Gandhara Gandhāra (also Ghandara, Ghandahra) is the ancient name of a region in eastern Afghanistan and north-west Pakistan centered on the Swat River (see Udyana) and Kabul River tributaries of the Indus River. Its primary cities were Peshawar and Taxila. Buddha's First Sermon at Sarnath, Kushan Period, ca. 3rd century Pakistan (ancient region of Gandhara) Gandhāra is noted for the distinctive Gandhāra style of Buddhist art, a consequence of the Greco-Buddhist syncretism which fused Indian influences with Hellenistic influences during the centuries following Alexander the Great's conquest of Central Asia in 334 BCE. The Gandhāran style flourished beginning in the 1st century CE under the Kushan dynasty until the invasion of the White Huns in the 5th century. The Gandharan Buddhist texts are both the earliest Buddhist texts ever discovered and the earliest Indian manuscripts ever discovered. Most are composed on birchbark and were found in labeled clay pots. The area's language, Gāndhārī, was a collection of related Prakrit or "Middle Indo-Aryan" dialects. Gāndhārī was written right-to-left in the Kharoṣṭhī script, which was ultimately adapted from the Aramaic alphabet. At the time of its adoption, Gandhāra was controlled by the Achaemenid dynasty of the Persian empire, which used a similar script to write the related Iranian languages of the Empire. This alphabet also sets Gāndhārī apart as a unique set of dialects of the Middle Indo-Aryan period; Semitic scripts were not used to write Indian languages again until the arrival of Islam and subsequent adoption of the Persian-style Arabic alphabet for New Indo-Aryan languages like Urdu, Sindhi and Kashmiri. This unique writing system died out about the 4th century CE, though descendents of these distinct regional dialects are still spoken today. Gandhāra is also thought to be the location of the mystical Lake Dhanakosha, birthplace of Padmasambhava, founder of Tibetan Buddhism. The bKa' brgyud (Kagyu) sect of Tibetan Buddhism identifies the lake with Andan Dheri stupa, located near the tiny village of Uchh near Chakdara in the lower Swat Valley. A spring was said to flow from the base of the stupa to form the lake. Archaeologists have found the stupa but no spring or lake can be identified. Timeline c.2300-c.1700 BCE Indus Valley civilization c.1700-c.520 BCE No records c.520-c.400 BCE Persian Empire c.329-c.316 BCE Occupied by Alexander the Great and Macedonian generals c.316-c.180 BCE Controlled by the Maurya dynasty, founded by Chandragupta. Converted to Buddhism under King Asoka (273-232 BCE) c.180-c.10 BCE Under control of the Indo-Greek Kingdom, with some incursions of the Indo-Scythians from around 100 BCE. c.10 BCE-c.20 CE (Common Era) Kushan Empire c.20-c.75 CE Parthian invasion and Indo-Parthian Kingdom . Rule of Commander Aspavarman? c.75 CE- c.230 CE Kushan Empire c.230-c.300 CE Kushanshahs A Persian state established as a buffer zone and a Persian dependency. c.300-c.450 CE Controlled by the Guptas c.450-c.565 CE White Huns (Hephthalites) c.565-c.712 CE Local control c.712-850 CE Controlled by the Caliphate External link Map of Gandhara archeological sites, from the Huntington Collection, Ohio State University (large file) The Buddhist Manuscript project University of Washington's Gandharan manuscript Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gandhara