Pakistan's Buddhist Heritage

Here at last is a glimpse into what is happening with the Buddhist art and archaeological sites of Pakistan's Swat Valley. Adnan R. Khan writes for Maclean's (Canada) that some of the Buddhist heritage of Pakistan remains intact, in spite of the Taliban's determination to destroy it.

In brief, centuries ago, an area in what is now northern Pakistan and Afghanistan was a Buddhist kingdom called Gandhara. In its day Gandhara was a great center of Buddhist civilization, respected for its art and scholarship. This art includes the earliest depictions of the Buddha in human form, the first oil paintings, and the recently destroyed giant standing Buddhas of Bamiyan, Afghanistan.

The area of Pakistan now called the Swat Valley once was home to many Buddhist monasteries and stupas. After the arrival of Islam in the 7th century, for the most part Buddhism and Islam peacefully co-existed there until Buddhism faded away, sometime after the 12th century.

Since then, most of the Muslim people of Swat respected the Buddhist art and historic sites left behind as part of their history. In the 20th century the art and ruins became tourist attractions. Some of the ruins are recognized by the United Nations as World Heritage Sites.

In recent years the Buddhist heritage has been threatened by the Taliban, which in the recent past has occupied large parts of the Swat Valley. Adnan Khan writes that some sites remain as they were, and the Buddhist art museum outside Mingora has been protected. Many historic sites are still in danger, however, and Pakistani officials don't yet know what might have happened to several of them.

Photo: Public domain, Wikipedia Commons