Biden keeping U.S. in Afghanistan (video)

Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit; Jimmydorecomedy.com

The Buddha was born and raised in Afghanistan, formerly called Scythia (ranajitpal.com)

Bamiyan, Afghanistan, home of largest Buddhas

Buddhism in ancient Afghanistan (Scythia) was one of the major religious forces in the region during the pre-Islamic era.

Buddhism was widespread south of the Himalayan range, this portion of which is known as the Hindu Kush mountains.

Buddhism first arrived in Afghanistan during the life of the Buddha, seven years after his great awakening (mahabodhi), for he had promised to return to Shakya Land and its three seasonal capitals, one of which was Bamiyan.

1st human version of the Buddha, Gandhara

Ancient Kapilavastu seems to have been Kabul (Kapil), and one can only speculate that the third was in or near Mes Aynak, the largest unexcavated Buddhist monastery in the world.

Officially, in British Jonesian archeology, Buddhism arrived by traveling up the Silk Road in 305 BC, as Buddhism spread from India to Central Asia on its way West. The Greek Seleucid Empire made an alliance with the Indian Maurya Empire.

The resulting Greco-Buddhism (a fusion of East and West) flourished under the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom (250 BC-125 BC) and the later Indo-Greek Kingdom (180 BC-10 AD) in modern northern Pakistan and Afghanistan (called Gandhara in the time of the Buddha).

Greco-Buddhism reached its height under the Kushan Empire, which used the Greek alphabet to write its Bactrian language.

Lokaksema (circa 178 AD), who travelled to the Chinese capital of Luoyang and was the first translator of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese [1], and Mahadharmaraksita who, according to the Mahavamsa (Chp. XXIX [2]), led 30,000 Buddhist monastics from "the Greek city of Alasandra" (Alexandria of the Caucasus, around 150 km north of today's Kabul in Afghanistan), to Sri Lanka for the dedication of the Great Stupa in Anuradhapura.

The Greco-Bactrian King Menander I (known in Pali as "Milinda"), who ruled from 165 BC-135 BC, was a renowned patron of Buddhism immortalized in the Buddhist text The Questions of King Milinda (Milinda Panha).

The famous Persian Buddhist monastery in Balkh in Northern Afghanistan, known as Nava Vihara ("New Monastery"), functioned as the center of Central Asian Buddhist learning for centuries.

Buddhism in Afghanistan started fading with the Muslim conquest in the 7th century but finally ended during the Ghaznavids in the 11th century [3]. More

Invisible History: Afghanistan's Untold Story

Despite official declarations the U.S. War on Afghanistan is far from over. In fact, it’s escalating. Seven years after 9/11, the Taliban continue to regroup, attack, and claim influence over most of the region. This book presents a fresh, comprehensive analysis of Afghanistan’s invisible (hidden) political history, which begins at the roots of tribal leadership and ultimately emphasizes our present political moment and the impact of ongoing U.S. military intervention. Paul Fitzgerald and Elizabeth Gould, a husband and wife team, first went to Afghanistan in 1981 and have reported for CBS News, Nightline, and The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. Their documentary Between Three Worlds was broadcast by PBS. More

• Invisible History of Afghanistan (invisiblehistory.com)
• VIDEO: Fitzgerald and Gould on CSPAN
• Invisible History: Afghanistan's Untold Story (CODEPINK: Women for Peace)

Wiki entry before our editing: Buddhism in Afghanistan was one of the major religious forces in the region during pre-Islamic era. The religion was widespread south of the Hindu Kush mountains. Buddhism first arrived in Afghanistan in 305 BC when the Greek Seleucid Empire made an alliance with the Indian Maurya Empire. The resulting Greco-Buddhism flourished under the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom (250 BC-125 BC) and the later Indo-Greek Kingdom (180 BC - 10 AD) in modern northern Pakistan and Afghanistan. Greco-Buddhism reached its height under the Kushan Empire, which used the Greek alphabet to write its Bactrian language.

Lokaksema (c. 178 AD), who travelled to the Chinese capital of Luoyang and was the first translator of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese,^[1] and Mahadharmaraksita who, according to the Mahavamsa (Chap. XXIX^[2]), led 30,000 Buddhist monks from "the Greek city of Alasandra" (Alexandria of the Caucasus, around 150 km north of today's Kabul in Afghanistan), to Sri Lanka for the dedication of the Great Stupa in Anuradhapura. The Greco-Bactrian King Menander I, (Pali) "Milinda," ruled 165 BC - 135 BC, was a renowned patron of Buddhism immortalized in the Buddhist text the Milinda Panha.

The famous Persian Buddhist monastery in Balkh in northern Afghanistan, known as Nava Vihara ("New Monastery"), functioned as the center of Central Asia Buddhist learning for centuries.

The Buddhist religion in Afghanistan started fading with the Muslim conquest in the 7th century but finally ended during the Ghaznavids in the 11th century.^[3]