Gandhara Week in Pakistan

The Ministry of Tourism in Pakistan celebrated "Gandhara Week" from March 27 to April 1 to promote the heritage of the Gandhara civilisation and to highlight the collections exhibited in various museums in the country.

Around 99 delegates from nine countries including China, Japan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Korea and the United States participated in the festival. The tourists visited Taxila, Swat and the Northern Areas to observe the magnificent relics that are reminiscent of the glorious age between 600 BC and 600 AD.

Managing Director of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation Salman Javed on the occasion said the main purpose of the event was to highlight the "immeasurable treasure" of Gandharan artefacts. He said the visitors would be given an insight into the richness of the ancient civilisation.

Aerial view of Dharamrajika stupa where the sound and light show portraying the ancient Buddhist culture was held. The Pakistan government is highlighting the ancient civilisations and cultures to promote the soft image of the country in the world, he added.

This year's theme was "historical review of the world's Ancient "Buddhist Civilization". Commenting on the Gandhara Week, the delegates were of the view that such events would promote religious tourism in Pakistan. Pakistan harbours rich Buddhist treasures.

Gandhara is the one of the holiest places for followers of Buddhism and is the place from where the religion flourished across the globe. According to Prof Sehrai, an expert on the Buddhist art and architecture of South Asia, the first Buddha image of the world was created in Gandhara which was its greatest gift to the world of Buddhism.

The Gandhara art reached the climax due to the royal patronage of Emperor Kanishka and prosperity which Gandhara achieved from foreign trade and commerce on Silk roads which connected it with Central Asia, Western countries and South Asia. The reasons for the decline of the art are attributed to the lack of royal patronage after Kanishka's death and the disconnection of Silk roads by the Sassanian rulers of Iran.

A sound and light show portrying the ancient Buddhist culture was also held at Dharamrajika stupa and monastery during the celebrations. The Stupa is the oldest monument in Taxila and comprises of a number of buildings and a monastery.

Gandhara Week celebrations are a regular annual feature of Pakistan's Ministry of Tourism. The participants visited museums at Lok Virsa, Islamabad and Taxila, archaeological sites, Buddhist sacred places in Taxila, Shahbazgari, Swat, Takht Bahi and Peshawar.

Many renowned foreigners including archaeologists, historians, scholars, journalists, tourists and tour-operators from all over the world participated in the event.