Hindu and Buddhist heritage of Afghanistan

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7th century statue of Hindu God Surya statue from Khair Khaneh
excavated Buddhist stupa at Mes Aynak in Logar Province. Similar stupas have been discovered in neighboring Ghazni Province, including in the northern Samangan Province
.
Taller, 55 meter Buddha in 1963 and in 2008 after destruction
Smaller, 38 meter Buddha, before and after destruction.
Part of a series on the
History of Afghanistan
Timeline
Hephthalite Empire
 410–557
Nezak Huns 484–711
Medieval
Kabul Shahi 565–879
Principality of Chaghaniyan 7th–8th centuries
Rashidun Caliphate 652–661
Tang China 660–669
Tibetan Empire 660–842
Umayyads 661–750
Zunbils 680–870
Lawik750-977
Abbasids 750–821
Tahirids 821–873
Saffarids 863–900
Samanids 875–999
Ghaznavids 963–1187
Ghurids before 879–1215
Seljuks 1037–1194
Khwarezmids 1215–1231
Mongol Invasion 1219–1226
Chagatai Khanate 1226–1245
Qarlughids 1224–1266
Ilkhanate 1256–1335
Kartids 1245–1381
Timurids 1370–1507
Arghuns 1520–1591
Modern
Tanai coup attempt
 1990
Islamic State 1992–1996
Islamic Emirate 1996–2001
US invasion 2001
Islamic State (reinstated) 2001
Interim/Transitional Administration 2001–2004
Islamic Republic (politics) 2004–2021
Islamic Emirate (reinstated) since 2021
Related historical regions
Related topics

Communities of various religious and ethnic backgrounds have lived in the land of what is now

Hephthalites during these visits. It is reported that the Hephthalites were fervent followers of the Hindu god Surya.[2]

The invading Muslim Arabs introduced

Samanids from Bukhara in the north extended their Islamic influence into the area. It is reported that Muslims and non-Muslims still lived side by side in Kabul before the arrival of Ghaznavids from Ghazni.

"Kábul has a castle celebrated for its strength, accessible only by one road. In it there are Musulmáns, and it has a town, in which are infidels from Hind."[3]

— Istakhri
, 921 AD

The first mention of a Hindu in Afghanistan appears in the 982 AD

geographical term to describe someone who was native to the region known as India, and Afghan as someone who was native to a region called Bactria
.

Archeology

Location Artifacts found Other information
Hindu temple at Khair Khaneh in Kabul. Marble statues of Surya, the Hindu god of sun.[5]
Gardez Statues of Durga Mahishasuramardini.[5] They show Hindu Goddess Durga, the consort of Shiva, slaying buffalo demon Mahishasura.
Hindu Temple at Chaghan Saray in the Kunar Valley in eastern Afghanistan.[5] Temple complex
Tapa Skandar 31 km north of Kabul.[5] Remains of settlement dating to the second half of the first millennium AD. Marble statue of Shiva and his wife Parvati.[5]
Tapa Sadr near Ghazni.[5] Statue of the Parinivana Buddha (Buddha lying down at the end of his cycle of rebirths).[5] 8th century AD
Gardez
Hindu Shahis who occupied the Kabul Valley.[5]
 8th century AD
Nava Vihara Balkh
Airtam Near Termez A stone slab with a Bactrian inscription and a carved image of Shiva.[6]
Tepe Sardar, Ghazni Large Buddhist monastery complex[7] The main
Buddha, included one seated and of the Buddha in Nirvana. In one shrine which is in the Hindu style a clay sculpture of Durga slaying a buffalo-demon was found.[7]
Homay Qala in Ghazni Buddhist Cave Complex at Homay Qalay.[8]
Tepe Sardar Ghazni Durga clay - 10th Century.[9] 10th Century AD.[9] The cult of Durga was popularised during the Shahi period as several images of this deity are found in Afghanistan.[10]
Various Coins of the Shahi rulers of
Panjab and Afghanistan have been found.[11]
 650-1000 AD[12]
These coins were issued from at least eight mint towns, which suggests a wider range for their circulation[11]
Buddhas of Bamiyan Bamyan Province
Hazarajat region 		Believed to be built in 507 AD, the larger in 554 AD. Destroyed in 2001 by the Taliban.
Khair Khana Kabul[11] Hindu Temple,[11] two marble statues of Shiva[11]
Basawal Basawal is the site of a Buddhist cave temple complex in eastern Afghanistan. The caves, 150 in all, are partly hewn out in two rows and arranged in seven groups, which presumably correspond to the seven monastic institutions of Buddhist times.[13]
Buddhist cave complex at Homay Qala[14]

