Gordian Knot

Mercury · Newbie

In 333 BC King Alexander the Great was pursuing his conquest of Asia. With the coastal regions (of now modern Turkey) subdued he turned inland towards the central plateau and the strategic town of Gordius en route to his eventual final conflict with Darius and the Persian empire.

Alexander needed to decide whether to retreat to secure his home base or to go forward and take on the entire Persian Empire, stretching from the Red Sea to the Caspian, from the Hellespont to beyond the Hindu Kush. He needed an omen as a positive sign for his superstitious troops.

Gordius was a key road junction in central Anatolia (modern Turkey) but was also the location of the famous Gordian Knot. The town had taken its name from a legendary Macedonian, Gordius (believed to be the father of Midas) who, 100 years before, had arrived with his wife in Phrygia in an ox cart. An oracle had informed the populace that their future king would come into town riding in a wagon. Seeing Gordius, therefore, the people made him king.

In gratitude, Gordius dedicated his ox cart to Zeus and placed it in the centre of the Zeus Basileus, mounted on top of a hill. There the cart was yoked to a pole with a highly intricate knot - the Gordian knot - a knot of extraordinary complexity, constructed of cords made of the rind of the cornel-tree, and with invisible ends. An oracle had foretold that whoever untied the knot would become Lord of all Asia. It was considered most unlucky for any visitor not to fulfil their duty to attend the Zeus Basileus and attempt to solve the problem of loosing the Gordian Knot.

Alexander climbed the hill to the cart where he was surrounded by a throng of Phrygians (anxious with expectation) and Macedonians (alarmed because of the king's rash self-confidence). The series of thongs was so closely bound together that where a hidden interlacing began or where it ended simply could not be determined. The king's attempt to undo the tangle made his companions apprehensive lest a failure should be regarded as a bad omen foretelling future failure of his desire to conquer the known world.
After having struggled without effect against the hidden knots, and receiving no guidance from his seer Aristander, Alexander exclaimed "It makes no difference how they are loosed" and with a single powerful stroke cut through all the thongs with his sword. Irrespective of whether he tricked the oracle or fulfilled it he achieved his objective.