The Enduring Faith: Buddhism's Presence In Afghanistan

Buddhism was once a major religion in Afghanistan, but it has declined over the centuries. It was introduced to the region in 305 BCE when the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire formed an alliance with the South Asian Maurya Empire. Various schools of Buddhism were present in Afghanistan, particularly in the kingdoms of Gandhara and Bactria, which lay on the trade route to Central Asia. The religion began to decline after the Arab conquest and the rise of Islam in the 7th century CE, and it was eliminated in Afghanistan by the 13th century during the Mongol conquests. Today, there is little evidence of a Buddhist presence in the country, although some historical landmarks, such as the Bamiyan stupas, serve as reminders of Afghanistan's rich religious history.

Buddhism was introduced to Afghanistan in 305 BCE

Various schools of Buddhism were present in Afghanistan from the earliest times, along the kingdoms that lay on the trade route to Central Asia. The main kingdoms were Gandhara and Bactria. Tapassu and Bhallika, two merchant brothers from Bactria, became the first disciples to receive layman's vows. Bhallika later became a monk and built a monastery near his home city, Balkh, near present-day Mazar-e-Sharif.

The Nava Vihara monastery, located near the ancient city of Balkh in northern Afghanistan, became the centre of Buddhist activity in Central Asia for centuries. The religion began to decline in Afghanistan after the 7th-century CE conquest by Arab Muslims and the rise of Islam. Buddhism was eliminated in Afghanistan by the 13th century during the Mongol conquests, with no further mention of a Buddhist presence in the area past the 14th century.

The Nava Vihara monastery was a centre of Buddhist study

Nava Vihara was the main monastery at Balkh and became the centre of higher Buddhist study for all of Central Asia. The monastery emphasised the study of the Vaibhashika abhidharma and only admitted monks who had already composed texts on the topic. The Nava Vihara monastery also housed a tooth relic of Gautama Buddha, making it one of the main centres of Buddhist pilgrimage along the Silk Road from China to India.

The Han Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang visited the Western Turks in approximately 630 on his way to India. He reported that Buddhism was flourishing in the Bactrian portion of their empire, especially at Nava Vihara Monastery in Balkh. He cited the monastic university not only for its scholarship but also for its beautiful Buddha statues, draped with silk robes and adorned with jewel ornaments, in accordance with local Zoroastrian custom.

Xuanzang also described a monastery near Nava Vihara dedicated to advanced Hinayana meditation practice, or vipassana – the exceptional perception of impermanence and of a person’s lack of independent identity. The monk also reported that there were about a hundred viharas and 30,000 monks in Balkh at the time of his visit, as well as a large number of stupas and other religious monuments.

Nava Vihara hosted the relics the Buddha gifted to Trapusa and Bhallika, from Balkh, his first two disciples, after they received his teaching. Buddhist pilgrims descended on the holy site to view those gifts and to receive blessings from an additional potent relic: the Buddha’s skull, which was housed and guarded in the monastery after the Buddha’s physical departure from earth.

The Nava Vihara monastery and nearby shrines were, for many centuries, the hotbed of esoteric Sufi-Buddhist-Zoroastrian teachings. These doctrines lived side by side, and no Buddhist was allowed entry unless they had first written a paper on Buddhism. The monastery was also built on an old fire temple of the Zoroastrians.

The word "Navbehar" (or its variants) appears in several locations in present-day Iran, a sign of the extent of Buddhist impact in ancient times.

The Bamiyan Buddhas were destroyed by the Taliban

The Bamiyan Buddhas were two monumental Buddha statues, standing 55 metres and 37 metres high, that were carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan. They were built in the 6th century and were a reminder of Afghanistan's rich history, culture, and religious diversity.

In March 2001, the Taliban, an Islamic fundamentalist group, destroyed the Buddhas of Bamiyan. The Taliban declared the statues to be idolatrous and un-Islamic, and used heavy explosives to blow them up. This act of destruction was widely condemned by the international community and was seen as a symbol of the Taliban's depravity and brutality.

The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas was not an isolated incident. The Taliban has a history of assaulting Afghanistan's pre-Islamic heritage and targeting the Hazara people, who regard Bamiyan as their homeland. The Taliban's assault on Buddhist heritage in Afghanistan includes looting archaeological treasures, excavating and looting ancient sites, and destroying monasteries and chapels. The group has also been implicated in the massacre of thousands of Hazaras during their rule from 1996 to 2001.

The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas represented an important turning point for the international community, highlighting the need to protect cultural heritage at risk. Since the destruction, the Afghan authorities and the international community, including UNESCO, have worked to safeguard Afghanistan's cultural and natural heritage.

Buddhism was eliminated in Afghanistan by the 13th century

Buddhism first arrived in modern-day Afghanistan through the conquests of Ashoka, the third emperor of the Maurya Empire, between 268-232 BCE. During this time, many prominent Buddhist monks were based in Afghanistan, and the Nava Vihara monasteries, located near the ancient city of Balkh, functioned as the centre of Buddhist activity in Central Asia.

However, the religion began to wane in Afghanistan after the rise of Islam in the 7th century CE, with the invading Muslim Arabs introducing Islam to a Zunbil king in Helmand Province in 653-4 AD. The Arabs then proceeded to Ghazni and Kabul to convert or conquer the Buddhist Shahi rulers. While it is unknown how many accepted the new religion, the Shahi rulers remained non-Muslim until they lost Kabul in 870 AD to the Saffarid Muslims.

The Samanids from Bukhara in the north further extended their Islamic influence into the area, and by the 11th century, when the Ghaznavids were in power, the entire population of Afghanistan was practising Islam, except for the Kafiristan region (Nuristan Province), which became Muslim in the late 1800s.

During this period of Islamic expansion, Buddhism in Afghanistan suffered several blows, including the destruction of monasteries and the killing of monks by the White Huns in the 5th century, and the plundering of monasteries and sending of Buddha statues as war trophies to the caliph by the Saffarids in the 9th century.

By the 13th century, with the Mongol conquests, Buddhism was eliminated in Afghanistan, with no further mention of a Buddhist presence in the area past the 14th century.

The religion was introduced by the conquests of Ashoka

Buddhism was introduced to Afghanistan through the conquests of Ashoka, the third emperor of the Maurya Empire, who ruled from 268 BCE to 232 BCE. Ashoka's empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, stretching from present-day Afghanistan in the west to Bangladesh in the east.

Ashoka's conquest of Kalinga, a coastal kingdom in east-central India, left him with a domain larger than any of his predecessors. The victory came at a great human cost, with accounts claiming between 100,000 and 300,000 lives lost. This toll took a tremendous emotional toll on Ashoka, leading him to renounce military conquest and embrace Buddhism.

Ashoka's edicts, carved into stones and pillars located at pilgrimage sites and along busy trade routes, promoted messages of tolerance and non-violence. These edicts, written in local dialects, were among the first examples of writing in Indian history. One such edict, found near modern-day Kandahar in Afghanistan, is written in Greek and Aramaic.

Through his edicts, Ashoka shared his new outlook on life, which emphasised generosity, piety, justice, and mercy. He built stupas, monasteries, and other religious structures at noteworthy Buddhist sites. He also sent emissaries to several countries, including Syria and Greece, and sent his children as missionaries to Sri Lanka.

Ashoka's patronage helped Buddhism spread across ancient Asia. The religion first arrived in modern-day Afghanistan through his conquests, with the earliest notable sites of Buddhist influence dating back to 260 BCE. Many prominent Buddhist monks were based in Afghanistan during this period, and the Nava Vihara monasteries in Balkh served as the centre of Buddhist activity in Central Asia for centuries.

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