Table of pre-Islamic dynasties of Afghanistan

Dynasty Period Domain
Hindu Shahis Closing years of the 10th and the early 11th century. Jayapala was defeated by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni.[15] in 1013 Kabul's last Shahi ruler [16]

By the mid ninth century the whole region from the fortress city of Kabul to at least

Ohind) in the East was held by the dynasty called by later writers the Shahis. In addition to the natural products of the Gandhara region, the Shahi kings drew revenue from the constant caravan trade passing through their dominions.[17]

 Gandhara (eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan) was overrun by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni.[15] (Kabul valley)
Zunbils The Zunbils were finally deposed by
Ya'qub Saffari in 870 AD, founder of the Saffarid dynasty in Zaranj.[18][19]
 Zabulistan (southern Afghanistan).[19]

Islamic conquest of Afghanistan

Main article:
Islamic conquest of Afghanistan

The region around

Shahi rulers. However, most historians claim that the rulers of Ghazni and Kabul remained non-Muslim. There is no information on the number of converts, although the Arabs unsuccessfully continued their missions of invading the land to spread Islam for the next 200 or so years. It was in 870 AD when Ya'qub ibn al-Layth al-Saffar
finally conquered Afghanistan by establishing Muslim governors throughout the provinces.

"Arab armies carrying the banner of Islam came out of the west to defeat the

Bamyan, Balkh and Herat, conquering in the name of Islam.".[21]

— Nancy Dupree
, 1971

By the 11th century, when the Ghaznavids were in power, the entire population of Afghanistan was practicing Islam, except the Kafiristan region (Nuristan Province) which became Muslim in the late 1800s.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Chinese Travelers in Afghanistan". Abdul Hai Habibi. alamahabibi.com. 1969. Archived from the original on December 24, 2018. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Amir Kror and His pAncestry". Abdul Hai Habibi. alamahabibi.com. Archived from the original on October 19, 2014. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
  3. ^ "A.—The Hindu Kings of Kábul (p.3)". Sir H. M. Elliot. London: Packard Humanities Institute. 1867–1877. Archived from the original on July 26, 2013. Retrieved September 18, 2010.
  4. ISBN 0-631-19841-5. Archived
    from the original on 2023-02-04. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h The Afghans By Willem Vogelsang Page 184
  6. ^ History of civilizations of Central Asia, Volume 3 By Boris Abramovich Litvinovskiĭ Page 427
  7. ^ a b History of civilizations of Central Asia, Volume 3 By Boris Abramovich Litvinovskiĭ Page 399
  8. ^ "South Asian archaeology 1975: papers from the third International Conference Edited by Johanna Engelberta Lohuizen-De Leeuw Page 121 to 126". Archived from the original on 2023-06-20. Retrieved 2022-08-13.
  9. ^ a b History of Buddhism in Afghanistan By Sī. Esa Upāsaka, Kendrīya-Tibbatī-Ucca-Śikṣā-Saṃsthānam page XX
  10. ^ History of Buddhism in Afghanistan By Sī. Esa Upāsaka, Kendrīya-Tibbatī-Ucca-Śikṣā-Saṃsthānam page 187
  11. ^ a b c d e Early medieval Indian society: a study in feudalisation By R.S. Sharma page 130
  12. ^ Early medieval Indian society: a study in feudalisation By R.S. Sharma Page 130
  13. ^ Encyclopedia Iranica
  14. ISBN 978-90-04-05996-2. Archived
    from the original on 2023-06-20. Retrieved 2022-08-13.
  15. ^ a b The races of Afghanistan Being a brief account of the principal nations inhabiting that country, by Henry Walter Bellow Asian Educational services, Page 73
  16. ^ Pakistan and the emergence of Islamic militancy in Afghanistan By Rizwan Hussain page 17
  17. ^ Encyclopaedia of Historiography By M.M. Rahman
  18. ^ Medieval India Part 1 by Satish Chandra Page 17
  19. ^ a b Excavations at Kandahar 1974 & 1975 (Society for South Asian Studies Monograph) by Anthony McNicoll
  20. ^ André Wink, "Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World", Brill 1990. p 120
  21. ^ Dupree, Nancy (1971) "Sites in Perspective (Chapter 3)" An Historical Guide To Afghanistan Afghan Tourist Organization, Kabul, OCLC 241390 Archived 2009-09-05 at the Wayback Machine

External links

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