Gandhara

Gandhara is located in Pakistan
Gandhara
Location of Gandhara shown within the map of Pakistan.
Gandhara art at Tokyo Museum.

Gandhara was an ancient civilization in northwest Pakistan. The main part of Gandhara was in Peshawar and Swat valleys. But the cultural impact of "Greater Gandhara" went beyond the Indus river to Taxila in Potohar Plateau and to the west in the Jalalabad valley in Afghanistan and Central Asia.[1]

Fasting Buddha, one of the masterpieces of Gandhara in Lahore Museum, Pakistan.
Takht-i-Bahi monastery is one of the best preserved Gandhara site.

Gandhara had a significant impact on the development of Tibetan and Han Buddhism, playing a important role in spreading Buddhism to China, Korea, and Japan.[2][3][4]

In the Iron Age, Gandhara became a major power around 550 BCE under King Pushkarasarin. It was later conquered by Cyrus I and Alexander the Great. Gandhara went through different rulers, including the Maurya Empire and the Indo-Greek Kingdom. It thrived as a center for Greco-Buddhism which later formed Gandharan Buddhism, influencing regions like Central Asia and East Asia.[5][6]

Gandhara Media

References

  1. "Gandhara | Buddhist Art, Greco-Buddhist, Taxila | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2023-11-23. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
  2. Khaliq, Fazal (2023-12-18). "Discovery of pre-Buddhist monument sheds new light on Swat's history". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
  3. Ali, Kalbe (2023-07-11). "Monks, scholars reach Islamabad to attend Gandhara symposium". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
  4. "Buddhist Channel | Pakistan". buddhistchannel.tv. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
  5. Eggermont, Pierre Herman Leonard (1975). Alexander's Campaigns in Sind and Baluchistan and the Siege of the Brahmin Town of Harmatelia. Peeters Publishers. ISBN 978-90-6186-037-2.
  6. "University of Washington Press". University of Washington Press. Retrieved 2023-12-20.