History of Afghan Bamiyan Buddhas

Westerners visit Afghanistan, marvel at its ancient Buddhist past (Morse Collection/Gado/Getty)

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The History of Afghanistan's Bamiyan Buddhas

Redhaired giants surviving in nearby Kandahar

The two colossal Bamiyan Buddhas stood as arguably the most important archeological site in Afghanistan for well over 1,000 years. They were the largest standing Buddha figures in the world.

Then, in a matter of days in the spring of 2001, members of the Taliban [urged on by the CIA and Pakistan's ISI] destroyed the images carved into a cliff face in the Bamiyan Valley. What comes next for Bamiyan?

• Buddhism in Afghanistan (Gandhara)

Big man stands at foot of statue

The smaller Buddha stood about 125 feet (38 meters) tall. It is thought to have been carved from the mountainside around 550 CE, according to radiocarbon dating [of organic matter, which seems very unreliable and based on the assumption that any portion of it is when it was all built].

To the east, the larger Buddha stood some 180 feet (55 meters) high, and was [thought to have been] carved a bit later, likely around 615 CE.

Each Buddha stood in a niche, attached to the back wall along their robes, but with free-standing feet and legs so pilgrims could circumambulate them.

Gandhara Greco-Buddhist art

The stone cores of the statues were originally covered with clay then with a brightly covered clay slip. When the region was actively Buddhist [by the Hazara tribe and earlier the Scythians/Indo-Sakas/Shakyians], visitors' reports suggest that at least the smaller Buddha was decorated with gemstones and enough bronze plating to make it seem as if it were made entirely of bronze or gold, rather than stone and clay.

Both faces were likely rendered in clay attached to wooden scaffolding; the blank, featureless stone core underneath was all that remained by the 19th century, giving the Bamiyan Buddhas an unsettling appearance to foreign travelers who encountered them.

The Buddhas appear to have been the work of the Gandhara civilization, showing some Greco-Roman artistic influence in the clinging drape of the [toga like] monastic robes.

Small cave niches around the statues hosted pilgrims and monastics; many of them feature brightly-painted wall and ceiling oil painted art, illustrating scenes from the life and teachings of the historical Buddha.

In addition to the two tall standing figures, numerous smaller seated Buddhas are carved into the cliff.

In 2008, archeologists rediscovered a buried reclining Buddha figure, 62 feet (19 meters) long, at the foot of the mountainside.

• Cultural landscape and archaeological remains of the Bamiyan Valley (UNESCO World Heritage Centre)
• PHOTO GALLERY (UNESCO World Heritage Centre)

The Bamiyan region remained predominantly Buddhist up until the 9th century. Islam gradually displaced Buddhism in the area because it offered easier trading relations with surrounding Muslim states.

Hazaras relocated to Pakistan

In 1221, Genghis Khan invaded the Bamiyan Valley, wiping out the population, but leaving the Buddhas undamaged. Genetic testing confirms that the Hazara people who now live in Bamiyan are descended from the Mongols.

Most Muslim rulers and travelers in the area either expressed wonder at the statues or paid them little heed. For example, Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire, passed through the Bamiyan Valley in 1506-7 but did not even mention the Buddhas in his journal.

Band-e Amir National Park, Afghanistan (Wiki)

The later Mughal emperor Aurangzeb (r. 1658-1707) reportedly tried to destroy the Buddhas using artillery; he was famously conservative, and even banned music during his reign, in a foreshadowing of Taliban rule. Aurangzeb's reaction was the exception, however, not the rule among Muslim observers of the Bamiyan Buddhas. More

• Archaeologists find giant 'sleeping' [reclining] Buddha in Afghanistan
• Kallie Szczepanski, May 23, 2018 (Thoughtco.com, The History of Afghanistan's Bamiyan Buddhas); Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly