[Reader-list] Saving 'Buddha' of SWAT

Pawan Durani pawan.durani at gmail.com
Tue Feb 3 10:23:19 IST 2009


[ Note : *Taliban under Fazlullah, have already blew up 1300 year old
carving of a seated Buddha cut into a 45 metre high rock face, one of Swat's
top tourist attraction.* ]

Swat has been inhabited for over two thousand years and was known in ancient
times as Udyana. The first inhabitants were settled in well-planned towns.
The independent monarchs of this region came under Achaemenid influence,
before reverting back to local control in the 4th century BC. In 327 BC,
Alexander the Great fought his way to Udegram and Barikot. In Greek accounts
these towns have been identified as Ora and Bazira. By 305 BC, the region
became a part of the Mauryan Empire. Around the 2nd century BC, the area was
occupied by Buddhists, the Indo-Greeks, and the Kushans who were attracted
by the peace and serenity of the land. Swat is thought to be the probable
birthplace of Vajrayana Buddhism. There are many archaeological sites in the
district, and Buddhist relics are common, testimony to their skills as
sculptors and architects.

The Swat museum has the footprints of the Buddha, which were found in the
Swat valley and can now be seen in the Swat museum. When the Buddha died,
His relics (or ashes) were distributed to seven kings, who built stupas over
them for veneration..

The Harmarajika stupa (Taxila) and Butkarha (Swat) stupa at Jamal Garha were
among the earliest stupas of Gandhara. These had been erected on the orders
of king Ashoka and contained the real relics of the Buddha.

The Gandhara school is probably credited with the first representation of
the Buddha in human form, the portrayal of Buddha in his human shape, rather
than shown as a symbol.

As Buddhist art developed and spread outside India, the styles developed
here were imitated. For example, in China the Gandhara style was imitated in
images made of bronze, with a gradual change in the features of these
images. Swat, the land of romance and beauty, is celebrated throughout the
world as the holy land of Buddhist learning and piety. Swat acquired fame as
a place of Buddhist pilgrimage. Buddhist tradition holds that the Buddha
himself came to Swat during his last reincarnation as the Guatama Buddha and
preached to the people here.

It is said that the Swat was filled with fourteen hundred imposing and
beautiful stupas and monasteries, which housed as many as 6,000 gold images
of the Buddhist pantheon for worship and education. There are now more than
400 Buddhist sites covering and area of 160 km in Swat valley only. Among
the important Buddhist excavation in Swat an important one is Butkarha-I,
containing the original relics of the Buddha

Now Swat is under Talibanic forces, all these heritage are sure to become
their target, as they are short sighted, fanatics of Islam. USA must help
Pakistan at this stage to save Swat in NWFP, which is much inside Pakistan
and nowhere near Afghan border, from going to Taliban and Pakistan
government should be pressurised by India, USA and other democratic country
from world over to save these heritage at ANY cost.

I do not know if India's weak foreign policy will be able to execute the
required pressure.


Note: After I have posted this three days ago, the Taliban under Fazlullah,
have already blew up 1300 year old carving of a seated Buddha cut into a 45
metre high rock face, one of Swat's top tourist attraction.

Some Pictures of SWAT Buddha

http://www.flickr.com/photos/imranthetrekker/1886008018/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/imranthetrekker/1886008018/page2/

Note : The write up belongs to a Pakistani and i have received it from a
mail. Somehow I missed the link


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