already widely considered as a deity by that time, and probably as early as the 4th century according to literary evidence. In the Heliodorus pillar, Vāsudeva-Krishna was worshipped as the "God of Gods", the Supreme Deity. At one point Vāsudeva-Krishna came to be associated to the God Narayana-Vishnu. Epigraphically, this association is confirmed by the Hathibada Ghosundi Inscriptions of the 1st century BCE. It is thought that "by the beginning of the Christian era, the cult of Vasudeva, Vishnu and Narayana amalgamated". As a third step, Vāsudeva-Krishna was incorporated into the Chatur-vyūha concept of successive emanations of the God Vishnu. By the 2nd century CE, the "avatara concept was in its infancy", and the depiction of Vishnu with his four emanations (the Chatur-vyūha) starts to become visible in art at the end of the Kushan period. Based on Helliodorus pillar evidence it has been suggested that Heliodorus is one of the earliest Westerners on record to convert to Vaishnavism whose evidence has survived. But some scholars, most notably A. L. Basham and Thomas Hopkins, are of the opinion that Heliodorus was not the earliest Greek to convert to Bhagavata Krishnaism. Hopkins, chairman of the department of religious studies at Franklin and Marshall College, has said, "Heliodorus was presumably not the earliest Greek who was converted to Vaishnava devotional practices although he might have been the one to erect a column that is still extant. Certainly there were numerous others including the king who sent him as an ambassador." Professor Kunja Govinda Goswami of Calcutta University concludes that Heliodorus "was well acquainted with the texts dealing with the Bhagavata religion." Alternatively, the dedication made by Heliodorus to Vāsudeva as supreme deity may simply have been a diplomatic gesture. This may also have been an instance of a typically Greek religious practice: according to Harry Falk, it was a logical and normal practice for Greeks to make dedications to foreign gods, as they were just interested in appropriating their power, and this natural Greek behaviour cannot be construed as a "conversion to Hinduism". Alternative interpretation According to Allan Dahlquist, an alternative interpretation of the inscription is possible. Shakyamuni Buddha too was called a Bhagavan, and Heliodorus originated from Taxila where Buddhism was strong. At the time of Dahlquist's 1962 publication, he stated there was no proof that a sect of Vishnu-Krishna devotees existed at that time in Taxila. Lastly, according to Dahlquist,