sage, beginning a life of wandering, wonder-working, and philosophical teaching across the known world.
Apollonius travels to Babylon and India, seeking the wisdom of Brahmins and magi in a journey that parallels and rivals the travels of the apostles.
In India, Apollonius encounters the Brahmins on their hill, learning their philosophy and witnessing marvels that challenge Greek assumptions about wisdom.
Apollonius returns to the Greek world and begins his public career of moral reform, challenging tyrants and exposing false philosophers.
The sage travels through the Greek mainland, performing miracles and dispensing philosophical wisdom that draws both devotees and sceptics.
Apollonius confronts the Emperor Nero's tyranny, standing as a philosophical witness against imperial excess and cruelty.
The sage's journey to Ethiopia and his encounter with the gymnosophists — the naked philosophers of the Upper Nile — who rival the Indian Brahmins in wisdom.
Apollonius stands trial before Domitian, delivers a fearless defence of philosophical freedom, and vanishes from the courtroom — his final triumph over tyranny.