Ancient statue of Buddha destroyed as un-Islamic
The destruction was taped. According to Abdus Samad Khan, head of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s archaeological department, the vandalised Buddha statue was 1,700 years old. Its broken pieces were recovered to be assessed for their archaeological value.
Mardan (AsiaNews) – Last Friday, an ancient statue of Buddha was vandalised in Takht Bahi, Mardan district (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa).
The statue was destroyed as “un-Islamic” by the workers who found it (pictured) whilst digging to lay the foundations of a house.
The ancient artefact belongs to the historic Gandhara civilisation which encompassed the region of modern-day north-western Pakistan, more or less Peshawar valley and the lower valleys of the Kabul and Swat rivers.
Gandhara is the old name for the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is highly revered by Buddhists and is deemed an important regional site of Buddhist civilisation.
On Saturday, videos of the destruction went viral on social media. They show a man breaking the statue with a big hammer, with other men expressing their approval and some taping the whole thing.
Pakistani media have reported that four people involved in the incident were arrested.
In 2017, two rare and ancient Buddha statues were found in Bhamala, an archaeological site in Hariput district. The largest statue ever found on the site depicts Buddha’s death whilst the second statue was a Buddha with a double halo.
According to Abdus Samad Khan, head of the province’s archaeology department, the vandalised Buddha statue was 1,700 years old; the broken pieces were recovered to assess their archaeological value.
Following the incident, various news channels and social media discussed the protection of others' beliefs in the country.
Whilst the Pakistani constitution respects all religions and all faiths are sacred for their followers, many activists and leaders have come out against the destruction of the statue of Buddha. For Samad Khan, it was a "crime" and showed "disrespect for religion".
Later, police arrested a local contractor and five other people suspected of breaking antiquity regulations.
Two rare and ancient Buddha statues were unearthed in Hariput district in 2017, noted Mansha Noor, executive secretary of Caritas Pakistan in Karachi,
“Breaking this ancient statue of lord Buddha shows ignorance of history and a lack of education,” Mansha said. “Our country is filled with minerals and hidden history. We need to educate our nation about other owners of this land.”
In ancient times, Gandhara was a trading and cultural crossroads linking India, Central Asia and the Middle East.
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